A Guide for Nonprofit Marketers on Google Ad Grants
Nonprofit organizations must increase their online presence to raise awareness, and Google Ad Grants is the solution for nonprofit marketers.
With so much competition in the nonprofit advertising industry, nonprofit organizations can no longer rely on direct mail and door-to-door marketing tactics to increase donations. Instead, nonprofit marketers must develop an online presence using search engine optimization (SEO) and social media tactics to drive website traffic.
As nonprofit sector budgets tighten, organizations can use marketing tools like Google Ad Grants to maximize their marketing campaigns without spending a fortune.
To help nonprofits build and monitor campaigns, partnering with local media, like Southern California News Group, can significantly impact your Google Ad Grants campaigns.
Keep reading this post to learn more about why nonprofits should invest in Google Ads Grants.
What is Google Ad Grants?
You are in luck if your nonprofit organization has not heard about Google Ad Grants. This post will define the program and its benefits.
According to the Google Ad Grants website, since 2003, Google has awarded over $10 billion in free advertising to over 115,000 nonprofits in 51 countries. Google Ad Grants is a program that provides eligible nonprofit organizations with free advertising credits to use on Google Ads.
The program provides nonprofits up to $10,000 per month of in-kind search advertising. Google Ad Grants empower nonprofits to create text-based ads that appear in Google search results.
Allowing nonprofits to promote their missions, attract volunteers, and increase donations without the financial burden typically associated with online marketing.
Who is eligible for Google Ad Grants?
Google Ad Grants is another advertising avenue for nonprofit organizations to reach a wider audience, raise awareness for their cause, and attract donors and volunteers. However, nonprofits must meet the program's eligibility criteria to target their desired audience.
To take advantage of Google Ad Grants, organizations must the following eligibility criteria:
Nonprofit status: Organizations must hold valid nonprofit status. In the U.S., nonprofits must be registered as having 501 (c) (3) status. Not in the U.S.? Here are Google's eligibility criteria for other countries.
Google for Nonprofits Membership: The Google Ad Grants program includes a separate Ad Grant application. Nonprofits must enroll in the Google for Nonprofits program to access the grants.
Website quality: Google requires nonprofits to have an active, high-quality website. Nonprofit marketers must ensure that their website provides information about their mission and donation activity and is HTTPS secure. Google will assess the site's quality to ensure a good user experience.
Ad Grants policy compliance: Organizations must adhere to all Google Ad Grants guidelines and policies to maintain eligibility. Click here to learn more about Google's Ad Grants Policy Compliance Guide.
Here are five benefits of Google Ads Grants for nonprofits.
Nonprofit marketing can be tricky, but if you already have a functioning, active, and high-quality website, applying for the Google Ad Grants program is an excellent way to maximize your marketing efforts and reach your desired audience.
Your target audience is most likely researching causes related to your nonprofit. Aside from reaching a wider audience and receiving free funding, there are more benefits to investing in Google Ad Grants.
Below are five key benefits of the Google Ad Grants program for nonprofits:
1. Better site engagement
Nonprofit marketers create valuable, educational content for their websites to attract visitors interested in their causes and mission. Marketers must also invest in paid advertising so that audiences can see their compelling content.
With Google Ad Grants, nonprofit marketers can rest assured that their content will reach the right audiences. Ad Grants allow marketers to direct audiences to the website pages they will find most valuable, which will help improve your website user experience.
2. Increased online conversions
Driving potential users to your website is essential for raising awareness, but nonprofits must also convert these audiences into donors or volunteers. Google Ad Grants provide nonprofits with the ability to effectively promote key pages and forms to increase conversions related to the following activities:
Event registration and ticket sales
Donations
Volunteer sign-ups
Online petition signatures
Email list sign-ups.
Managing your Google Ad Grants account can help you build online rapport with your community and reach a wider audience, especially when you develop landing pages specifically catered to your audience and conversion goals.
3. Enhanced supporter communications
Google Ad Grants provide a platform to share important updates and initiatives, fostering a stronger connection with the community. As nonprofit marketing continues to deal with evolving forms of communication and increasing online engagement across various platforms, Google Ad Grants is an excellent addition to your communication strategy.
With Ad Grants, nonprofit marketers can strategically promote their organization's content on Google. Your content will be displayed to users interacting with similar causes, targeting longtime supporters and newer relevant audiences.
4. Insight into Digital Supporters' Motivations
When nonprofit marketers implement Google Ad Grants, they can monitor and track campaign performance through Google Analytics.
Google Analytics will provide nonprofit marketers with in-depth data, including:
Ad campaign success
The sources that drive users to your website.
User actions on your website.
Through Google Analytics, nonprofits can gain valuable insights into the behavior and preferences of their online audience, which can help tailor future marketing campaigns.
5. There is no competition for funds.
Unlike traditional grants, Google Ad Grants operate on a pay-per-click model. This allows organizations to use a fixed budget without competing against other nonprofits for funding.
With Google Ad Grants, there is no competition for grant money, which is great news for nonprofit organizations. Organizations that meet the program criteria and apply to Google Ad Grants will receive $10,000 in ad credits every month.
Seven best practices for increasing fundraising with Google Ad Grants.
To effectively leverage Google Ad Grants for your organization, we've curated seven best practices to implement to increase awareness and fundraising efforts.
1. Develop a keyword strategy.
Nonprofit marketers must focus on long-tail keywords for their ads. The more specific your keywords are, the more likely your ad campaign will be viewed by your target audience.
When your campaign concentrates on longer, more detailed keywords, it can help you achieve prominence with your target audience. Below are some tips to help you develop a successful keyword strategy:
Use the keyword in your web address.
Place the keyword in the page title (H1).
You can select a primary keyword for your article and include it in the body text, along with two to four relevant keywords.
Use keywords in the meta description.
Rename image file names (alt) to reflect the keyword.
2. Work out negative keywords.
Negative keywords are the opposite of those marketers create for their ad campaigns. They are keywords marketers do not want their ad campaigns associated with or displayed when advertised.
Nonprofit marketers must identify negative keywords that do not contribute to their goals. This prevents their ads from appearing in unrelated searches. Google Ads allows marketers to find related keywords and add them to the negative keywords list.
Enhancing ad relevance makes them more engaging for your audience and reduces wasted impressions.
3. Don't forget about ad groups.
Nonprofit marketers should consider organizing their keywords into general categories. All ad groups within a campaign should lead users to the same landing page. By ensuring that their ad groups lead to the same landing page, marketers create a more relevant and seamless customer experience.
An ad group in Google Ads consists of one or more ads that share a standard set of keywords. The ad group is between a campaign and individual ads. At the ad group level, you can set up:
Demographics of your target audience.
Appearance of your ads at the ad-set level through keywords, topics, and placements.
4. Create relevant landing pages for your ad campaigns.
For nonprofit organizations to successfully drive users from their ad campaign to a landing page, marketers must develop relevant landing pages that match the ad based on keyword and ad copy.
Marketers should consider the following when developing landing pages:
Provide a clear and compelling headline and your organization's logo.
A strong call to action.
Communicate directly with users clicking on your ads.
Do not place links or buttons from other pages.
Provide testimonials or social proof.
Always include a visual element.
5. Make use of geo-tagging.
Marketers must target audiences based on location for an ad campaign to have a high engagement rate. Geotargeting is an excellent way to reach the most relevant audiences.
With Google Ads, nonprofit marketers can use location targeting, allowing their ads to appear in the locations where their organization plans to increase its online presence and customer base.
6. Focus on conversions.
To make the most of your ad spending, nonprofit marketers must focus on driving high-quality traffic to their website because Google Ads prefers higher conversion rates.
Remember, to increase conversions, Google wants nonprofit organizations to use bidding strategies such as Target CPA, Maximize Conversions, and Enhanced CPC.
7. Measure, analyze, repeat.
With Google Ad Grants, nonprofits have access to can access, which helps track and report campaign performance.
Here are some tips for monitoring campaign performance on Google Analytics to better tailor your ad campaigns:
Pause or remove any irrelevant keywords that are causing you to overspend.
Replace paused keywords with new ones.
Pause, decrease bids, or remove keywords with high clicks but low conversion rates.
Remember that Google Ad Grants requires at least two ad groups per ad group. This is excellent for testing and tailoring your ad copy, helping marketers realize which ads perform better and have higher CTRs.
Measuring and evaluating your campaign success rate is crucial to increasing fundraising efforts, so always make it a habit to monitor your campaign insights.
Working with a Google Ad Grants Agency like Southern California News Group alleviates marketing hiccups.
Engaging with a specialized Google Ad Grants agency can provide nonprofits with the expertise and strategic guidance needed to navigate the complexities of online advertising.
Southern California News Group's marketing and creative strategists are here to help your nonprofit organization streamline campaign setup, optimize ad performance, and ensure compliance with Google's requirements, ultimately maximizing the effectiveness of the grants.
By embracing these strategies and harnessing the power of Google Ad Grants, nonprofit organizations can significantly elevate their advertising efforts, foster deeper community connections, and drive success in their fundraising endeavors.
If you need more marketing tips, head to the SCNG Advertising marketing blog.
Article written by Natalya Jaime.