Google for Nonprofits Grant Gives You $120,000 in FREE Ads Each Year FOREVER

Did you know that there are more than 3.5 billion searches on Google every day?

Google has long been the most widely used search engine around the world, making its ad space some of the most highly sought after anywhere on the internet. So what would you say if someone told you that your nonprofit could receive up to $10,000 a month in Google Ads completely free of charge?

Though this offer may sound too good to be true, it is exactly what Google provides for charity organizations that take part in their Google Ad Grants program.

Just think of the impact $120,000 in Google Ads each year could make on the performance and success of your nonprofit. The program offers the opportunity to expand your reach, further your cause, and bring in more donations than ever before without having to spend a dime.

So what are you waiting for? Here’s how you organization can get started with your very own Google for Nonprofits Grant!

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Before we dive into the details of the Google Ad Grants program, let’s first take a look at how it got started.

Google Adwords for Nonprofits was launched in 2003, three years after the first commercial version of AdWords was released in 2000. In an effort to promote their core value of community service and help benefit others by supporting nonprofit organizations, Google began building and managing accounts for charities.

This model did not last long, however, as the number of organizations grew, and the company quickly decided to switch over to a setup in which the nonprofits had to create and maintain their own AdWords accounts.

Now more than 20,000 nonprofits in more than 50 countries around the world are supported by Google as a part of this philanthropic program.

So what exactly is Google for Nonprofits, and what does a Google Grant include?

Google Ad Grants are just one aspect of a larger collection of programs created by Google called Google for Nonprofits. When a nonprofit registers with Google, they not only gain access to the $10,000 a month in Google AdWords expenditure, they can also use specialized versions of the G Suite and YouTube, as well as the charity-specific programs Google One Today and Google Earth Outreach.

At present, Google for Nonprofits is available in more than 50 countries around the world, though not every program is available in every country.

As for Google Grants, it is available in nearly every participating country and includes the previously mentioned $10,000 a month in in-kind AdWords advertising, which comes with two options for handling your account. Organizations can elect to manage their accounts entirely on their own, or, for those nonprofits without the time or experience to do everything themselves, there is the option to use AdWords Express to help you organize and oversee your account.

While there’s no denying that $10,000 in advertising is a generous offer that can profoundly benefit your organization, there are a few limitations when using Google Ad Grants that you need to be aware of before you start.

• First, your ads are required to be entirely text-based, meaning they cannot include images or videos of any kind.
• They will appear only on Google search results pages, and they’ll always show up in positions lower than those of paying advertisers. This means that YouTube, remarketing, and mobile app campaigns are not covered by the grant money, though Dynamic Search Ads (DSA) and Call-Only campaigns are still allowed.
• Some other limitations include the fact that all of the ad campaigns you run with your Google Ad Grants money must be keyword-targeted and that you will always have a maximum cost-per-click (CPC) of $2​. ​
• The CPC limitation has the potential to hinder certain organizations more than others, depending on how competitive their market is, but this still does not mean that the ads won’t bring in any traffic or have any conversions. However, it is an incentive to get your Quality Score as close to 10 as possible quickly in order to maximize your exposure.
  

Overall, despite the limitations that Google Ad Grants places on the advertising money given to nonprofits, it is still an amazing opportunity for charity organizations to grow their web presence, reach new audiences, and bring in a greater number of donations that they would otherwise be able to afford.

When you go to the Google Ad Grants website, you may see mention of a program called Google GrantsPro, but unfortunately it is no longer available to new grant recipients (though there is always the possibility that Google could decide to bring it back like they did in 2014).

After the original Grants program was met with so much success, Google partnered with GrantsPro in an effort to further their assistance of nonprofits. Organizations with exceptionally strong ad performance would then become eligible for an upgrade to the GrantsPro program. Through this enhanced version of Google Grants, organizations were able to receive up to $30,000 in ads per month in addition to the initial $10,000, bringing their monthly total to a whopping $40,000.

Unfortunately, this option was eliminated in 2012, brought back in 2014, and then done away with again in September of 2016. Thankfully, those organizations that were already accepted into the GrantsPro program were able to continue using it, but the application to become a new user is no longer available.

The official word from Google is that this is a permanent move, but only time will tell if that will remain the case or if the company will decide to open the GrantsPro program once again as they have in the past.

So now that you’ve heard about this potentially game-changing opportunity, you may be ready to start putting that $10,000 in ads to work for your organization. But before you start planning your campaigns, there are a few things you have to do in order to be approved for Google Grants.

Before actually applying for Google Ad Grants, you will need to make sure your nonprofit is eligible to be a recipient. The first set of requirements is for any nonprofit considering applying, regardless of where it is located, and includes the following rules:

• The organization must be not-for-profit and in good standing in its home country.
• If located outside of the USA, the charity must be registered with its local TechSoup partner and validated as a nonprofit organization.
• Government entities and organizations, hospitals and healthcare organizations, and schools, academic institutions, and universities are not eligible for Google Grants. However, in some cases, if these types of institutions have foundations that are nonprofit, those can be used to apply and be accepted.

The second set of standards your organization must meet varies based on the country in which you are based. For example, charities in the United States must meet the following requirements:

• The IRS must recognize organizations as being tax-exempt 501(c)(3) and formed for charitable, educational, religious, literary, scientific, or other tax-exempt purposes.
• Organizations that are fiscally sponsored are not eligible for Google for Nonprofits.
• Any organization, such as churches, that are automatically considered tax-exempt under group exemption are still required to obtain recognition of 501(c)(3) tax exemption from the IRS in order to qualify for the Google for Nonprofits program.
• Organizations must also be currently registered with TechSoup.

Google Grants are currently available to charities in about 50 countries, and the country-specific guidelines can be viewed here.

There are also certain standards that must be met and guidelines that must be followed in order to remain eligible for Google Grants and to continue receiving your $10,000 of monthly ads. To stay qualified, your organization must adhere to the following rules:

• Your ads may link to one (and only one) website domain, and this should be the same domain approved in your initial application.
• It is necessary to actively manage your AdWords account, which includes logging in at least once a month and making a minimum of one change to your account every 90 days.
• All of your ads and keywords need to align with your organization’s programs and services.
• It is prohibited to engage in strictly commercial advertising. 100% of the proceeds from your ads must go directly to supporting your program if you’re promoting products or services.
• Your ads are not allowed to link to pages that are primarily composed of links to other websites.
• Offering financial products (like mortgages or credit cards), as well as requesting donations of cars, boats, or other property, in your ads is prohibited.
• Your site may not display Google AdSense ads or affiliate advertising links.

Once you have determined that your nonprofit is eligible for Google Ad Grants, it is time to apply. But don’t worry, the process is very straightforward and most organizations that apply are approved.

In order to use Google Ad Grants, the first step is to apply for a Google for Nonprofits account. Once you have been approved, you will be able to set up your AdWords (or AdWords Express, if you prefer that option) account and begin planning your campaign.

The final step is then to submit your account for review, which allows Google to ensure that your campaign is operating within their guidelines. After Google gives you the green light, you are good to start using that grant money and running your ads.

Remember that the more you monitor and adjust your campaigns, the more you can fine tune it to maximize their effectiveness. Google may only require you to log into your account once a month and make changes every three, but the more time and resources you are willing to invest in your AdWords campaign, the greater the benefits your nonprofit will likely reap.

$10,000 a month in Google AdWords advertising is no drop in the hat, but just setting up campaigns without putting in the necessary time and research is not enough. It is important to strategize and carefully craft well thought out advertising campaigns in order to use your money as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Here are 8 ways to make sure your organization is getting the most out of its grant money.

If you really want to get all you can out of your Google Ad Grant and spend the full $10,000 given to your organization each month, you’re going to need to set up several different campaigns. With the CPC limitations Google has in place for nonprofits, it would be nearly impossible to use your entire allowance without running multiple campaigns targeting different sectors of your audience.

The best way to do this is to set up a campaign for each individual program and objective your organization has that you feel would be worthwhile to advertise.

You can create campaigns focused on:

• Enticing visitors to subscribe to your email list
• Directing them to new blog posts
• Selling donated items
• Branding, introducing or highlighting programs and services
• Publicizing events and fundraisers
• Asking for cash donations
• Filling volunteer or job openings, and more

Whatever your nonprofit would benefit most from sharing with the public, those are the things on which your campaigns should be centered.

Keyword research is absolutely essential when creating your AdWords campaigns, but identifying the best keywords to use for your given objective can be a tricky process that takes time and practice to master.

One of the key things to remember is that you want to make sure you’re using keywords that are specific to the content of the webpage to which your ad is sending visitors. To get the best results and a higher ranking on Google, you can use a keyword research tool to select the best performing keywords.

It is important to use a mixture of both short and long-tail (low volume) keywords because they serve different purposes, though long-tail keywords are often going to be the predominant focus, especially for smaller organizations.

Short-tail keywords have a much higher search volume but are also more competitive, meaning that it is harder to rank for these terms and that the traffic they attract is less focused and likely to convert than the traffic brought in by long-tail keywords. Long-tail keywords may not have as high of search volume as short-tail, but they are generally cheaper and bring in traffic that is more likely to be truly interested in your organization.

Finding the right balance of keywords takes some trial and error, but that’s alright because every nonprofit is going to find a slightly different balance and list that works for them. Don’t be afraid to tweak your list as you go and make adjustments as you get a feel for what works and what doesn’t.

Plus, the ads are free! So no worries...

When writing your ads, it is important to keep in mind that not every person within your target audience will respond to any given approach in the same way. It is a good practice to test 3 or 4 different variations of your ad targeted to different segments of your audience in order to get a clear idea of which will be most effective.

As you run your ads and begin to gather feedback on how they are performing, you can decide what type of copy seems to be most persuasive for your target audience. You should also keep in mind that different campaigns may require different types of language depending on their objectives.

An ad designed to grow your email list is not going to use the same style of copy as one trying to fill a volunteer opening, so don’t be afraid to try new things as you expand your campaigns and grow your advertising reach.

Choosing the page to which your ad will direct visitors needs to be a strategic decision made with the intent of increasing your conversion rate. Your home page is most likely not the place you want to be directing people with your ad; instead you should choose a landing page, blog post, or some other piece of engaging content that provides visitors with useful information pertaining to the advertisement that prompted them to click.

If you want to collect the contact information of new visitors to your site, keep your forms short and simple. The more they have to fill out, the less likely they are to take the time to do it. If you are asking them to subscribe to a newsletter or mailing list, a simple name and email address will do.

On your contact form, you may want to ask for a phone number or their address, but the main thing is to ask for only the information that is absolutely necessary at that point in your relationship. You can always ask for more info later once you’ve gained more trust with them.

Remember that the traffic you bring in with your AdWords campaigns often consists mostly of visitors who are on your site for the first time, so you don’t want to overwhelm or intimidate them by asking for too much right off the bat. If you can make that initial connection by gathering a name and email address, you will then have the opportunity to ask for increased commitment as you grow your relationship and build trust over time.

Once you draw people to your site, your goal should be to grab their attention and be memorable.

The best way to do this is by giving them useful information that is easy to digest and something they won’t soon forget. Statistics are perfect for doing just that. Try to identify a few astounding pieces of information that tie into your cause and will stick with your website visitors, and then use those stats on the page to which your ad is linked.

Just be sure that the content of the page to which your ad is directing visitors correlates with the ad on which they clicked. Nothing is more frustrating and more likely to deter a visitor from taking interest in your organization than a misleading ad that takes them to an unrelated webpage.

Regardless of what page your ad takes visitors to, it is important to try to find a way to gather their contact information when possible.

If people are spending time on your site, it means that they are that much more likely to be interested in your cause and open to becoming involved than the general populace. The last thing you want to do is direct new visitors to your site without making an effort to convert them into something more. If you are able to gather an email address, you then have the opportunity to follow up and continue the dialogue your ad began.

Here are some useful ideas on how to capture email addresses on your website without off-putting new visitors.

As mentioned earlier, traffic you receive from Google ads often mostly consists of first-time visitors to your website. The goal, however, is to turn these casual visits into something more. Step by step, you want to bring people into your network and increase their level of involvement with and commitment to your organization.

Here is a breakdown of the different levels of involvement you will see as you progress down the donor funnel:

1. Visitors
2. Subscribers
3. Supporters
4. Donors
5. Ambassadors 

The process of converting visitors into more formal advocates takes time and careful interaction designed to encourage them from one phase to the next. Your ads are where it all begins, as the initial conversion is made when people with no ties to your organization decide to click your advertisement and become visitors to your website.

Next, email acquisition comes into play. By finding a way to encourage visitors to submit their email address or phone number in order to download a resource or join a mailing list, you have transformed your visitor into a subscriber.

After this step, that is when your email campaigns, newsletters, and social media involvement take center stage. As subscribers learn more about who you are and the impact your nonprofit is making, some make the leap to supporters.

The final two stages, donors and ambassadors, are the most important for the success and longevity of your organization. Your fundraising campaigns should be created with the intention of calling supporters to action, converting them into first-time (and then hopefully second-, third-, and ongoing) donors. For many people, a donor is the furthest they will be willing to go, but you do not want to miss out on that final conversion.

Brand and social media ambassadors go beyond just giving their time and money to your charity. They are the people who are willing to join you in promoting your nonprofit and converting others to supporters and donors. In a world where organizations are reliant on networking and building trust and relationships with those involved in their cause, ambassadors are an invaluable resource that connects a friendly, relatable face with your nonprofit’s name.

So why is using Google Ad Grants so important?

It all comes down to exposure. Every click on a Google ad is a chance for your nonprofit to make a new connection. In a world where networking plays such an integral part in the success of an organization, be it charitable or for-profit, finding a way to increase the traffic to your website and start new relationships with potential donors is crucial.

Here are a few nonprofits that have truly realized the full potential of Google Ad Grants and experienced the impact the program can have when used in the right way.

Science Buddies is an online nonprofit that was designed to help students from every walk of life build their literacy in both science and technology in order to better equip them to participate in the modern world in which we live. They provide resources to students, parents, and teachers to make sure that every kid has the opportunity to learn about science regardless of their background. As one of the first organizations to sign up with the Google Grants program, the Science Buddies story is one that captures the growth and success that can be achieved.

After joining Google for Nonprofits and starting their AdWords campaigns, Science Buddies had 171,000 unique visits to their website due to Ad Grants in their first year alone. By year three, Google Grants had doubled the traffic to their website, and now, just within the last year, Science Buddies has registered more than 100,000 students and 1,500 teachers on their site.

Their president and founder Kenneth Hess attributes much of their growth and success to the program, claiming, “Ad Grants really put us on the map!” With the traction they were able to gain using their grant money, Science Buddies has now gone on to update to a mobile-friendly site that better accommodates the 25% of their users that are visiting via a mobile device and plans to increase marketing of other programs they have developed to generate even more funding.

The best part about Google Ad Grants is that the experience of Science Buddies is just one of thousands. Other organizations like Caritas, GlobalGiving, and We Care Animal Rescue all have similar stories of growth and achievement that are largely thanks to the use of their in-kind advertising money provided through this program.

If you want to see further inspiration or the impact that Google Ad Grants has had on other organizations, check out Google’s list of success stories.

Ready to start utilizing all that free Google Ads Grant money?

Ally360 is here to help. Sadly, though organizations have access to the full $10,000 each month, most nonprofits that don’t hire some kind of professional help end up spending an average of only about $330 out of their monthly budget. That is $9,670 of unused ad money EVERY MONTH!

As a marketing firm designed to help nonprofits succeed through expertise, marketing, and education, we have the resources and experience necessary here at Ally360 to make sure that you’re taking full advantage of you Google Grants money in a way that will best benefit your organization