Grants
How to Leverage Google Ad Grants for Outreach
July 1, 2019
The short answer: Google Ad Grants gives eligible 501(c)(3) nonprofits up to $10,000 each month in free search advertising on Google, so you can reach people searching for causes like yours without touching your own budget. To use it well, get approved through Google's pre-qualification process, build keyword-targeted text ads that point to strong landing pages, and keep testing your copy and keywords so more of those clicks turn into donors and volunteers. Tying those ads to clear donation pages, like the ones you can build in an all-in-one platform such as Argenta, helps that free traffic become real support.
What is the Google Ad Grants program?
Google created Ad Grants to give qualifying nonprofits the education and funding to start advertising online. Enrolled nonprofits are eligible for up to $10,000 each month in Google Ads, plus free access to tools like smarter search insights, the YouTube Nonprofit Program, and Google donation tools. It has helped organizations across the country raise awareness and find new supporters.
Who is eligible for Google Ad Grants?
Your organization needs a legal 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, a high-quality website, and approval through Google's pre-qualification process. As long as you hold that status, the program itself is free to join. If you meet the requirements, you can create your Ad Grants account and apply.
How much funding do nonprofits get through Google Ad Grants?
Each month, enrolled nonprofits are eligible for up to $10,000 in Google Ads spending. The ads run on the search results page, and your maximum cost-per-click is capped at $2.00. Writing strong ad copy and building high-quality landing pages helps you make the most of that monthly amount.
How do you get started with Google Ad Grants?
First confirm your organization is eligible, then create your Ad Grants account and submit the pre-qualification survey. Next you watch the Ad Grants training video and take a short quiz, then submit your account for pre-qualification review. Google's review can take several business days, and after approval you should have access right away.
What are the ad rules and limits for Google Ad Grants?
Ads are text-based only and show on the search results page below the paid ads, so you cannot run photos or videos. Your maximum cost-per-click budget is $2.00, which makes a strong quality score important. You can raise that score by matching your ad copy to your website and creating relevant, well-built landing pages.
How can a nonprofit get better results from Google Ad Grants?
Start with thorough keyword research, keeping the terms that fit your cause and cutting anything irrelevant or confusing. Add some long-tail phrases (for example, how can I help my local youth services organization) that have lower search volume but are more likely to lead to a click. Then A/B test different ad copy and landing page versions instead of assuming you know how your audience will respond.
Google created the Google Ad Grants program to provide qualifying nonprofits with the education and financial assistance they need to get started. Each month, nonprofits enrolled in the program are eligible to receive $10,000 for Google Ads. In addition, nonprofits can also receive free access to useful Google Ad tools, such as smarter search insights, G Suite for Nonprofits, the YouTube Nonprofit Program, Google Donation Tools and more.
The program has been a tremendous help to nonprofits across the nation. Consider success story - Days for Girls, an organization who relies on their Google Ad Grants to raise awareness for their cause, and find supporters to help them empower women around the world. In just two months, Google Ad Grants helped Days for Girls increase their average donation value by $212, total donations by $5,000, and conversions by 400.
Another great case study is DoSomething.org who has cultivated a reputation for social change, particularly the issues that young people care most about. They sought to use Google Ads to encourage socially active youth to register and vote. After combining Google Analytics with the conversion tracking insights provided by Google Ad Grants, DoSomething.org was able to reach a wider audience with a more relevant message. After six months, the campaign resulted in “100,000 website visits, 32,000 conversions, with an average click-through rate of 12%,” according to the organization.
Let's take a look at Google Ad Grants, and give you an idea of how you can boost awareness for your own nonprofit.
The Benefits of Google Ad Grants
- The same access to Google Ad tools as other marketers. With the exception of your ads being limited to the search ad platform, your organization has all the tools that other marketers can use on Google Ads.
- Smarter insights - Learn about the people looking for you, how they found your ad, and how to improve your future ads. Use this data to better inform your overall ad strategy.
- Community support and documentation - Google Ad Grants has helped hundreds of nonprofit organizations around the world. There’s always someone available to help you through the process. You can contact the Google Ad Grants support community here.
- It’s free - As long as your organization has a legal 501(c)(3) status, you don’t have to pay to be part of the program.
Getting Started with Google Ad Grants
- To use Google Ad Grants, your organization must be eligible. This means a legal nonprofit status, a high-quality website, and an approval through the pre-qualification process.
- If you meet all the requirements, you're ready to create your Ad Grants account.
- Next you'll submit the pre-qualification survey.
- Then you'll watch the Ad Grants training video and take a short quiz.
- Finally you'll submit your account for pre-qualification review.
- Google will review your submission. This may take several business days depending on the number of requests Google receives, but after that, you should have immediate access to Google Ad Grants.
Helpful Tips for Using Google Ad Grants
Remember your ad constraints. That goes for your budget as well as the ad specifications. Google Ad Grants will only allow you to display text-based ads on the search results page (below paid ads), so you won’t be able to display any photos or videos. Your maximum cost-per-click (CPC) budget will be $2.00, so plan accordingly. One of the best ways to stay under this limit is to improve quality score by writing strong ad copy related to your website, as well as developing high-quality landing pages.
Conduct keyword research. Every Google Ad Grants campaign is keyword-targeted. Start by creating a thorough list of all the related keywords to your niche or cause. Then, eliminate all irrelevant, confusing, or misleading keywords. You’ll also want to add some “out-of-the-box” keywords and phrases, occasionally referred to as long-tail keywords. These keywords don’t necessarily have high search volume, but are more likely to lead to a click (such as “how can I help my local youth services organization”).
There are tools available to help you with your keyword research. Websites like Moz and Ahrefs are among the very best, but they can be costly for nonprofits. Google Keyword Planner, Keyword Tool, and BuzzSumo are some of our favorite free alternatives.
A/B test for better results. Some ads will perform stronger than others, it’s a careful balance between the selected keywords, ad copy, and landing page design. Don’t let assumptions determine your ad strategy. Instead, be sure by running tests. Combine different copy with landing page variants and check your results. You might learn that your audience gravitates to certain keywords more than others, or certain landing page designs may lead to greater conversions. Never assume you know how your audience will respond.
Don’t let money, time, or experience hold you back from expanding your nonprofit’s reach and growing your support base. Use Google Ad Grants to jump-start your online advertising and move your mission forward.
Frequently asked questionsDon’t let money, time, or experience hold you back from expanding your nonprofit’s reach and growing your support base. Use Google Ad Grants to jump-start your online advertising and move your mission forward.
What is the Google Ad Grants program?
Google created Ad Grants to give qualifying nonprofits the education and funding to start advertising online. Enrolled nonprofits are eligible for up to $10,000 each month in Google Ads, plus free access to tools like smarter search insights, the YouTube Nonprofit Program, and Google donation tools. It has helped organizations across the country raise awareness and find new supporters.
Who is eligible for Google Ad Grants?
Your organization needs a legal 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, a high-quality website, and approval through Google's pre-qualification process. As long as you hold that status, the program itself is free to join. If you meet the requirements, you can create your Ad Grants account and apply.
How much funding do nonprofits get through Google Ad Grants?
Each month, enrolled nonprofits are eligible for up to $10,000 in Google Ads spending. The ads run on the search results page, and your maximum cost-per-click is capped at $2.00. Writing strong ad copy and building high-quality landing pages helps you make the most of that monthly amount.
How do you get started with Google Ad Grants?
First confirm your organization is eligible, then create your Ad Grants account and submit the pre-qualification survey. Next you watch the Ad Grants training video and take a short quiz, then submit your account for pre-qualification review. Google's review can take several business days, and after approval you should have access right away.
What are the ad rules and limits for Google Ad Grants?
Ads are text-based only and show on the search results page below the paid ads, so you cannot run photos or videos. Your maximum cost-per-click budget is $2.00, which makes a strong quality score important. You can raise that score by matching your ad copy to your website and creating relevant, well-built landing pages.
How can a nonprofit get better results from Google Ad Grants?
Start with thorough keyword research, keeping the terms that fit your cause and cutting anything irrelevant or confusing. Add some long-tail phrases (for example, how can I help my local youth services organization) that have lower search volume but are more likely to lead to a click. Then A/B test different ad copy and landing page versions instead of assuming you know how your audience will respond.