Marketing Solutions to Empower Your Nonprofit
What could you do with $10,000 of in-kind advertising every month? Imagine the volunteers you could recruit and donors you could attract. Imagine being able to share your story with others throughout world.
With Google Grants your nonprofit can receive $10,000 of in-kind advertising every month for AdWords, an online advertising solution from Google. This robust platform allows your ads to appear next to Google search results, of which there are many. (Google sees more than 100 billion searches in a month!)
You can utilize this in-kind advertising budget to target and display AdWords PPC ads to people searching for nonprofits like yours. The more frequently your message appears in Google search results, the more folks will be aware of your mission. This can directly translate into more donations and more volunteers.
We’ve recently seen just how effective these grants can be. Working closely with Redlands Symphony, we helped them utilize Google Ad Grants to increase their website visits by nearly 300 percent and grow their season subscriptions by 16 percent!
Discover how to get $10,000 of in-kind advertising every month with Google Grants.Click to Tweet
Begin by Joining Google for Nonprofits
To apply for a Google Ad Grant, you must first join Google for Nonprofits. This online process involves submitting a variety of details to prove your eligibility. To be eligible, your organization must:
- Hold current and valid charity status such as a 501(c)(3)
- Acknowledge and agree to Google Grant’s required certifications concerning how your organization can receive and use donations it obtains through the grant
- Have a functioning website that provides adequate details about your nonprofit
Enroll in Google Ad Grants
Once you have joined Google for Nonprofits, you can begin the Google Ad Grant enrollment process. Before you actually apply for a grant, Google requires you to build your Google Ad Grants account. This process can take two-to-four hours and involves setting up an AdWords account.
Both AdWords and the Google Ad Grant enrollment process can be a bit of a beast. Before you dive in, it’s best to do some research or ask someone familiar with the process to help.
How to Maximize Your Grant
A Google Ad Grant gives your nonprofit access to a variety of Google advertising products. The most popular of which is pay-per-click (PPC). PPC can help your nonprofit:
- Reach donor and volunteers
- Raise awareness about your organization both locally and on a global scale
- Track your ads’ success rate (this includes online donations, newsletter sign-ups, volunteer registrations, and purchases)
The majority of nonprofits use less than one-quarter of their grant. Just think of the opportunities they are missing! To utilize as much of your budget as possible, create a campaign for every program, project, and goal within your organization.
Each campaign should be comprised of a robust keyword list to which your users are likely to respond. There are a variety of keyword research tools available. These tools allow you to identify the most appropriate terms for your audience and topic. One of the most popular tools is Keyword Planner. A Google product, it is a part of AdWords and can be set up to work seamlessly with your AdWords account and analytics.
The ideal keywords are those with a high volume of search traffic and a low competition rate. This gives you the best opportunity to get your ad placed within search results.
Additional Tips for Maximizing Your Google Ad Grant
Engaging Succinct Copy
PPC ads don’t give you a lot of room. Make sure your ad is as succinct and engaging as possible.
A/B Testing
Whether you have one target audience or many, don’t simply assume to know what folks will respond to. Test several variations of your ad to see what language has the best conversion rate.
Create a Dedicated Landing Page
Increasing traffic to your homepage is nice, but is your homepage the most relevant destination for the keyword you are targeting? You are better off making sure your visitors are getting exactly what they want when they click on your link. This will help increase your conversion rate.
Make Opt-In Forms Short and Easy to Use
Filling out a long opt-in form can be a time-consuming process. This is especially true for mobile users. The longer an opt-in form takes, the more likely your visitors are to lose interest. Keep your opt-in form as simple as possible to increase your conversion rate.
Let’s chat about how Google Grants can help your nonprofit grow.
