Quick Tips and Basics About Google Ads for Nonprofits

One of the things our marketing team is always looking to understand is what nonprofits need. In our requests for what people want to learn, one of the topics that rose to the top was Google Ads. Because of it, we completed a recent webinar about Google Ads. This article will lay out some of the fundamentals discussed in the webinar. But, to get the whole experience, it's advisable to check out the webinar.

The Fundamentals of Google Ads

Alright, let's get started on understanding the basics about Google Ads for your nonprofit. For starters, Google Ads are great for any qualified nonprofit. As we know, the majority of marketing happens digitally. Because of it, it means that your nonprofit always has to seek to gain a high position on search engine optimization and search.

Of course, to promote anything, it costs money. Google understands that many nonprofits have limited resources, so it created Google Ad grants to help nonprofits. These grants entitle the nonprofits that get them to access up to $10,000 of in-kind advertising dollars. And with that spend, you’ll maximize the best people coming to your site, as well as gain more potential donors.

How to Obtain a Grant for Advertising From Google

So, the very first thing you need to do as a nonprofit is to see if you’re eligible for a Google Ad grant. You could do that by clicking on this link. Once you know that you're eligible, you have to submit the form for eligibility. When you get started on the application process, make sure you have the EIN of your nonprofit available.

You’ll also have to take a survey for pre-qualification, watch a video, and take a quiz. Also, you want to ensure you have a high-quality site. Google doesn't like to support organizations with poor site architecture and little value to users. So, you want to ensure your site meets its criteria for a quality site, and you need to ensure you have a high-quality website. Make it a point to understand to make sure your site meets its website policy.

When that's all completed and you're accepted, you're ready to get started using Google Ads. One of the critical things you should know about the grant, which I mention in the webinar, is that the grant funds could only get used for search campaigns. Unfortunately, if you wanted to run a video ad campaign, you can't do it with the grant.

Essential Tips for Google Ads for Your Nonprofit

It may seem a bit overwhelming at first, but once you get the hang of it, Google Ads gets a lot easier. So, it’s important to detail a few of the most vital things you have to keep in mind so that your advertising spend makes gets optimized. Remember, the Google Ad grants are real in-kind dollars that will help your nonprofit obtain the best possible leads and prospects.

1. Keyword Search

Undoubtedly, the most important thing you could do for your nonprofit on digital marketing and Google Ads is making sure you become a pro at keyword search. Essentially, you want to ensure that the keywords people most search for your type of organization are the ones you’re using in your ads.

For example, our marketing team keeps track and researches keywords every day at our shoe drive fundraising social enterprise. We use Moz, but nonprofits that don’t have a lot of money to spend could use Google’s Keyword Planner, which is free.

If you want to learn more about doing keyword searches, HubSpot has a great piece on the topic.

2. Social Listening

Nonprofit marketing teams and social media professionals understand that social listening is vital for ensuring the right kind of marketing and advertising. The definition of social listening is using search data to understand your supporters best, which only deepens donor relationships.

As you know, everything these days happens digitally, which is why Google Ads is vital for nonprofits. And with digital comes metrics and measurements. As a result, marketers can quantify lots of data sets and get very granular. Understanding data information ultimately allows you to target your fundraising audience much better than you ever could in the past.

Sprout Social has a good article for the basics of social listening.

3. Geotargeting

Finally, the last thing that's super important to realize for Google Ads is geotargeting. It is really critical for smaller nonprofits, in particular, that operate in small towns or cities. In short, you don't want to spend money having your advertisement shown in New York if your nonprofit only operates in Florida.

Geotargeting on Google Ads means you have to set your advertising spends for your geographic area. Of course, Google has instructions to make sure that you appropriately target your geographic audience. Unfortunately, many nonprofits miss this tip and waste essential dollars, and don't get the traffic that best serves them.

These are the most vital tips you need to pick up and ensure for your nonprofit from the webinar. However, if you have the time, the webinar goes into calls-to-action, setting up campaigns, and ensuring conversions with step-by-step visuals.

In sum, if you're a nonprofit fundraiser and marketer, one of the first things you need to do is get up to speed on Google Ads. Doing so will help attract a higher amount of potential donors and supporters, and the quality of the people will be more aligned with what you need.