And if you’ve been approved but aren’t seeing results, it might be time to revamp your strategy or seek expert support. If you haven’t yet applied for the Google Ads Grant, now is the time! Whether your goal is to attract new donors, promote events, educate the public, or grow your email list, digital ad space is prime real estate — and Google is offering it to nonprofits for free. Let’s break down exactly how the grant works and why it could be a game-changer for your organization.
This allows you to pinpoint crucial information, such as your strongest performing keywords, and which ads are driving the most donations and volunteer sign-ups. Your budget can even be applied to multiple campaigns, either split equally or prioritised towards those that you feel are more likely to reach your goals. Using Google Ads ensures you appear at the top of the page for the keywords you target – this helps maximise the visibility of your campaigns. This budget applies regardless of how many campaigns you're running simultaneously, too.

Who qualifies for Google Ad Grants in the UK?

Through this program, Google offers eligible 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations up to $10,000 per month in free Google Ads — that’s $120,000 a year in advertising to help amplify your mission. A registered charity ourselves, the CEF works for any non profit, not just charities. I've twice set up and run charity Google Ads accounts myself and I'm no digital native. If you set-up and run your own Google Ads account, the financial cost is zero and the only cost is your time. Yes, Google Ad grants for charities are very definitely worth it.
Think of these requirements as Google's way of ensuring Ad Grants support high-quality, relevant advertising rather than generic promotional content. This might seem simple, but many charities lose their grants simply because no one remembered to check in regularly. The most basic requirement is logging into your account at least once monthly. Quality Score improvement comes from ensuring every element – keywords, ads, and landing pages – works together to serve your audience's intent.

Reach more donors online with Google Ad Grants

Google rewards ads that provide genuine value to searchers, so focus on relevance rather than trying to game the system. Higher Quality Scores lead to better ad positions and lower costs – meaning your grant budget goes further. Quality Score is Google's 1-10 rating of how relevant and useful your ads are to searchers. The key to reducing cost per conversion is ensuring your landing pages perfectly match what people expect when they click your ads. If one campaign converts volunteers at £15 per signup while another costs £45 per signup, you'll want to shift more budget toward the efficient campaign.

  • You do not pay for Ad Grants campaigns.
  • While this covers the main points, there are other requirements for your website’s content and operation worth checking in Google’s ongoing Ad Grant policy.
  • If you are managing a Google Ads that have any of those common issues then it might be time to outsource Google Ads management to an agency.
  • Whether you’re just discovering Google Ad Grants or struggling to manage an existing account effectively, our specialists can help you turn this opportunity into measurable results for your cause.
  • There are various ad grant requirements but the key one to qualify for Google Ad Grants in the UK, is you must be a registered charity.

What is Google Ad Grants?

We outline the steps needed to taking advantage of Google Grants and run a successful campaign. The Google Ad Grants Program gives charities & non-profits the chance to advertise on Google Ads for free. Ongoing optimisation and compliance are essential to retain the grant.
Once you have been accepted to Ad Grants, you’re able to access your account through the Google Ads platform. Watch this step-by-step video to understand the application process from start to finish. See these eligibility requirements and apply on Google for Nonprofits. In fact, small, local Grantees that use location-specific keywords and targeting may show before large, national organizations. Your organization’s ads will appear either independently or in positions below paid ads. Alternatively, book a free demo of Access Charity Ad Grants Management to discover how we can help your charity make the most of this valuable opportunity.

Raise awareness, attract donors, and recruit new volunteers using Google search ads.

This score considers your click-through rate, how well your keywords match your ads, and whether your landing page provides what people are looking for. While you're not paying directly (thanks to the grant), this metric helps you understand which campaigns deliver the best value. Impressions tell you how often your ads are being shown to people searching on Google.

  • Unlike social media, where you’re competing for mere seconds of attention in busy feeds, Google Ads place your charity front-and-centre, at the exact moment someone is looking for what you offer.
  • The is where the search term report is helpful for inspiration on negative keywords.
  • Your click-through rate (CTR) shows the percentage of people who actually click your ad after seeing it.
  • Often, charities focus their digital marketing efforts on social media strategies instead – putting all their eggs in another (extremely crowded) basket.
  • According to Smart Insights, industry benchmarks show that nonprofits typically achieve conversion rates around 2.63%, while the broader average across all industries is 3.48% on mobile.
  • Consider assigning this responsibility to a specific team member or volunteer who can dedicate a few hours monthly to monitoring performance and making necessary adjustments.
  • You may request that your account is reinstated after you’ve paused or deleted keywords with low CTR to bring the account into compliance.

But, that's not all they're good for – here's the top 8 reasons charities, like yours, embed Ad Grants. The overarching reason most charities use Google Ad Grants is to increase traffic to the most important pages of their website. “We secured a 100% boost in the number of donations with Ad Grants. This money went towards providing emergency shelter, food and kits for those in need. This includes Afghanaid, who doubled donations after a successful crisis appeal. Once your ads are live, you can integrate Google Analytics and conversion tracking to understand how your ads are performing.
Unlike social media, where you're competing for mere seconds of attention in busy feeds, Google Ads place your charity front-and-centre, at the exact moment someone is looking for what you offer. Often, charities focus their digital marketing efforts on social media strategies instead – putting all their eggs in another (extremely crowded) basket. Paid ads aren't only expensive, they’re hard to navigate and manage without a resource that really knows what they’re doing. “We simply could not reach people and create the impact we do without the awareness generated by these Ad Grants.” – Elizabeth Hutton OBE, Kicks Count Google Ad Grants might be exactly what your charity needs. When we're not in meetings, many of us spend a lot of our day in our Gmail inboxes, where Gemini is giving us time back by helping to draft responses faster.

To get the most out of the grant you do need an understanding of how Google Ads works and will need to actively manage your account. If you think you’ve met the Google Guidelines go back to the application process so Google can review the account. During the process, Google will need information about your charity.
As part of this, don’t forget you’ll need to be registered with TechSoup, they handle the verification process for the programme. While this covers the main points, there are other requirements for your website’s content and operation worth checking in Google’s ongoing Ad Grant policy. For example, your income must exceed £5000, and satisfy the definition of a charity in the Charities Act, to register with the Charity Commission in England in Wales. The short answer is almost all can, you'll just need to meet specific criteria set by Google, and then be approved through a pre-qualification process. Now you know the brilliant things you can do with the grant, how do you get it?
Grant requirements mean sagaspins casino registration you must have at least two ads per ad groups. You may request that your account is reinstated after you’ve paused or deleted keywords with low CTR to bring the account into compliance. In the event that the CTR requirement is not met for two consecutive months, your account will be cancelled. All Google Ads Grants accounts must maintain a 5% CTR each month.
Tracking will enable you to make better decisions for your non-profit account. The bare minimum, you should link your Google Analytics with your Google Ads account. Disruptive Advertising showed how few accounts have effective conversion tracking in place. Once you have decided that a term is irrelevant to your campaign, you can add that term as a negative keyword. This will benefit the account helping maintain the required 5% CTR. This report can help highlight keywords that you should add as keywords or negative keywords.