4 Tips for Better Google Ad Grant Management
We have covered it here before. Google Ad Grants is an incredibly powerful tool for nonprofit strategy, and best of all, it is a free program (if you are a qualifying 501(c)3). We have also covered how they are difficult to use properly and take some fine-tuning, but don’t let that stop your organization from securing $10,000 a month in Google Ads credits. Just take it as a reminder to follow the steps in this blog and continually refine your approach.
Despite the many great resources out there (including some of our own How to Apply for, Receive and Use a Google Ads Grant), nonprofits, on average, are only using $300 of their $10,000 monthly budget. That means they are leaving $9,700 in advertising on the table every month (and it doesn’t carry over). That is $116,400 a year! How can you avoid this for your organization? Check out the tips below.
1. Start with a Plan
Keyword research is an essential first step. Many users will dive right into building their campaigns, using the ideas floating around in their heads. Making a plan through research is key to maximizing your monthly ad use and that starts with keyword research. Keywords are the search phrases that Google users use to find what they are looking for. If you are looking for somewhere to have dinner, you may search “restaurants in New York.” Those words make up a keyword phrase. Making sure to understand your target audience and what they are searching for will better connect your organization to more users and importantly, users who are interested in your cause. Google Keyword Planner is built into your Google account and will help you research, but there are also several other great keyword search tools out there.
The best keyword search strategy is to find your core keywords. These are keywords highly relevant to your organization. Ideally, these have a balanced mix of relevance and search volume. Once you have found these, start to build your keyword bank. Find terms related to those core keywords. These should be high search volume and low competition (ideally) to help build up your traffic and authority. With a keyword list in hand, use ads to drive traffic to content related to those keywords. If you don’t quite have content for all of those keywords, no need to panic, we will get to that step next.
2. Create Keyword Based Content
When people click on your ads, they are expecting to land on a page that has something to do with the content of your ad or rather, its keywords. If a user clicks on an ad for concert tickets but lands on an eCommerce site selling clothing, they will be confused, disappointed, and likely bounce from the site. That is an extreme example, but the principle holds true for your ad campaign. Don’t promise one thing and deliver another. These ideas should flow naturally from your keywords. For example, if your nonprofit knits hats for the homeless in the wintertime, make a video, blog, or graphic how-to guide on knitting hats. Write a blog about how important hats are in the wintertime. Have a page that focuses on your volunteer structure for delivering hats. Here at NMBL, we write blogs giving nonprofits helpful insights because nonprofits are essential to what we do. Writing about manufacturing would be off base, lowering traffic, bringing in irrelevant keywords, increasing our bounce rate, and disappointing our readers generally.
3. Use Calls to Action
Finding the right keywords, bringing visitors to your website, and having content waiting for them is great, but taking it one step further is where the value is. Calls to action (CTA) are where your organization can start a relationship with a visitor. Whether it is as a donor, volunteer, or just a supporter, engaging visitors through a CTA is what makes the ad grant effort worthwhile. Buttons are generally more clickable but a link will work as well. Be sure to make your message clear and well placed. Place a button to donate or volunteer after explaining your mission or sharing a moving story. Require an email in order to download content, so you can stay in contact with these visitors, sharing fundraising information, and more. Be sure to make the CTA message match the page it is on. Finally, while CTAs are great tools, don’t overdo them and overwhelm your audience.
4. Research and Reevaluate
The ad grants process isn’t easy. There is a reason the average amount spent is $300. It takes time to research, understand, and create ads. The secret behind maximizing your ad grant? Consistent work toward your goal. Frequent research and reevaluation will allow you to stay ahead of your ad competition and continually refine your strategy. Tracking results also allows you to better support your research and optimize your campaigns for your audience. In our ad grants guide we recommend weekly check-ups, but knowing how busy nonprofit work can be with a small staff, at least once a month will work. Support your research with data from google analytics and other SEO tracking sites. Understanding what works and what does not will only improve your strategy and increase the amount of ad grant money your organization will spend monthly.
These four tips are simple but effective ways to increase your Google Ad Grants usage and drive more traffic to your cause. By educating yourself and your team, your ad grants strategy will grow to be more refined and successful. With patience and knowledge of how the system works, the effort will be less stressful and more helpful to your mission. Start with one strategy and week and fine-tune your program over a month or try two strategies a week. Once you have established these practices, maintenance because less overwhelming, and you will not have to recreate the wheel every week.
Need help developing your marketing strategy? Whether it is using Google Ad Grants or making the most of your marketing budget, our experience directing nonprofits includes successful marketing campaigns that supported capital campaigns, membership programs, and increased visitor numbers. Learn how we can help you today.
