Do you know Google Ad Grants?

 

One of the most powerful tools for retaining customers and attracting new opportunities, without a doubt, is digital marketing, capable of reaching from small businesses to large companies. The emergence of Google Ad Grants has made this tool very useful for Non-Profit Organizations (NGOs).

 

Considered a Google gift for organizations that meet certain requirements, Grants has some peculiarities you need to understand so that you don't make a mistake when applying and enjoy all its benefits.

 

In this article, we've prepared a guide in which you'll find everything you need to know about this program, from how to qualify to advertising guidelines. Read on!
 

What is Google Ad Grants?

 

Google Ad Grants is a benefit program offered by Google to NGOs that wish to have greater exposure on the internet. The main objective of the platform is to attract new interested parties and donors to guarantee the continuity of the entities' activities.

 

The program offers a free $10,000 monthly credit for eligible institutions to advertise and promote their missions and initiatives on Google.

 

Companies interested in participating in this program must first register and go through a selection process. If you comply with the requirements, you will be eligible to receive credit and use the tool as long as you respect some rules.

 

What are the institutions that can participate?

 
Google's intention is to increase the social impact of NGOs, so to participate in Google Grants, it is essential that the institution is not for profit.

 

Among the institutions that can be approved are:

 

• Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)
 
• Social Organizations
 
• Federal Public Utility Organizations;
 
• Non-profit associations, in general, as a junior company.
 

 

Government entities, hospitals, day care centers, schools or universities (with the exception of their philanthropic arms) and enterprises with any commercial purpose are automatically excluded and cannot participate in the program.
 

Qualification criteria

 

To qualify, it is not enough to be a non-profit company. It is necessary to comply with some rules established by Google:

 

• Be registered with the TechSoup Brasil (projeto que oferece Softwares e ferramentas tecnológicas exclusivamente para ONGs;
 

• Be a government-registered NGO, OSCIP or UPF or present proof of non-profit activity;
 
• Have a functional website with relevant content about the institution;
 
• Accept the Terms and Conditions provided by the platform.

 

It is noteworthy that if the institution fails to comply with any of the points, its participation in the Google Ads Grants program will be refused.

 

Step-by-step: how to apply for Google Grants

 

If the institution is able to apply for the benefit, the next step is to apply. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to make yours:

 

1. Check the eligibility criteria

 

Check all the necessary documentation and if they are up to date to be presented. Check if the website's domain is owned by the institution (remember that this is one of the indispensable requirements).

 

2. Register with TechSoup

 

Registration at TechSoup guarantees that the institution is legitimate and speeds up the validation of the application. Access the website of the project and fill in all the requested information.

 

3. Create a Google Account
 
At Google create a specific account for Non-Profit Organizations. Fill in all requested information. You must have a valid e-mail address at the institution's domain, in addition to informing the organization's physical address.
 
You will need to present a validation token from TechSoup. After filling in all the information and obtaining the required validations, the account is created.

 

4. Create an Ad Grants account
 
Go to the address of Google Ads and use the same email registered in the Google account. Select the country and time zone. In "Currency", choose the dollar. Save Changes.
 
It is the creation of this account that will allow the use of resources to create the campaigns.
 
5. Create your first campaign
 
On the “Campaigns” page, click on create a new one. In type, define “Research Network” and opt for elaboration without a goal. Do not make any other modifications. Define a name for this campaign and uncheck the display network and search partners boxes.
 
Stipulate the language and in which places the search should appear. Under “Daily Budget”, set the maximum amount at $329.00, which will be valid for all campaigns. At the end, set up two website addresses to which users should be redirected.
 
Under “Set up ad groups”, build sets and keywords. The “Default Bid” must be set to $2.00, which is the limit defined. Define keywords relevant to the institution. Create at least two ads for each group.
 
The next step will be in “Assessment”. Go to “Conversions”. Select “Site” and present the link that should be monitored. For non-financial, which do not involve donations, set this in the options. For donations, set the goal that must be 90 days.
 
Be very careful at this stage! Do not associate any payment information. If any form of payment is associated, the NGO can have the amounts discounted and the money will hardly be refunded.
 

6. Submit the account for review
 
Once you've completed all these steps, you'll need to submit your account to be evaluated by Google. For this, return to the Google page for non-profit organizations.
 
Choose the Ad Grants enrollment box and submit your Google Ads ID number, which is located in the upper right corner of the page.
 
The deadline for analyzing the proposal is 10 working days. If approved, the configured campaigns are instantly activated.
 

Maintaining Google Ad Grants Eligibility

 
Once you get a grant, the trickiest part is keeping Google AD Grants. Google itself makes it clear that the account can be suspended at any time, if there is any breach of policy. If this happens, it is necessary to fix what is wrong in order to use the credits again.
 
The best thing is to maintain eligibility. See what criteria must be observed so that campaigns are not deactivated:

 

• All ads in your account must link to the URL that was provided in the sign-up process;
 
• Be proactive in managing Google Ads by logging into your account on a monthly basis. If a non-profit advertiser who has a Google Grants does not log into their account, their account will be subject to being paused without any notification;
 
• Ads being promoted must reflect the mission of the non-profit organization. You can advertise product sales as long as 100% of the profits go to the program;
 
• The ads created cannot point to pages used primarily to send visitors to other sites, such as a landing page;
 
• Ads may not offer financial products such as mortgages or credit cards. They also cannot ask for donations in the form of large goods such as cars, boats or property donations. Keywords related to this activity are also not allowed;
 
• The site may not display Google AdSense ads or other affiliated advertising links while the organization participates in Google Ad Grants.

 

According to Google, any violation of these guidelines is subject to removal from the program. The company also reserves the right to supplement or change these eligibility guidelines at any time.
 

Succeed with Google Grants

 
The opportunity to attract donors, volunteers and stakeholders in NGO activities is as important as having the money available for campaigns. Therefore, it is important to be aware of good practices to get the most out of the program.

 

For this, it is very important to structure the account. Search by keywords and create ad groups. Don't forget: it is mandatory to have two pieces for each group (four ads in total).

 

When preparing the ad, write a clear, direct and attractive text. Don't forget to apply SEO techniques.

 

You also need to be aware of negative keywords, which should be set to avoid showing ads to people who aren't interested in the topic. Also be aware of geographic targeting and language. These items directly influence increased relevance and improved click performance.

 

Don't forget to keep track of metrics. This data allows the optimization and creation of more relevant parts.

 

Following these steps, you may obtain a grant and take out the best of the Google Ad Grants program.

 

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