GOOGLE AD GRANTS MANAGEMENT FOR NONPROFITS

Google will give your nonprofit up to $10,000 a month in search advertising

The grant is real and it renews every month. The hard part is everything around it. Your website has to be in shape before Google will approve you, and once you are in, the account only produces what somebody puts into it.

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How the program works

Google Ad Grants is a program operated by Google. Brand Motives is a Pittsburgh-based ad agency. We are not affiliated with Google, not endorsed by Google, and we do not sell the grant.

Up to $10,000

Per month in Google Search advertising, for organizations that qualify

$0

Paid to Google for that advertising

About 10 days

From kickoff to live campaigns, for an organization that is ready to go

THE PROGRAM

What is a Google Ad Grant?

Google gives qualifying nonprofits up to $10,000 a month to run ads on Google Search, and does not charge for the clicks. Search is the lowest funnel advertising there is. You are not interrupting anybody. You are answering a question they just asked.

food bank near washington pa

Sponsored

Free Groceries This Week, Washington County

yourorganization.org/food-pantry

Hours, locations and what to bring. No appointment needed.

That top spot is an ad. With a grant, it can be yours, and the click costs your organization nothing.

WHAT IT IS

Advertising, not cash

The grant is advertising credit inside a Google Ads account. Google does not send money, and there is nothing to deposit.

WHERE IT RUNS

Google Search results

Text ads on Google, in a separate auction from paid advertisers. A small local nonprofit with specific keywords can still show up.

Spending it is the work

The budget resets on the first of every month and whatever you did not use is gone. Very few organizations get near the full amount, and the ones that come closest are the ones somebody is actively working: build, launch, review, adjust, repeat. We push to put as much of that advertising to work as your mission can honestly use.

THE OPPORTUNITY

What could your
nonprofit do with it?

Every one of these is a search somebody runs in our region today.

Increase donations

donate to a food bank near me

Recruit volunteers

volunteer opportunities washington pa

Fill your events

things to do this weekend near me

Promote your programs

free after school program for kids

Reach people who need you

emergency shelter tonight

Grow your email list

local conservation newsletter

ELIGIBILITY

Do you qualify?

Google sets the rules. Most independent charitable nonprofits qualify, and a few categories do not.

Generally eligible

Nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status recognized by the IRS

Organizations that own and control their own website

Websites that run securely across every page and clearly explain the mission

Charitable foundations attached to hospitals and universities

The foundation can qualify even when the parent institution cannot

Not eligible

—

Government entities and organizations

—

Hospitals and healthcare organizations

—

Schools, colleges and universities

Google runs a separate program for education

—

Organizations under a fiscal sponsor without their own 501(c)(3)

A plain-language guide, not an eligibility determination. Google makes the decision on every application.

THE HONEST PART

Getting approved is
not the finish line

Google holds grant accounts to standards every single month. Accounts that stop meeting them get switched off, and most organizations do not find that out until the notification arrives.

5%

Click-through rate, every month

Google expects grant ads to earn clicks at a rate of at least 5%.

1

Real outcome tracked monthly

A donation, a signup, a form, a call. Tracked correctly, every month.

2

Months is all it takes

Miss the requirement two months in a row and the account can be deactivated.

Your team’s focus is your mission and the work your community depends on. You can absolutely manage the Google Ad Grant yourself, but if you’d rather spend that time elsewhere, we’re here to help.

START TO FINISH

The Google Ad Grant Journey

The first three happen once. The last three keep going. We manage all six.

1

Are you eligible?

We check your status against Google's rules and tell you plainly if it is worth pursuing.

2

Is your website ready?

The step most applications trip on. We audit the site and flag what could block approval.

3

Apply

We complete and submit the Google for Nonprofits grant application for you.

4

Build your campaigns

Keywords, ad copy, landing pages and tracking, built around your goals.

5

Optimize

What is working, what is wasting the grant, what changes next.

6

Measure the impact

Clear reporting on what the advertising delivered, plus anything Google requires.

Happens once, at the start

Runs for as long as our grant partnership does

OUR ROLE

How Brand Motives helps

You don't need an agency to hold a Google Ad Grant, and there are nonprofits that run their own. What we find is that most teams do not have the hours the account needs every month, so they hand it to a professional team instead.

Phase One

Before
you apply

Website and digital readiness audit

Eligibility review against Google's current rules

Anything that could block approval, flagged in writing

Site fixes by our team, or a punch list for yours

Phase Two

Getting
approved
and live

Google for Nonprofits and Ad Grants application

Account setup in your organization's name

Campaign strategy tied to your goals for the year

Keyword research and full campaign build

Phase Three

Every month
after

Ongoing management and optimization

Compliance with Google's program requirements

Conversion tracking and measurement

Monthly reporting and strategic recommendations

Your website, handled either way

If the audit turns up problems and we manage your website, we fix them. If another team manages it, they get a specific list of what to change and why. See all our solutions.

You own the account. We run it.

The account is set up in your organization's name and stays with you, along with its whole history, whatever happens between us later.

WHY BRAND MOTIVES

Why work with us on this

Specialists, not dabblers

Our team works in Ad Grants accounts every week and knows Google's requirements because they operate inside them.

Hands on the account

Real changes every month to keywords, ad copy, targeting and tracking. Not a quarterly check in.

We know nonprofits

Lean staffs, boards to answer to, and success measured in outcomes rather than revenue.

Straight answers

If we do not think the grant will move the needle for your organization, we will say so in the first conversation. Meet the crew.

Nonprofit and community organizations we work with

Washington City Mission  /   Washington County Fair  /   The Bradford House  /   Pony League World Series  /   Canonsburg Educational and Cultural Institute  /   Zenbycat

Our nonprofit work spans websites, social, video, SEO and advertising, and not every organization here runs a Google Ad Grant. See our work and partner wins.

How the engagement works

Google provides the advertising at no media cost. Brand Motives charges a monthly management fee, with a three month minimum so the account has time to produce something worth judging. We will not guarantee approval, because Google decides that. The website review that starts everything is free.

QUESTIONS

Questions nonprofit
leaders ask

Google Ad Grants is a program from Google that gives qualifying nonprofits up to $10,000 a month in free Google Search advertising. Your organization runs text ads on Google, and Google does not charge for the clicks. It is a donation of advertising, not a cash grant.

The advertising itself costs nothing. Google does not bill your organization for grant clicks. What does cost money is professional management, if you choose to use an agency. Brand Motives charges a monthly management fee, and that is entirely separate from Google’s grant.

In the United States you generally need 501(c)(3) status recognized by the IRS, a website you own and control, and a site that clearly explains your mission. Government entities, hospitals and healthcare organizations, and schools and universities are not eligible, although the charitable foundations attached to hospitals and universities often are. Organizations under a fiscal sponsor without their own 501(c)(3) do not qualify.

No. Google makes every approval decision, and you should be skeptical of anyone who promises otherwise. What good preparation does is remove the common reasons applications get rejected, and most of those are website problems that can be fixed first.

No. If your organization has never advertised on Google, that is the normal starting point, and the grant account is created during the application. If you already run a paid Google Ads account you can keep it. Google allows both, and they do not compete against each other.

That is highly dependent on Google and your website development team. If your grant application is approved, we can typically get your campaign live within 10 business days.

Nothing. There is no spend requirement, and unused advertising does not carry into the next month. Very few nonprofits reach the full amount, which is why steady optimization matters. The more relevant the account is to what people are actually searching, the more of the grant goes to work.

Google holds grant accounts to ongoing standards, including a monthly click-through rate threshold, working conversion tracking, rules about keywords and account structure, and an annual program survey. Accounts that fall out of compliance can be deactivated. When we manage the account, meeting those requirements is our job, not your staff’s.

Your organization owns it. The account is set up in your nonprofit’s name and stays with you. We manage it with the access you grant us, and you can revoke that access at any time.

More about working with us on our FAQ page.

NO COST, NO OBLIGATION

Is your nonprofit
Google Ad
Grant ready?

Start with a conversation, not a contract. Tell us about your organization and we will review your website, check you against Google's requirements, and tell you honestly whether this is worth pursuing. If it is not the right fit, we will say so.

Call (724) 350-7718   Email info@brandmotives.com
Contact page

Request your free review

We will get back to you within one business day, and asking does not commit you to anything.

Google Ad Grants, Google Ads and Google for Nonprofits are programs of Google LLC. Brand Motives is an independent agency and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Google. Program details and eligibility are set by Google and can change. The $10,000 figure is a monthly maximum for qualifying organizations, not an amount any organization is guaranteed to receive or spend. Brand Motives charges separately for the services described here.

Brand Motives · Washington, Pennsylvania 15301 · (724) 350-7718 · info@brandmotives.com · Connect