Your Nonprofit Google Ad Grants Keywords Are Everything: Here Are 2 Top Tips to Choose the Best Ones

 

The right keywords keep your Google Ad Grant ads performing. 

 

Keywords are, well, key to a successful Google Ad Grants campaign. 

 

Google expects the ads generated through its Ad Grants to generate more awareness. The ads have to generate clicks for Google to deem them successful. Unsuccessful – by Google Ad Grants standards – ads will stop showing up in Google searches, and Google will penalize the organization for poor use of the grant. 

 

The right keywords ensure that people are getting relevant search results, which makes them more likely to click on the ads that show up. 

 

 

What Are Google Ad Grants Keywords?

Google Ad Grants keywords are the specific words and phrases that someone searches for. When they use those target keywords, if it aligns with your nonprofit, your organization may show up in the search results. 

 

This is an excellent way to boost brand awareness for your nonprofit! After all, someone can’t search for your nonprofit if they don’t know it exists. 

 

But using these Google Ad Grants keywords bridges that gap! 

 

 

What Keywords Can You Use for Nonprofit Google Ads?

There are a few rules to follow when you’re searching for the right Google Ad Grant keywords. As you search, make sure to follow these guidelines to keep your nonprofit Google Ad Grants account in compliance! 

 

1. All keywords need to be at least two words. No single-word keywords are allowed. There are some exceptions to this rule. For instance, if your organization is one word. However, Google wants you to avoid using one-word keyword phrases whenever possible. 

 

2. No super-generic keywords are allowed. Your keywords should be specific and related to your nonprofit. 

 

3. All Google Ad Grant keywords have to have a quality score greater than 2. You can set up an automated rule that keeps nonprofit ads from running if the keywords have a quality score lower than 2. 

 

 

2 Tools To Help You Find Google Ad Grant Keywords for Your Nonprofit: 

Now that you know Google Ads keywords are necessary for people to find your nonprofit, you need to take the next step. 

 

And that involves doing a little bit of keyword research! Before you write your nonprofit landing page, it’s a good idea to do your Google Ad keyword research. 

 

By doing that, you’ll have a clearer direction for your landing page. You’ll know what potential supporters are searching for. And you can tailor your page based on that! 

 

Here are 2 tools to help you find Google Ad Grants keywords to boost traffic for your nonprofit:

 

 

 

1. Google Ad Keyword Planner:

Google Ad Keyword Planner is the official tool of Google Ad Grants. Plus, it’s completely free to use, which is perfect for tighter budgets. 

 

To start with the keyword planner, choose either “start with keywords” or “start with a website.” 

 

We recommend starting with keywords. Just enter specific words or phrases that are relevant to your nonprofit and your landing page’s main message. Then click, “Get Results!” 

 

A list of keyword ideas based on what you’ve searched will populate. You’ll also see plenty of data on the keywords including: 

 

• monthly search volume (how many people are searching for this every month),
• search volume trends (is this keyword searched more during a certain month), 
• top of page bid (how much does it cost to have your nonprofit website at the top of the search results page).

 

By using this tool, you’ll also see suggested competitive bids for your keywords. This information can help you plan your Google Ad Grants budget better! 

 

 

2. Keywords Everywhere:

Sometimes you need ideas of what people are searching for before you can use a tool like Google Ad Keyword Planner. 

 

That’s where Keywords Everywhere shines! 

 

This is a Google Chrome plugin that has both free and paid options. We do recommend using the paid option if you want to get full insights into certain keywords. 

 

You can make searches on Google yourself. Then, you can pull keyword information from the search results! Get data like: 

• average monthly search volume
• cost-per-click amounts
• competitor data 

 

On the right side of your screen, you’ll also see a list of “related keywords” and “people also search for” keywords. This is an awesome way to get more ideas for your nonprofit’s landing page! 

 

 

 

2 Top Tips for Choosing Keywords When Setting Up Your Google Ad Grants Account: 

With the right tools in place and the rules to follow, it’s time to start searching for Google Ad Grants keywords. 

 

These are going to be the same words and phrases your potential supporters are using. And the goal is to lead them right to your nonprofit! So finding the best Google Ad Grants keywords is key: 

 

 

1. Be on the Lookout for “Good” Google Ad Keywords:

As you’re searching for keywords, you need to know what to look for. Having a “criteria” for keywords is the best way to make sure you choose the best possible ones. 

 

Here’s a great criterion to follow: 

 

 

High Search Volume

The higher the search volume, the more times the Google Ad Grants keyword is searched. You want to have a higher search volume for your keywords because that means more eyes potentially find your nonprofit organization. 

 

Thankfully, Google Ads will flag down keywords that have a lower search volume. They’re allowed to be used, but they probably won’t be the best for your nonprofit landing page! 

 

 

Lower Competition

There are going to be other nonprofits who are trying to rank their organization for the same keywords. That’s normal! 

 

But, there are some keywords out there that have lower competition. That means that not as many organizations are trying to use that keyword. 

 

The best practice here is to find a keyword that balances high search volume and lower competition. That means you’re using a keyword that has plenty of people searching for it every month. And you’re not competing with as many organizations to rank for it! So more people will see your nonprofit organization.

 

 

 

Relevant to Your Landing Page

You don’t want to have a landing page that’s main message is about breast cancer awareness. But then use keywords in your Google Ads about a completely separate issue. 

 

People search for things and then click on results based on what they’ve searched for. Not giving them a cohesive experience with a relevant landing page can lead to frustration for the reader. 

 

And that’s not good for your nonprofit, as a whole! 

 

So make sure your Google Ad Grants keywords pertain to the main message of your nonprofit landing page. 

 

Be sure to use the keywords in both your Google Ad and on your nonprofit landing page. That will also tell Google that, yes, your landing page is relevant to the Google Ad. Ultimately, that will help your search results, too! 

 

 

 

Get as Specific as Possible

Try to get as specific as possible with your Google Ad Grants keywords. Doing so will give your nonprofit landing page more of a direction or roadmap. And that will help you nail down the most useful keywords possible. Plus, these more specific keywords often come with lower competition! 

 

 

 

Follows the Google Ad Grants for Nonprofits’ Requirements

And, of course, still follow the requirements for Google Ad Grants keywords. Does it have a quality score greater than 2? Does it use more than one word? Is it more specific and less generic? 

 

Following this criteria will help you choose the best keywords for your nonprofit landing page!

 

 

2. Use Negative Keywords to Your Advantage:

Think about which keywords you would type into Google search to find your organization. Google Ad Grants’ Keyword Planner can help you find related keywords and group them so you can build ads around them. 

 

The Google Ads program keyword default is broad match. As an example, the Google Ad Grants how-to guide explains that if your keyword is breast cancer, your ad would show when a Google search includes the keywords “breast cancer” and other variations like breast cancer information, cancer of the breast in men, support groups for breast cancer and breast cancer symptoms. All pretty relevant to your cause. 

 

But the automatic broad match doesn’t work well with more generic terms. 

 

“Let’s say your organization is devoted to saving ‘endangered bears,’” the Google Ad Grants guide says. “Here are search queries that might display an ad targeted to the broad match keyword bears: Chicago Bears, Berenstain bears video, collectively teddy bears, Bad News Bears DVD.” 

 

Not exactly relevant. To avoid these bad keywords, you would use negative keywords by preceding a keyword with a hyphen, in this case, for example, -Chicago, -Berenstain, -bad news, and -teddy. 

 

Google Ad Grants’ Account Review dashboard can help with both keywords and negative keywords. 

 

Applying for and maintaining Google Ad Grants accounts take some time and some thought, but the good news is, you’re not on your own. Google has plenty of resources to help, and some companies specialize in just this. 

 

Don’t let the intricacies keep your organization from applying for a Google Ad Grant. And don’t forget to join us on our free webinar and learn:

 

How to Take Full Advantage of $10K/Month in FREE Google Advertising with the All-In-One Google Grants.

 

Good luck!

– Your friends at NonprofitLibrary