Strategies for Building Your Email List with the Google Ad Grant
Learn how to effectively utilize the Google Ad Grant to grow your email list and reach more potential donors and supporters.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
The Strategy: The Ad Grant is rarely a direct donation tool; it is a top-of-funnel engine designed to capture emails.
The Content: "Subscribe to our newsletter" doesn't work. You need specific "Lead Magnets" to convert visitors.
The Tech: You must track email sign-ups as "Conversions" in Google Ads to unlock the algorithm's full power.
Understanding the Google Ad Grant for Nonprofits
The Google Ad Grant program provides free advertising to eligible nonprofit organizations, but it is often misunderstood. Many nonprofit leaders view the $10,000/month grant as a faucet they can turn on to flood their organization with immediate donations.
The reality is different. People searching on Google are rarely looking for "nonprofits to donate to right now." They are looking for answers, resources, and communities.
If you treat the Ad Grant as a direct fundraising tool, you will likely be disappointed. But if you treat it as a Top-of-Funnel Marketing Engine—a tool to find strangers, turn them into friends (subscribers), and eventually nurture them into donors—it becomes one of the most valuable assets your nonprofit owns.
Here is the blueprint for turning your Ad Grant traffic into a growing, engaged email list.
Step 1: Give Them a Reason (The "Lead Magnet")
Nobody wakes up in the morning hoping to join another general "newsletter." If your primary Call to Action (CTA) is "Sign up for updates," your conversion rate will remain low.
To capture an email address, you must offer value in exchange. In marketing, this is called a Lead Magnet.
Every nonprofit has unique assets that can be transformed into irresistible lead magnets. Here are four "stealable" ideas to get you started:
The Resource: "Download our 'Talk to Your Kids About Bullying' Parent Guide." (Perfect for education/youth orgs).
The Pledge: "Add your name to the petition to Protect Local Wetlands." (Perfect for advocacy/environmental orgs).
The Quiz: "What kind of Ocean Advocate are you? Take the 60-second quiz." (High engagement, low friction).
The Insider Access: "Get field notes and photos from our researchers before they go public." (Creates a sense of exclusivity).
Action Item: Look at your most popular website content. Can you package that information into a downloadable PDF, checklist, or exclusive email series?
Step 2: Make It Easy (The Landing Page)
Once someone clicks your ad, they arrive at your landing page. This page has one job: Get the email address.
To maximize sign-ups, you must reduce "friction."
Keep it Simple: Only ask for the First Name and Email Address. Every extra field you add (Last Name, Phone Number, Zip Code) drops your conversion rate significantly. You can ask for more details later once you have the relationship.
Placement Matters: Don't bury the form at the bottom of the page. Place a sign-up form "above the fold" (visible without scrolling) or use an "Exit-Intent" popup that appears when a user moves their mouse to leave the page.
For example, the Wildlife Conservation Society is interested in coral reef conservation, and its landing page is rich with information and content. You'll also note that the page includes additional CTAs, like diving deeper into relevant articles, spotlights on related news, and a newsletter sign-up box and donation button. 🧑🍳 💋
So we would build ads for this page, focusing on generic keywords (e.g., 'coral reef conservation'), problem-focused keywords (e.g., 'coral bleaching'), solution-focused keywords (e.g., 'coral reef conservation projects '), and more. Generic keywords are broad terms that relate to your cause, while problem-focused keywords address specific issues your nonprofit is tackling, and solution-focused keywords highlight the work your nonprofit is doing to solve those problems. The goal is to capture search traffic interested in coral reef conservation, get them onto that landing page, and then let the landing page do its job: educate, engage, and convert new supporters.
Step 3: The "Bridge" Ad Copy
Your Google Ads are the bridge between what the user is searching for and the solution you offer.
The mistake many nonprofits make is writing ads about themselves. Instead, write ads about the user’s problem.
Example: A Veterans Support Organization
The Searcher types: "How to help homeless veterans in my city"
❌ The Bad Ad: "Support Our Mission. We help veterans. Sign up for our newsletter today." (Too generic, asks for too much too soon).
✅ The Good Ad: "5 Ways to Help Local Vets. Download our free community guide to making a difference today." (Helpful, specific, offers immediate value).
If you're struggling to come up with ideas, brainstorm with your team or use tools like Google Gemini, ChatGPT, or Scoreapp to spark your creativity.
Step 4: The Secret Sauce (Conversion Tracking)
This is the most technical step, but also the most critical.
You can have great ads and a great landing page, but if you don't "tell" Google Ads when someone signs up, the system is flying blind.
By default, Google Ads doesn't know the difference between a user who bounces after 3 seconds and a user who joins your email list. You must set up Conversion Tracking to tell Google: "This specific user action (the sign-up) is valuable to us."
Why it matters: The Ad Grant caps manual bids at $2.00. However, if you use automated "Smart Bidding" strategies (like Maximize Conversions), Google waives the $2.00 cap, allowing you to bid much higher to capture valuable leads. You can only use Smart Bidding if you are tracking conversions.
The Easiest Way to Track: Set your email form to redirect users to a "Thank You" page (e.g., yournonprofit.org/thanks) after they submit their info. Then, tell Google Ads to count every visit to that "Thank You" page as a conversion.
From Subscriber to Supporter
Once the user is on your list, the Ad Grant has done its job. Now, your email marketing strategy takes over.
Send them the resource they requested immediately. Follow up with a "Welcome Series" that tells your story. Nurture the relationship. Then, when the time is right, ask for the donation.
Get More from Your Google Ad Grant with Good Dog Strategies
Feeling overwhelmed by the Google Ad Grant? Not sure how to create effective campaigns or craft those irresistible lead magnets? Good Dog Strategies is here to help, providing the support you need to navigate the grant effectively.
We're experts in helping nonprofits like yours maximize the impact of the Google Ad Grant. We take a personalized approach, tailoring our strategies to your unique mission and goals.
THE BENEFITS OF WORKING WITH US
Campaign Creation & Management: We'll handle the technical details, from keyword research to ad creation and optimization so that you can focus on your mission.
Performance Tracking & Analysis: We'll monitor your campaigns and provide regular reports so you can see the impact of your efforts.
Ongoing Support & Guidance: Besides regularly updating and improving your ad campaigns, we’re available to answer your questions and provide expert advice to improve your ad conversion or other opportunities to achieve your goals.
Ready to take your Google Ad Grant to the next level?
Contact Good Dog Strategies today for a free consultation. We'll discuss your goals and develop a customized plan to help you achieve them.
