The Google Ad Grant gives eligible nonprofits up to $10,000 per month in in-kind Google Search advertising, a figure Google describes as a limit rather than a guarantee of spend. Most of what gets written about it focuses on donations, but for many sports nonprofits the most natural use of the Grant is helping people find programs.
If you are not sure whether your organization qualifies, start with the eligibility checker or our guide to Ad Grant eligibility for sports nonprofits.
Why programs suit search ads
Search ads appear when someone types a query. People rarely search for a cause to donate to, but they often search for something to do: a beginner class, a youth league in their town, an adaptive program for their child, a summer camp. Those searches are specific, local and close to a decision, which is exactly when a clear ad and a good program page can help.
The Grant also has to promote your organization's mission, and for a sports nonprofit the programs are the mission. Campaigns that send people to the places where they can take part are often the most mission-aligned thing an account can run.
Separate your goals
Most accounts mix everything together, which makes it impossible to tell what is working. Give each goal its own campaign:
- Programs and registrations, often with separate ad groups for each program, age group or location
- Volunteers and coaches, pointing to the role pages
- Giving, pointing to the donation page
Each one then gets its own keywords, ads, landing pages and conversion, and you can see which goals the account is actually producing.
Choose keywords people really use
Program keywords should read the way people search: the activity, the age group and the place. Google does not allow most single-word keywords in Grant accounts, and specific phrases tend to perform better anyway, because they describe what someone wants. Keywords that attract clicks from people who are not looking for what you offer pull down performance, so review search terms regularly and remove the ones that do not fit.
Grant accounts also need specific geo-targeting. For programs, that is an advantage: target the areas your families actually come from.
Send people to the right page
An ad for a beginner swim program should land on the beginner swim program page, not the homepage. That page needs the details people look for, such as ages, dates, cost and location, and a register button that works on a phone. Our guide to getting more program registrations covers what a good program page includes.
Track registrations as conversions
Accounts created on or after April 22, 2019 must use conversion-based Smart Bidding for all campaigns except Smart campaigns. Accounts created on or after January 1, 2018, and any account using conversion-based Smart Bidding, must maintain valid conversion tracking and record at least one conversion per month. Both rules come from Google's Ad Grants account management policy and its policy compliance guide. That makes the choice of conversion important: if the only conversion you track is a donation, the program campaigns have nothing to optimize toward.
Track a completed registration as the conversion, not the click to an outside registration platform. When registration happens on another platform, use a confirmed completion event, confirmation page, or imported conversion so Google Ads records the completed sign-up. Sending people to that platform is fine; the click alone just does not show whether they finished. Do the same for volunteer sign-ups. Keeping them separate lets you see whether the Grant is filling programs, recruiting volunteers or bringing in gifts.
Stay compliant
The Grant comes with rules that keep an account active. Among them, accounts not exclusively using Smart campaigns must keep a click-through rate of at least 5% each month, and missing it for two consecutive months can lead to temporary deactivation. Keywords with a quality score of 1 or 2 must be paused or removed, and conversion tracking has to keep working. Our guide on how to apply for the Ad Grant covers the full setup requirements.
Shift emphasis with your season
Because the Grant has a monthly limit, the useful question is not how much to spend but where to point it. Ahead of a registration window, program campaigns can take more of the account's attention; once programs are full, volunteer or giving campaigns can take over. Timing the account to your season is the same principle behind our season-based approach.
Report what matters
A useful monthly report says how many people registered, signed up to volunteer or gave through the Grant, and from which campaigns, not just how many clicks the account received. Those registration figures are also evidence of reach that funders and sponsors want to see.
The Ad Grant is often described as free fundraising advertising. For many sports nonprofits, it is at least as valuable as a way to put programs in front of the people they were built for.