One Today by Google: A new way to fundraise

By Charles Dieu | Published April 30, 2013
Posted in Online Marketing For Nonprofits, Social Media For Nonprofits

The new One Today by Google app strives to help donors and nonprofits connect on a daily basis by encouraging the app user to contribute $1 to a cause with one simple click of a button.
 
OneToday1
 
How does it work?
 
One Today by Google displays a new nonprofit each day with a clear description of the nonprofit, stunning visuals, and an explanation of how a donation will be used to make a difference. Users choose to donate to whichever cause inspires them. The more frequently a donor donates the more the app learns about their preferences. This helps the app recommend daily nonprofits that are similar to ones the user has given to in the past and have a personal appeal to the specific donor. Thus, making it more likely that particular donor will donate again.
 
There is a social and crowdsourcing aspect to One Today by Google as well. A user’s $1 donation can be shared via social media in an effort to encourage friends to donate. A donation’s impact can be amplified when donors match donations made by their friends and vice versa.
 
OneToday2
 
Donations are made using Google Wallet. Google takes a 1.9% credit card fee using this service, but it handles all of the processing and donation routing for the app user. The donations are also tax deductible.
 
How do nonprofits sign-up?
 
Nonprofits can get their initiatives and projects featured on the One Today by Google app by registering for Google for Nonprofits first and then enrolling their nonprofit for the One Today by Google product. The Google for Nonprofits program is available only in the US for nonprofits holding 501(c)(3) status. Go to this link to register for Google for Nonprofits and enroll in the One Today by Google: http://www.google.com/nonprofits/.
 
Once enrollment in the app is approved, it takes only a couple minutes to setup a project to be featured on the app. The app introduces nonprofits to people who are likely to donate due to their interests, preferences, and past donations. This app opens up a new platform for nonprofits to tell their compelling story and generate social media buzz within the mobile device audience segment.
 
Where can users get it?
 
Want to get your hands on this app and start micro-donating to causes you care about? The One Today by Google app is available for Android users in the US on an invite-only basis right now. Go to this link to request an invite: http://www.google.com/onetoday/.

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AdWords for Video for Nonprofits?! Imagining a possible future.

By Charles Dieu | Published April 24, 2013
Posted in Google Grants, Online Marketing For Nonprofits, Online Marketing Trends

AdWords for Video
 
Over the past couple of years, I have been lucky enough to listen to several presentations by Googlers. The key takeaway has always been that mobile and video are the way of the future, especially as it pertains to Google’s advertising business. Recently, AdWords for Video caught my eye when one of the ads promoting the Google product popped up before a YouTube clip I was about to watch. AdWords for Video is definitely appealing for for-profit businesses, but I started thinking of ways it could also work for the nonprofits I work with everyday.
 
Video ads on YouTube and the Google Display Network just make sense. People upload 48 hours of new video content every minute of the day and 44% more Canadians reported using online videos when compared to last year. AdWords for Video gives people a way to promote their message, engage the viewer, and connect with customers and supporters in the growing online video community. Video is a tried and true way of conveying great stories and can be easily shared across the internet.
 
How it works for for-profit businesses right now:
 
Google has made it possible for advertisers to manage all their campaigns in one single interface. The AdWords interface allows advertisers to manage ads on the Search Network (you may know it as Google AdWords and Google Grants), the Google Display Network, and now AdWords for Video. Advertisers are given four possible TrueView ad formats to choose from when using AdWords for Video.
 
When you boil it all down, you only need a couple of things to start advertising on Google for Video.
 
1. You need a video clip of your ad
2. Select the ideal audience for your video ad.
3. Only pay for ads that viewers choose to watch.
4. Monitor and analyze viewer data.
 
TrueView ad formats to choose from:
 
TrueView
 
Click to view larger image
 
How it might work for nonprofits in the future:
 
Nonprofits are no different from for-profit businesses when it comes down to the storytelling. Being able to tell a compelling story is core to every nonprofit’s cause. Some of the nonprofits I work with are already investing some of their resources into creating videos for potential donors and supporters to view on their website or YouTube for Nonprofits channel. All this rich storytelling content can be easily edited into a 30-second spot encouraging people to donate or volunteer right before or in the middle of their YouTube clip. It could even be a PSA to raise public awareness.
 
Here is what I’m imagining in the future. If nonprofits were given access to AdWords for Video, there would be be a grant program in place to manage the budget and other limitations. Like the Google Grants program you hear me and Simon talking about all of the time, nonprofits would be given a small in-kind free advertising grant program which they can use as a budget for their AdWords for Video campaigns each month. Restrictions and limitations should include the amount of advertising budget provided, use of only two of the four TrueView formats, and the video ad spot’s length should limited to 30 seconds.
 
The TrueView ad formats that I believe should be available to nonprofits are the TrueView in-slate and in-search ads. For the in-slate ad, three ads appear and the viewer chooses to watch one during their YouTube clip. There should always be a chance that one of those three ad options will be a nonprofit video ad. This way the nonprofit video ad won’t be monopolizing the paid ad time like in some of the other formats. For the in-search ad, it works similar to GOogle Grants AdWords. Ads appear when triggered by search terms. Nonprofits and for-profit businesses do not compete over the same keywords typically. I think as long as the nonprofit video ads do not impinge upon paid advertiser’s ad spots, the possibility of offering AdWords for Video to nonprofits is a viable one.
 
What do you think of AdWords for Video’s potential impact for nonprofits? Do you think Google may be open to the idea of offering the product to nonprofits in the future? Any thoughts on my AdWords for Video for Nonprofits grant program? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

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5 Ways To Create Real Benefit Using Google Grants

By Simon Choy | Published April 18, 2013
Posted in Google Grants

A year ago I wrote a post about 5 Ways To Use Google Grants To Help Your Charity. In case you missed it, these 5 ways were to increase fundraising, event attendance, volunteering, education/awareness, and help for those who are searching for it.
 
Now that it’s a year later, here are 5 more ways your charity can create real benefit using Google Grants $10,000 per month in free advertising.
 

1. Grow Your Email Contact List

 
Collecting emails are an important part of growing your charity. Having someone’s email means you can directly appeal to them for support, whether you’re asking for advocacy, time, or donations. How Google Grants can help you is by bringing visitors to a page where you provide relevant information and include a way to collect their email voluntarily.
 
Interestingly, Frogloop published some research done by Convio and found that the average email is worth $7.86 in first year donations. The lifetime value of an email goes up to $14.74, making this a worthy investment.
 
 

2. Grow Your Newsletter

 
If your nonprofit has a newsletter, it can sometimes be difficult to build a viewership for it. Google Grants can help you build this audience by bringing relevant traffic right to you newsletter page. As an added bonus, you can also use your newsletter as a way to capture someone’s email by including a subscribe option.
 

3. Grow Your Blog

 
Similar to your newsletter, having a blog can be a great way to engage users but requires you to gain followers. Google Grants can connect you with potential readers who are looking for blogs about your cause. If you can turn those viewers onto subscribers, it gives you an opportunity to market your newsletter as well as collect email addresses. Make sure that it’s easy for people to follow your blog by including multiple subscribe options.
 

4. Grow Your Website Membership

 
Some nonprofits have membership options where visitors can create an account. If you are connecting with an audience using free advertising and providing great content that they are looking for, you’ve already warmed them up to the next step of registering. Make it clear what benefits or incentives users get from registering with your organization so that you’re more likely to convert that viewer into a member.
 

5. Grow Your Video Marketing

 
If your nonprofit is a heavy YouTube or Vimeo user, Google Grants is a fantastic way to drive traffic to your videos. Note that you cannot send traffic directly to your YouTube channel, but you can and should embed your videos inside content on your website.
 
As a result of adding videos, you will have landing pages that are really engaging and will encourage visitors to stay. The more time they spend on your website, the more chances you have to convince them to volunteer, donate, or advocate. Also, adding a video plea on your donation page can be an effective way to deliver a short but powerful message on why people should support you.
 

Last Words

 
Armed with these tools and your $10,000 per month in free advertising, there are many ways to create real benefit and growth for your nonprofit. Make sure you get started today.

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Increase Google Grants Spend Using Shared Budgets

By Simon Choy | Published March 27, 2013
Posted in Google Grants

budgeting
There are a number of factors that affect how much of your Google Grant you spend each month, like the quality of your keywords or the CTR of your ads. How you budget your campaigns is another factor that could be limiting your ad spend. Fortunately, there’s something called shared budgets that will solve all your problems in a couple clicks.
 
What Is Shared Budget
 
Shared budget is an AdWords feature that lets you allocate spend across multiple campaigns instead of setting a budget for each campaign individually. This is extremely useful for Google Grants accounts because you can set all your campaigns to share your $330 budget. That way, AdWords will automatically allocate your funds where it’s needed, and you don’t have to worry about optimizing your budgeting.
 
How To Set Up Shared Budget
 
Shared budgets are simple to set up. Once you log into AdWords and navigate to the campaigns page, on the left-hand column you will see a tab called “Shared Library” (you may have to scroll down the screen). Once there, click on “Budgets” and then “+New Budgets”. This will allow you to set a shared budget amount and which campaigns to apply them to.
 
shared-budgets
You can find the “Shared Library” tab at the bottom left of your screen.
 
When Not To Use Shared Budget
 
If there are certain campaigns that are especially important, you can prioritize them by not including it in the shared budget. Instead, set an individual budget so that you make sure ad spend is dedicating to that campaign.

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Grow Your Charity’s Social Media Using Google Grants

By Simon Choy | Published March 13, 2013
Posted in Google Grants

Google Grants is a versatile marketing tool that can help your charity in many ways, like increasing fundraising and awareness. As it turns out, your $10,000 per month can even grow your social media following.
 
This works by bringing in relevant traffic using your Google ads and converting engaged users into followers. Here are some ways you can achieve this.
 

Embed Videos In Your Content

 
Embedding videos right inside your content is a fantastic way to grow your YouTube or Vimeo channel. One of the charities we work with did this and their average video plays grew an astonishing three times as a result.
 
This is something your charity can achieve too by adding a video to the landing page of your ad. Make sure that the clip relates to the keywords you used so that the searcher finds it relevant. This will increase the likelihood that the visitor continues to engage with your site and video channel.
 

Make Following Easy Through Visible Icons

 
The easier it is for someone to follow you, the more likely it is that they will. This is especially important in the digital world where people’s attention can shift quickly. Ensure that you have social media icons on every page of your website, preferably in a visible location like the header.
 

Feature The Follow On Your Homepage

 
Another way to make it easy for visitors to follow is by featuring it on your homepage. Here is an example of a charity, Autism Canada, that does it well by creating a call-to-action in a slider on their homepage. This makes it extremely noticeable, and explicitly asking for the follow can actually affect a person’s choice to do so.
 

Screenshot of Autism Canada

 

Request Follows In Content

 
This is especially relevant if your charity blogs, but anyone can ask visitors inside content to follow them via a social media channel. Similar to the previous point, asking for that follow can make it more likely. Then, anytime your Google Grants drives traffic to your website, they may read your content and see that call-to-action.
 

Last Thoughts

 
Of course there’s no guarantees that Google Grants will lead to a larger social media presence. However, if you’re driving thousands of unique visitors every month, it’s in your best interest to do the things that will make it easier, and therefore more likely, for people to follow you.

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