google ad grants: become a pro in 1 hour
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This presentation was originally delivered at TechConnect 3.0 in Mountain View, CA.TRANSCRIPT
www.mediacause.org/blog | @MediaCause, @GoogleAdGrants
Google Ad GrantsBeginner to Pro in 60 minutes
Eric Facas @EricFacas [email protected]
What is a Google Ad Grant?
A Google Grant is a $10,000 in-kind grant given to nonprofits EVERY MONTH for free advertising on Google.com. Get started IMMEDIATELY by signing up at Google.com/nonprofits
Benefits and Limitations
What’s your average monthly Google Ad Grants spend?
The average Google Ad Grants account spends
approximately $330 a month
96.3 %
$40K/mo - Free Google.com Ads
Existing Google Ad Grants recipients
Spent $9900/mo in at least 2 of the last 6 months
Account level click through-rate (CTR) of 1% or higher for the last 6 months
Must have Google Analytics conversion tracking installed
Someone managing the account on a bi-weekly basis
Grantspro is Back!
Roadmap
1. Beginner – Adwords/Grants
Fundamentals
2. Intermediate – How to Spend Your Grant
3. Advanced – How to Get the Most Value
4. Case Study
8
Getting Started: The Fundamentals
How are the Ad Positions Determined?
Max CPC x Quality Score = Rank Score Rank Score is calculated per keyword Quality Score is Comprised of the Following:
- Click through rate (CTR)- Quality of landing page- Relevance of ad text- Historical keyword performance- Other relevancy factors (machine learning)
You only pay the CPC necessary to have a rank score higher than that of the advertiser below you
Minimum CPC can be as low as $0.01
Relevancy is EVERYTHING!
Bad News You can’t run on
keywords if you don’t have the precise content the user is looking for
Good News You can build content to
make yourself relevant for anything
Search Is Only As Effective As Your Website
If your website doesn’t have a ton of content, inspire action, and give people an easy way to get involved, don’t bother investing in Google Ad Grants.
Vs
Your #1 Goal is Donation Acquisition…
There are two exceptions: Brand terms & Disaster relief
…but
No one is searching for a place to give their money away.
What Are People Searching For?
MEA
SURE
& O
PTIM
IZE
PERFO
RM
AN
CE
Monthly Google Search Volume
“About The Rainforest” – 5,000,000
“Deforestation” – 457,000
“Save the Rainforest” – 33,000
“Rainforest Charities” - 880
Interest
Intent
Donation
Awareness
Information!
Information based searches
- Email capture strategies
About the Rainforest
Deforestation
Save the Rainforest
Charities
Match Ads & Landing Pages to Mindset
Sign an online petition- Get email, social
engagement Get Involved, volunteer, share
Donations, membership
Optimization 101 – 3 Levels to Pull
Keywords
Create a robust keyword list. You never know what users will respond to
Leverage all variations of your organizations brand, services, programs, missions, etc., as keywords
Include issue and solution-oriented keywords
Ad Copy
Always run 3 variants at a time
Remove the poorest performer each month (lowest CTR & conversion rate)
Keep ads fresh, test test test.
Landing Pages
Send traffic to the most relevant pages on your website
Install Google Analytics and obsess of what people do when they land on your site
Test sending traffic to different pages, A/B test different messages and designs
INTERMEDIATE: 5 Account Optimization Tips for Unlocking Google Ad Grants’
Potential
58% of searches use between 2-4 words
Average Global Search Phrase Length
SOURCE: Experian Hitwise – Oct 2009
Tip #1: Build Your Keyword List w/ the Long Tail
Use a Google suggestions and a thesaurus to find keywords similar to the ones that are performing well
Add Keywords Without Hurting Relevancy
Quality score is calculated at the keyword level. Use all 4 match type options: broad match, “phrase match”, [exact match] & - negative to grow keyword list and increase precision.
Test different combinations of ad copy and landing pages if you think keywords with low
quality score are relevant. If that doesn’t work, remove them.
Tip #2: Relevancy is Everything
Ad Groups should have 15-30 similar keywords that align to a specific page on the website. The more focused the ad group, the
better the ad targeting.
Campaigns should align with goals: donations, volunteers, events, email collection
Tip 3: Account Structure Matters
Get Noticed
LOOK AT ME!I have 1.26s to grab your attentionand convince you to CLICK HERE!www.GetNoticed.com
Tip #4: Ad Text
Family Abuse Facts
22
Family ViolenceLearn More - Get the latest family violence facts here.www.futureswithoutviolence.org
3.32% CTR
Family AbuseGet the facts on family abuse here & learn how you can help stop it. FuturesWithoutViolence.org
5.56% CTR
23
Headline should be hyper relevant to the query – include the exact keyword
Include an informative and empowering call to action
Test 3-4 variations at all times
Remove the worst performer every month
3.32% CTR
5.56% CTR
Family AbuseGet the facts on family abuse here & learn how you can help stop it. FuturesWithoutViolence.org
Family ViolenceLearn More - Get the latest family violence facts here.www.futureswithoutviolence.org
How to Write Effective Creative
Digital Asset Optimization
24
Tip #5: Drop users on the most relevant & effectives page on your
site
Landing Pages
Conversion Rate = 0%
0 emails collected
Conversion Rate = 12.59%
1,000 + email address / mo
Homepage Vs Targeted Landing Page
Is all this information necessary at this point in the relationship?
Most users are reluctant to divulge personal information
4 fields is the ideal length
Conversion Rate = 50%
Conversion Rate = 74.6%
Keep Forms as Short as Possible
25% of Clicks
75% of Clicks
25% of Clicks
75% of Clicks
Official Google Adwords Certification(http://gcptransition.appspot.com/)
Google Ad Grants Help Forum(http://productforums.google.com/forum/#!forum/grants)
Google Ad Grants Whitepaper by Media Cause (http://help.mediacause.org/google-grants)
Great Resources for DIY SEM
Want More? You’re Not Alone
Building Strong
Relationships
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ProTips
PRO LEVEL TIPS: Email Capture and Community Building Techniques Transform Website Traffic Into New Donors
What is an Email Worth?
www.frogloop.com/care2blog/2009/11/11/whats-an-email-address-worth-just-calculate-it.html
Prominent Placement for Newsletter Signups
Tip: highly visible, above the fold; test different call-to-action messages and button colors
Footer Signups / Messaging Matters
Tip: Test alternative messaging for “newsletter signup”
Promote Petitions and Pledges Throughout
Tip: Encourage participation/email capture from your most trafficked pages.
Slide-Ins / Pop-ups for Engaging Content
Tip: Foster sense of community with email capture on your most engaging content pages (blog).
Tip: Use Adwords and Google Analytics to determine what content is the most popular.
Email Gate for Best Digital Content
Advanced Email List Building
Tip: Segmentation and precision targeting lead to greater success.
Case Study
#DoingItRight
Case Study – Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Previous Strategy
Googled “screech owl” and landed on the AllAboutBirds.org species account
Saw a picture, maybe listened to the owl call, then left
Community Building Strategy
Web VisitorsLeads w/
email Donors
• It’s all about email capture and turning anonymous traffic into supporters
• Create lead capture opportunities based on what visitors are looking for… pull them in for more information
Create Targeted/Segmented Offers
Landing Page
Download Page
Nurture New Supporters (Leads)
A “Welcome Series” triggered by filling out a form:• Immediate - thank you email, acknowledging their love for
Owls
• 3 days later – More Owl Sounds, Macaulay Library “Voices of North American Owls”
• 6 days later – NestWatch Build an Owl Nest Box, YouTube Eastern Screech Owl and Barred Owl videos
• 12 days later – Invitation to Join the Lab
Monthly communication:• New leads are added to monthly eNewsletter
• Fundraising campaign appeals and membership drives (periodic)
Community Building Strategy in Action
Google “screech owl” and land on the AllAboutBirds.org species account
Donate/Join for the first time via email
Begin receiving monthly eNews and email solicitations
Learn more about the Lab through triggered emails
See offer to download owl sounds in exchange for email address
Don’t forget to say THANK YOU!
Year One Results
• Increased email capture rate from 0.2% to 5.98%.
• Increased our email file by 56% (522k as of 4/1)
• Doubled online fundraising over prior year
• 60% of first-time donors are coming from online
• 54% of online revenue was in response to email solicitations
• Average “sales” cycle – 78 days from lead to donor
Eric [email protected]@EricFacas
Thank You! Questions?
Media CauseMediacause.org/blog
@MediaCause@GoogleAdGrants