The Ultimate Guide to Google Ad Grant for Churches

Across the world, people make over 350 billion Google searches every single day. People are constantly searching for answers, how-to, help, and resources. 

Think about it:

• A tired parent Google searches, “things to do with kids”
• A lonely college freshman searches, “looking for community”
• A brokenhearted woman searches, “how do I find hope?”
• A confused man searches, “who is God?”

Wouldn’t it be great if your church showed up at the top of those search results?

The good news is you can, and it won’t cost you a dime — with Google’s FREE Ad Grant!

See If your Church Qualifies

Is My Church Eligible?

Never heard of the Google Ad Grant?

Here’s a quick summary: Google gives nonprofits $10,000 per month in advertising money to rank first in search results. So, when someone in your area searches for “things to do with kids,” or “local events,” or whatever other keywords you choose, your church ad would show up at the top of the page — you’d be one click away from drawing someone in from your community who’s searching for answers.

Now that’s a game-changer!!!

Google Ad Grant Background

The Quick Case for Google Ads: 5 Reasons Your Church Should Use the Google Ad Grant

Not convinced the Google Ad Grant is worth it? Here are 5 reasons we passionately believe churches should utilize this tool to reach more people:

1. The Google Ad Grant is Free. That’s right, it’s $10,000 in FREE advertising every single month. It’s a free way to reach more people! Most normal-sized churches never dream of having a $10k/mo budget for ministry-first marketing. And while you need to know how to apply and get everything set up, using the grant can become a powerful tool to reach more people.

2. Google Search Ads let your church show up in search results when people are asking a question. This is huge. You know that the church is the answer to people’s deepest hurts, needs, and struggles – the local church is the hope of the world. But not everyone searching the internet knows that. With Google Search Ads, your church can show up right when someone’s searching or in need. In this way, you become the answer to your community’s questions!

Search ads allow organizations to rank first in search results, offering relevant, keyword-targeted text ads in response to the questions people are already asking. 

How can churches utilize the Google Ad Grant?

• Reach local community members with information about weekend services
• Advertise outreach events to connect with more people
• Reach people across the country with online ministry opportunities

3. Billions of people make Google searches everyday. Google is the most visited website on the internet, processing over 3.5 billion searches every. single. day. Your church could show up in some of those search results. You should have a voice and be able to provide hope and answers to people searching for answers in your community. 

4. It’s easy to target Google Ads. Only want to reach people of a certain demographic? Only want to talk to people in a certain geographic area? Only want to target people searching for “online church”? Google has detailed targeting options available. Google unlocks powerful segmenting that allows you to thoughtfully reach out to the kind of people you’re best suited to serve. Have a thriving group of young families? No problem. Have a special interest ministry? You can intentionally message that group as well. 

5. You only “pay” for results. We put “pay” in quotation marks because with the grant, you’re not paying out of pocket. But one great aspect of Google Ads is that you don’t pay until you get a result from your ad (such as someone clicking on the ad). This style of advertising allows you to maximize the $10k/mo budget that Google provides, so you won’t waste any of the Ad Grant money on people who don’t connect with your church website.

We could go on, but this list should give you some reasons to consider applying for and utilizing the Google Ad Grant! 

Keep reading if you want to learn more about the Google Ad Grant’s effectiveness and how to make sure your church is getting the most impact possible.

Is the Google Ad Grant Effective?

This is one of the biggest questions we get asked about the Google Ad Grant. You don’t have to take our word for it. In this section, we’re going to share some stories from churches that we help utilize the Google Ad Grant:

“We noticed a definite increase in the number of visitors we’re seeing each week now as soon as Church Fuel started managing our Google Grant. We even had new visitors during the high point of COVID when we had to move our services outdoors and are continuing to see a steady stream of new people every week.”  

“[Church Fuel] started running our Google Grants about a week ago (we’ve had an account for several years). It’s been unmanaged for the last 20 months… During that time we had a significant decrease in guests. Last Sunday we had one of the highest guest counts in a long time in part from what we do on FB but also… because we are seeing increases in Google Grant ad clicks.”

The list goes on. We’ve worked with churches that:

• Connected with a woman searching for community who had never been to the church before; she joined a discipleship small group and heard the Gospel message
• Grew a young adults group with new members joining every single month, all because they saw a Google Ad for young adults community nearby
• See new visitors every single week because they show up first in search results
• Receive calls for prayer and ministry through Google Ads, extending the church’s impact

And check out these emails we got recently:

This graph shows before and after this church started running Google Ads (see that jump in views? That’s when the Google Ads started).

So the short answer is YES – Google Ads ARE effective. And they’re free, so your church should definitely be using them. 

But before you apply for the Google Ad Grant, make sure you have a plan in place to utilize that grant money to effectively reach more people in your area.

Additional Resources

Do a little more research to determine if the Google Ad Grant is right for your church:

• Is showing up in Google search results important? Look at these stats about how many people use Google daily.
• Want to become Google Search Ad Certified? Check out Google’s free Search Ad course and certification.
• Google gives qualifying non-profits the Ad Grant through Google For Nonprofits. Learn more about the Ad Grant and GFN here.
• As you’re managing your Google Ad Grant account, you’ll want to make sure the account is meeting Google’s requirements. They’re listed here (this list changes periodically. Be sure to stay up to date on Google’s requirements at this link and by doing your own research).
• Are Google Search Ads really beneficial? Check out this article to learn more.

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Google Ad Grant 101

In this section, we’ll cover all the basics of church Google Ads. In brief: 

• $10,000 a month in ad credit
• Help you show up at the top of relevant Google search results
• If you don’t use it, you lose it!
• The goal is to make sure you are always inviting even when you don’t have enough time, budget, or team 👊
• “Automatic Invite System”

How can churches utilize the Google Ad Grant?

• Reach local community members with information about weekend services
• Advertise outreach events to connect with more people
• Reach people across the country with online ministry opportunities

The Google Grant works best for church leaders who…

• Want to reach more people
• Feel like your church is “the best kept secret in town”
• Want to see more people at ministries and events
• Have some time/money to dedicate to managing Google Ads

How Do Google Ads Help Churches?

Yes, we believe – and we’ve seen, time and time again – that Google ads can invite hundreds (or thousands) of new people to your church. They can make sure your church shows up when people search for local events. And they can get you on the front page of Google – for FREE – with the Google Ad Grant! 

But don’t take our word for it. Hear directly from the churches who’ve seen life change happen in their communities.

You too can achieve similar results when you properly implement and manage the Google Ad Grant. But you have to actively manage it!!!

Warning – Churches, Don’t Use the Google Ad Grant Until you Know These 5 Things:

Don’t make these common mistakes when using the Google Ad Grant at your church.

1. The Google Ad Grant is not a scam … but you do still need to be careful.

If your church is eligible, upon acceptance you will be given a Google Ads Account with a $10,000/month budget pre-loaded on the account. You can use this budget to reach thousands of new people in your community each month.

Use this eligibility checker to see if your church is eligible for the grant: Google Grant Eligibility Checker

But be careful – NEVER enter your Credit Card information in the Google Ad Grant account. If you do, you might get accidentally charged for extra ad spend (and with a budget so large, that mistake could cost you thousands of dollars).

2. Find someone to manage the Google Ad Grant … or Google will take it away.

Google has a list of requirements for Ad Grant accounts. One of those requirements is account activity. If someone is not actively managing your Google Ads, Google can take the Grant away (and they don’t have to give it back).

This could be a consultant, Google Ad Grant Management company, or high-capacity staff member or volunteer. 

If someone in your church chooses to manage it, make sure they’re aware that Google Ad Grant Management is like a part-time job. Google is constantly making changes and you need to stay up to date on those changes … or they can permanently revoke the Grant from your church.

If you choose to hire someone outside your church, make sure they’re committed to checking the account every week (if not more often). Things can change overnight and if they check it less frequently, you could lose a lot of potential $$ spend.

If your account shuts down for a week and your Account Manager doesn’t notice, you can’t get that budget back – it’s gone.

#03 – #05 are some other things to keep in mind if you hire a company or consultant

 3. When you hire someone, make sure they’re not trying to upsell you on a different product

Many companies and consultants use Google Ad Grant Management as a lead magnet strategy to get you to buy a higher priced product or service, such as a new website.

When you work with a company, dig into their pricing page to see if they offer other, related products or services. They might not tell you up front that you need something else, but if they offer higher pricing tiers or high priced website packages, it’s a good sign they’re going to try to sell you something more expensive after you sign up.

Find a company or consultant that offers a package including a website, Search Engine Optimization coaching, website review service as well as Grant acquisition assistance, and unlimited customer support.

… these are all common upsells that Google Ad Grant Management companies will use once you’re signed up.

4. When you hire someone, make sure they offer unlimited customer support.

There’s nothing worse than noticing a problem on your Google Ads account and not being able to get in touch with the people managing the account (okay, there are probably worse things in the world. But unresponsiveness = lost kingdom impact).

When you hire a company or consultant, they don’t know your church values, culture, and mission as well as you do. 

Make sure you hire someone who’s willing to listen and learn about your unique situation. Your church is unique and you want to hire someone who treats your account that way.

You need someone who is willing to email you, record customer support videos, jump on a Zoom call, and make themselves available regularly – not just once a month or on a huge group call with 1000+ other customers.

Look for someone who offers a support community – not just one customer service contact. 

Having other pastors and ministry leaders alongside you who are also reaching their communities through Google Ads will provide encouragement and support.

BONUS TIP:  Find a company or consultant who works exclusively with churches. They’ll know your market better than others and will obsess over finding the best Google Ads strategy to grow the Kingdom of God.

 5. When you hire someone, make sure they’re willing to build custom ads for your church.

Many companies and consultants don’t actually create custom ads for your church – they just put cookie-cutter templates on your account.

Some companies even advertise with keywords that don’t relate to your church (like other pastor names or denomination names). This is against Google’s policies and could cause you to lose the Google Ad Grant.

Make sure you hire a company or consultant that gives you the option to request unlimited custom ads. You don’t want to miss out on advertising some of your church’s events or ministries. Make sure you find someone who’s willing to do advanced keyword research for each request.

How can Church Fuel help?

At Church Fuel, we help churches get new visitors every week. One of the ways we do that is through Google Ad Grant Management.

We’ve designed a totally unique strategy to help churches get more visitors through Google Ads. We target highly searched keywords in your area to connect people with your church.

For every church that enrolls, we do custom work to determine the best keywords, headlines, and descriptions to grow your church.

We never limit custom ad requests – we know that your church is in a unique situation, so we want to run as many custom ads as possible to reach more people. We’re kind of obsessed with growing the Kingdom of God.

In the Grow program, we help your church acquire the Google Ad Grant. 

We’ve helped hundreds of churches – so we know every single place you might get stuck in the process. And our team is here to help (we’ll even jump in and do the work for you if we need to). We’re committed to making sure every church in Grow successfully acquires the Google Ad Grant.

We check and optimize Google Ads accounts every. single. week. (and sometimes two, three, or even five times a week!). We want to make sure that you don’t lose the Google Ad Grant …

… because losing the Grant means losing potential Kingdom impact, and we’re not okay with that.

Everything you need is included in the Church Fuel Grow program, at one price.

We NEVER try to upsell you. Our goal is to provide every possible resource to reach more people and grow your church. 

The CF Grow program includes…

• A fully customizable new website, designed by experts to get you more visitors
• Custom Google Ad Management (unlimited custom ad requests, weekly account optimization, unlimited support)
• Search Engine Optimization help
• Daily social media post guide to help your church reach more people on social media
• Topic-specific communities to connect you with like minded pastors and church leaders
• Unlimited support over multiple channels
• Bootcamps to make implementation easy
• Grow One Course to help your church build a Visitor Growth Engine
• 30+ courses to help with specific marketing areas
• Over 30 Kits to help you promote church holidays
• Sermon series kits with videos, graphics, scripts, and more – over 900 done-for-you resources to save you time and take “to-dos” off your plate
• … and more (new resources added every single month)

That’s all included at one price. And when you enroll, we never raise the price or try to upsell you. We’re in this to make Heaven crowded.

If you’d like to learn more about the CF Grow program, click the button below:

Learn More About CF  Grow!

Grow includes Google Ad Management Pro …

• Google Ad Grant Acquisition
• Unlimited support
• Unlimited custom ad requests
• Weekly account optimization
• Fully customized Core ads
• Landing page coaching
• Website review to optimize website for Plan Your Visits
• Google Analytics support
• Assistance with Google Analytics upgrades
• Assistance with Google Ads advertiser verification
• Unlimited Google Ads policy appeals
• … and whatever else it takes to make sure your church is reaching the most people possible through Google Ads.

Sign up for Grow (or join the waitlist) here:

Learn More About CF Grow!

How to Apply for the Google Ad Grant 

How Does My Church Get The Google Ad Grant?

Now that you know what the Google Grant is, we know what you’re probably asking – “How, exactly, does my church get the Google Ad Grant?”

The good news is that it’s not too hard! 

Google Ad Grant Activation Guide

Follow these steps to unlock $10,000/month in free advertising credit for your church:

Step 1:  Verification

The first step is to prove to Google that you’re a nonprofit organization.

You’ll do this through a Google for Nonprofits account. Google will use a third-party organization to verify your organization’s 501(c)(3) status. 

Apply here: https://www.google.com/nonprofits/

Then watch your inbox for emails from Google, Google for Nonprofits, and Percent.

More specifically, in this short verification process:

• You prove to Google that you’re a nonprofit organization
• Google will verify you through a third-party company (Techsoup)
• Must be legal nonprofit (in America, 501(c)(3) or umbrella 501(c)(3)

Google gives churches and other eligible organizations the Ad Grant through their Google For Nonprofits program. 

• Log into your Google For Nonprofits Account. If you don’t already have one, apply here
• Click “Activate Products” and activate the Ad Grant
• If Google denies your Ad Grant application, make changes and reapply

Here’s a little more detail. The Ad Grant is considered a “product” in the Google For Nonprofits program. If you already have a Google For Nonprofits account, log in and Activate the Google Ad Grant product! If you think you have an account but can’t find it, make sure you’re logged in with the right Google account.

See if your church qualifies

Is My Church Eligible?

If you don’t have a Google For Nonprofits account yet, visit this link to make sure your church is eligible. Eligibility requirements vary by country, but in the United States your church must be recognized by the IRS as a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization formed for charitable, educational, religious, literary, scientific, or other tax-exempt purposes (chances are, you’ll fall in that religious category!). If you’re tax exempt under a group exemption, such as a denominational affiliation, you can get more info here. 

Step 2:  Google Ad Grant Application

Once you confirm that you’re eligible, visit the Google For Nonprofits website, click Get Started, and follow the steps to apply. Google will confirm your application and let you know when your application is approved. Once it’s approved, log into your account and Activate the Google Ad Grant product. 

Once you’re approved for Google for Nonprofits, log into your account to activate the Google Ad Grant. If you’re a Church Fuel Grow Member, we walk you through the process here. 

(Note: You’ll need a secure website to complete this step, hosted on your own domain. It can’t be on a domain like snappages.church.com or another subdomain from a hosting company).

Once you submit this step, keep an eye on your inbox.

Step 3:  Account Access – Find Google’s 3 Emails

Be sure to pay attention to any and all emails from Google or you will delay the approval process. When you’re approved for the Google Ad Grant, Google will send you 3 emails to give you access to the account. Here are the subject lines (to make them easy to find):

• Action required for your Google Account (start with this one)
• Google Ad Grants activation approved
• You received an invitation to access your Google Ad Grants account

 Keep the following in mind:

• Accept all invitations
• Accept terms and conditions
• DON’T enter credit card information

These emails will give you full access to a new Google Ads account with the grant added like a gift card

Open those emails and accept all of the invitations (you should find an invitation to a payment profile and Google Ads account).

When you accept them, you’ll be able to log into your Google Ads account! DON’T enter credit card info, or you might get charged for the ads.

It’s honestly a short 5-minute application to activate the Google Ad Grant inside your Google for Nonprofits Account. It does require a secure website URL however. And, be sure to check for broken links, broken buttons and anything else not working on your site first before you try to apply. It saves so many headaches later!

Activating the Google Ad Grant will require filling out a second, short form with information about your organization and advertising goals. Google will review your request (as well as reviewing your website) and either approve or deny your application.

And there you have it! 

Once the account is activated, you can begin running ads to let your community know what’s available at your church. All of the following are fair game for the ads and have proven to run well:

• New Here
• Events / Calendar
• Small Groups
• Prayer
• Kids Ministry
• Sermon Archive
• Youth Ministry
• Young Adults
• College Ministry
• Women’s Ministry
• Marriage Ministry
• Who is Jesus?
• Livestream Service
• Sermon Series
• Community Help
• Financial Resources
• Preschool
• Car Show 
• And more (anything people might search on Google)

Church Fuel has successfully run ads using the Google Grant for all of those specific examples and many more. The sky’s the limit!

Maintaining the Google Ad Grant

How to Use the Google Ad Grant At Your Church (options)

Okay, so you’re convinced. You see the value in the Google Ad Grant and you know how to access it for your church. In order to continue to qualify for the Google Ad Grant, organizations must meet Google’s ad performance requirements. Here are 2 approaches churches take to make sure this happens:

Option #1: Hire a Team of Experts to Run the Google Ads Account

Most churches choose to hire an agency to run their Google Ad Grant account. Why? Because worrying about click-through rates, keyword quality scores, maintaining account performance, creating new campaigns, building new ads, and taking care of the account can quickly become a huge task on someone’s plate. Many churches choose to outsource their Ads Management so they don’t have to think about it, and so they can trust that someone’s handling it who knows what they’re doing.

• Pros to this approach: You don’t have to stress about meeting Google’s performance requirements. You can trust that an expert is taking care of the account and helping you get as much impact as possible.
• Cons to this approach: Hiring a team to manage it costs money. Also, many companies copy-paste ads from other accounts or use very broad, irrelevant targeting. We never do that.

Option #2: Run the Account Yourself

Through a combination of free and affordable courses and resources on the internet, someone on your church team or a high-capacity volunteer can learn to maintain and manage the account. It takes some learning, but some churches choose to go this route to save money and keep the Ad Grant Management in-house.

• Pros to this approach: You’ll save money, rather than paying someone else to manage your ads. It gives a willing volunteer or leader an opportunity to serve the church in this way.
• Cons to this approach: Maintaining an account takes time. On top of that, learning to manage Google Ads can be a big project. It’s often hard to find resources other than Google’s technical training, which will only take you so far. Most available resources are not designed for churches.

To help those churches choosing to run the account themselves, keep reading for advice about how to do it well.

6 Steps to Writing Effective Google Ads

One of the most common questions we get asked about church Google Ads is, “How do I write effective ads?” We’ll offer our best suggestions here. Of course, every church and community is different – so don’t just copy/paste these ideas. Figure out what works best in your unique context!
We’ve also included some example screenshots, with the church name removed for privacy. Feel free to take a look at those for additional ideas.

1.   Choose High-Volume Keywords

Google provides a tool called Keyword Planner to help with this step. You can access it in your Google Ads account by clicking Tools and Settings > Planning > Keyword Planner. Then click Discover New Keywords to find ideas!

Let’s say you’re building ads for your church’s Events page. You could enter “events near me” as a keyword example (in the field that says “Enter products or services closely related to your business”). Then Google will give you other relevant ideas, along with the search volume for those ideas.

Google Ads thrive on volume, so you’re going to want to choose highly searched keywords. 

Keyword Planner can be a little glitchy, so this is where some creativity and brainstorming come in 🙂 Try to come up with common things people might be searching Google related to the topic you want to advertise. 

Answer this question:

If someone searches for ____________, my ________ website page would be relevant.

Then use (blank 1) as your keywords and (blank 2) as the landing page for those ads.

2.   Catch Attention with Headlines

It doesn’t help if your ads show up in people’s search results but people keep scrolling right past them. And this is where Headlines come into play! Write 15 headlines (in your responsive search ad) that would catch people’s attention.

Tips:

• Write 15 headlines for every ad designed to catch attention
• Include high-volume keywords in your headlines
• Write Your Headlines in Title Case (Like This Sentence)
• Include calls to action (like, Click for More Information or Learn More Today)
• Ask a question (like, Are you Looking for Kids Events?) that would stop the scroll
• Use all 15 headlines – Google will determine which are most effective in different situations

3.  Compel Clicks with Descriptions

Your headline has stopped the scroll – now it’s time to give a little bit more information to get someone to click through to your website. That’s what Descriptions are for!

It’s hard to say exactly what to include in descriptions, because this is super custom to your church and the topic you’re advertising. Here are our best suggestions:

• Make the descriptions align with the landing page copy, so it’s obvious they clicked through to the right page
• End your descriptions with a call-to-action
• Think from a new person’s perspective. Don’t use church-y language. Remember, this is someone who’s never been to your church. Answer the question – Why would they want to attend your event?

4.  Invite Visitors with Landing Pages

This is technically not in the Google Ads interface, but without an effective landing page, your Google Ads aren’t going to help grow your church. Make sure you have an effective landing page (related to the ad topic) that people land on when they click the ads. Google requires you to send ads to your website (they will shut down your account if you send ads anywhere else)

Here are some landing pages that our landing page experts put together – https://beliefchurch.com/ 

Your landing page should include ONE call to action – for example, Click Here to Plan Your Visit Now. Give people too many options, and they won’t click any. Give people zero options, and they also won’t click any!

5.  Delegate this Project to Someone Else 😉

If you’ve read this whole guide, you’ve probably realized that running a Google Ads account is a big project. Without giving it the time and attention it requires, Google will take the account away.

Our #1 Google Ads recommendation is to find an organization to run it for you. It doesn’t have to be Church Fuel (although we would love to work with you to get more visitors through Google Ads!). But if you don’t manage the account right, you’ll lose access to over $120k in annual advertising budget.

When you’re looking for someone to manage your ads account, make sure:

• They’re not trying to upsell you on a more expensive product or service
• They offer unlimited customer support
• They’re willing to learn about your church’s unique situation
• They work exclusively with churches and obsess over finding the best Google Ads strategy to grow the Kingdom of God
• They’re willing to build unlimited custom ads for your church

At Church Fuel, we’ve designed the Grow program to help churches utilize Google Ads to get more visitors. ALL of our best marketing tools are included in Grow for one price – we’re never going to try to upsell you into a different program.

We offer unlimited customer support and build unlimited custom ads for your church’s unique ministries and events! We only work with churches (even though we get regular requests from other organizations) because we want to obsess over finding the best Google Ads strategy to make Heaven crowded.

When you jump into Grow, it’s like the Church Fuel team becomes part of your marketing team. We take care of all the heavy lifting to create an Automatic Invite System™ – using Google’s money to invite new people to your church every single day.

In the Grow Program, the Church Fuel team will build an Automatic Invite System™ for your church, fueled by the Google Ad Grant. This program includes help with the Google Ad Grant application process, unlimited custom Google Ads, monitoring and optimization of your account, and more marketing tools to give your church a steady stream of new visitors.

We know that your to-do list is probably a mile long, so this is a program we created to take things off your plate and make you look like a marketing rockstar!

The #1 Key to Writing Google Ads

The key to writing effective Google Ads is … practice, practice, practice! Your first ad might not perform well. And your second might not either. But keep working, keep researching, and put in the time needed to reach more people using this incredible tool (or hire someone else to do it!)

One more thing – when you hire an organization to run Google Ads for your church, that organization already has tons of experience with what works (and what doesn’t). This can save so much time.

So instead of struggling through this process yourself and trying to stay on top of Google’s ever-changing policies and trends, we recommend hiring someone who has hundreds of accounts worth of data to work with, and a full-time team dedicated to running ads for you.

But if you decide to do it yourself, we hope this guide is helpful!

How to Optimize Your Website for Google Grant

Google Ads don’t work well without a high-quality website. So when setting up your systems to help utilize the grant, be sure to use these 3 tips to optimize your website for Google Ads:

Why Do You Need a Website? 

People are Searching

In this day and age, what does someone typically do when they have a question? They Google it of course. It’s become its own verb!

There are around 9 billion Google searches every day so it’s no surprise that Google is the most visited website on the planet. 

• 63% of searches are on mobile
• 84% of people use Google 3 or more times per day

When people are looking for something, they turn to Google. Your church has answers. So let’s get your church to come up in those Google searches in your community!

Marketing Funnel

Google searches also serve as a kind of funnel to your church – it helps people become aware of who you are and what you do. It can help peak their interest in finding out more which ultimately gets them to make a decision and take action – all at the convenience of a click on your website.

People won’t be aware of your church without a website showing up at the top of their search results. They won’t be interested or decide to come if your website doesn’t tell them why. They need to know how to take action.

Helps People Take Next Steps

It only stands to reason then that having an effective website can also help people take their logical next step. When you rank at the top of Google searches:

• You answer their questions
• They know about your church
• They feel welcome and want to visit

Using the Google Ad Grant, you can run free ads only to your website which gives you the opportunity to start relationships and do ministry!

Optimizing Website for Google Ads

Why Optimize?

Google ads move you to the top of Google search results and people generally only click on the top results. 

It’s free for nonprofits and helps you make sure you show up when someone’s searching.

Google Ads don’t perform well on low quality websites so optimizing is critical to ensure top results.

Landing Pages

One trick to ensuring good search results is to have the appropriate landing pages. A landing page is a page where someone “lands” when they’re searching for a topic because it’s relevant to that topic. They don’t have to look through the entire website to find what they’re looking for. 

Align your website landing pages with Google Ad campaigns to increase performance

Below are a few examples of high quality landing pages.

Easter Landing Page Example:

• Send Google Ads to an Easter page on your website
• When people are searching for Easter events, etc.
• Include an “offer stack” – why people should come

Include a Call-to-Action on the landing page:

• Button that stands out
• Way for you to connect with people, even if they don’t show up
• Reference that CTA in your Google Ads

Churches Should Create Landing Page For…

• New Here
• Events / Calendar
• Small Groups
• Prayer
• Kids Ministry
• Sermon Archive
• Youth Ministry
• Young Adults
• College Ministry
• Ask the Pastor
• Christmas Eve / Day
• Easter
• Fall Festival
• Trunk or Treat
• Mother’s Day
• Father’s Day
• Divorce Care
• Men’s Ministry
• Women’s Ministry
• Who is Jesus?
• Livestream Service
• Sermon Series
• Community Help
• Financial Resources
• Preschool
• Car Show 
• And more (anything people might search on Google)

Google Ad Stories

Again, don’t take our word for it. See how real churches fared using the Ad Grant and optimizing their websites to match.

Each One Of These Stories

You should note some commonalities between these case studies. Each one of these stories have landing pages that are related to ONE topic, and they mention that topic in the words on the page.

They answer the “Why” and include critical information:

• Why should they come?
• Offer stack
• Photos of smiling people
• Include a Call to Action and reference that CTA in Google Ads

3 BONUS TIPS

Here are three additional pro tips for optimizing your website to run well in Google searches:

1. Make the pages mobile friendly (63% of Google Searches are on phones)
2. SEO: fast load speed, H tags, etc.
3. Make your CTA buttons stand out (red buttons!)

Action Plan

This may seem like a lot of information, but basically it boils down to the following 3 action steps:

1. Build website pages
   1. How can your church uniquely serve the community?
   2. How can you show up when people are searching?
2. Run Google Ads traffic to pages on your website
   1. Can take 400 views to get a Plan Your Visit
   2. Traffic is free with the Google Ad Grant
3. User experience
   1. What were they searching for? (make it relevant)
   2. Call to Action, offer stack, photography

Impact

We hope we’ve effectively laid out the tremendous impact running Google ads can have on your ministry outreach.

Google Ads can…

1. Invite hundreds (or thousands) of new people to your church
2. Make sure your church shows up when people search for local events
3. Get you on the front page of Google (for free with the Google Ad Grant!)
4. But only if you have an effective website

Why Choose Church Fuel Grow?

Our Church Fuel communications, church, and Google experts are adept at not only securing the grant, but putting it to use for churches who’ve achieved life-changing results. Here’s what they’re saying:

Church Fuel has a team of Google Ads certified professionals who run Google Ad Grant accounts for churches. These team members maintain the accounts to meet Google’s account requirements and check in with churches to create ads for new ministries and events.

• Trained professionals manage the account so you have one less thing on your plate
• Grant Managers build all ads custom to your church, rather than copy-pasting ads from other accounts
• Grant Managers create ads that match your church’s website copy, branding, and advertise to your geographical location
• Work with a responsive, relational team that cares about your church ministry success

What Does Church Fuel Offer to Help My Church Utilize the Google Ad Grant?

Want to increase your impact with the Google Ad Grant – but don’t have a volunteer or team member who wants to take on that project? Church Fuel has an option to do just that.

The Church Fuel Grow Google Ad Grant Process

1. If you don’t already have the grant, we’ll walk with you through the grant application process.
2. We’ll build out local ad groups based on your website and community (and we’ll make recommendations of pages you can build so we can max out your church’s ad account!).
3. We’ll monitor your Ads account, update your ads, and manage your monthly grant spend so you get the most impact.
4. We’ll connect with you regularly to create custom, keyword-targeted Ad Groups based on your current events, ministries, and more.
5. Our team will take care of everything – you don’t have to worry about it!

Join Grow 

Find out more about Grow here: Grow Program

Join Grow here: Enroll in Grow

Further Resources

If you’re still not convinced that showing up in Google search results is important, take a look at these stats about how many people use Google daily.

Want to become Google Search Ad Certified? Check out Google’s free Search Ad course and certification.

Google gives qualifying non-profits the Ad Grant through Google For Nonprofits. Learn more about the Ad Grant and GFN here.

As you’re managing your Google Ad Grant account, you’ll want to make sure the account is meeting Google’s requirements. They’re listed here (this list changes periodically. Be sure to stay up to date on Google’s requirements at this link and by doing your own research).

Are Google Search Ads really beneficial? Check out this article to learn more.

See if your church qualifies

Use the Google Ad Grant Eligibility Checker to see if your church qualifies for $10,000 in free advertising money!

Is My Church Eligible?

Troubleshooting the Google Ad Grant

Why Did My Website Get Denied?

If Google denies your application, don’t worry! You can make changes to your website, or follow any other feedback provided, and reapply. If you aren’t sure what specific changes to make, check for issues like broken links, 404 pages, or other functional problems. If you get denied again, try reaching out to Google for Nonprofits support or ask the Google Help Community!

Recall there are a couple steps to apply for the Google Ad Grant – 

1. Apply for a Google For Nonprofits Account
2. Log into your Google For Nonprofits account, and activate the “Google Ad Grant” Product

Sometimes, after completing Step 2, you’ll receive this vague message from Google:

Your activation request needs work. Your organization’s website doesn’t meet the Ad Grants website policy standards. Update your website and re-submit your activation request for review. Change the website to load quickly and have clear navigation. Include substantial, up-to-date content, and calls-to-action.

The problem is, that feedback isn’t very specific. It’s hard to figure out exactly what to change on your church’s website.

Here are some of the more common reasons we’ve seen churches that get this response, denying their website:

1.  Your Website Doesn’t List Your Nonprofit Status

Google often denies websites that do not contain information about the church’s nonprofit status. To fix this problem, add a line to your website about being a 501(c)(3) organization, along with your EIN number.

You can find an example on this page in the bottom section and in the footer: https://thelifesong.org/about-us/

2.  Your Website Contains Broken Links

Google will deny your website if the menu, header, footer, or other areas of the website contain broken links. It can be tedious to check every page on your website for broken links, but a free tool like this will check for you: https://www.deadlinkchecker.com/website-dead-link-checker.asp

3.  Your Website Contains Broken Buttons/Menu Items

This is very similar to the reason above – if some of the buttons on your website aren’t clickable, don’t lead where people would expect, or are broken, Google will deny your Ad Grant application. Go through your website and test every button and menu item. If something looks like a button (or looks like it should be clickable), make sure it works!

4. Your Website Load Speed is Slow

In order to qualify for the Google Ad Grant, your church is required to have a high-speed, quickly loading website. This creates a great user experience. To test your website’s load speed, use a free tool like: https://tools.pingdom.com/.

If your website has a large load time, try to reduce your Homepage (and other pages) size below 2 MB. This can often be done by optimizing images with an image compressor and/or an image resizer.

Resize your images (https://imageresizer.com/)

1. Banner image: recommend 1500-1800 pixels wide, 500 kb or less (less is ideal)
2. Normal image: 700 pixels wide is a good size. Big enough to fill the space but not too large

Compress your images (https://imagecompressor.com/)

5.  Your Website Contains Incomplete Pages

Google denies many websites because of incomplete pages. These could be pages that say things like:

• 404 error
• Page coming soon
• Under construction
• Live Stream unavailable at this time
• *nothing at all* (blank pages reallllllly bother Google)

Basically, if a page on your website looks or feels incomplete, it affects user experience. Which, in turn, means Google will deny your Ad Grant application.

In these cases, we recommend churches just temporarily remove those pages (or put them in draft mode) until they’re complete!

6.  Text is Hard to Read

If you have white text over a photo, text that’s in a complex font, or other text that’s hard to read, Google will deny your website for lack of readability. This also applies if text (or photos) are cut off at the edge of the screen. Make sure text is readable, complete, and easy to notice!

7.  Your Website Is Not Secure

In order to qualify for the Google Ad Grant, your website must be secure. To check if your website is secure, open the website in a new tab and check for a lock icon next to the website URL ????. If you can’t figure it out from the URL bar, try a tool like: https://www.hubspot.com/ssl-checker.

Once You’ve Checked Those 5 Things…

Once you check for those problems on your church website, try re-submitting your website for approval. If your website gets denied again, try posting in the Google Help Community. Your question will be submitted to Google Experts who can give you more detailed feedback. We recommend posting something like this:

Hello! Our Ad Grant application was denied, stating that:

Your organization’s website doesn’t meet the Ad Grants website policy standards. Update your website and re-submit your activation request for review. Change the website to load quickly and have clear navigation. Include substantial, up-to-date content and calls-to-action.

The website is: [website link]

We included our non-profit status on the website, checked for broken links and incomplete pages, checked our load speed, and ensured our website is secure. Can you help us figure out what else might be wrong?

Still Not Sure Why You’re Denied?

If you’ve checked your website for all 6 of the potential problems listed above, AND tried posting in the Google Help Community (give Google representatives a couple days to respond), and still can’t figure out why your website is getting denied, you can try contacting Google Customer support directly. It can be difficult to get in touch directly, but this website sometimes provides a chat option: https://support.google.com/grants/.

If you are able to get in touch with a Google Agent directly, they may be able to tell you why your website is getting denied. Before contacting them, try all of the options listed above.

Church Fuel Team

Church Fuel has a team of Google Ads certified professionals who run Google Ad Grant accounts for churches. These team members maintain the accounts to meet Google’s account requirements and check in with churches to create ads for new ministries and events.

If you’re stuck and need help, contact Church Fuel to be connected to a Google Ad Specialist.

Why Hire Church Fuel?

• Trained professionals manage the account so you have one less thing on your plate
• Grant Managers build all ads custom to your church, rather than copy-pasting ads from other accounts
• Grant Managers create ads that match your church’s website copy, branding, and advertise to your geographical location
• Work with a responsive, relational team that cares about your church ministry success

Mistakes to Avoid

When setting up your account

• Don’t enter credit card information
• Add multiple people as users on the account so you don’t lose access
• Make sure admin emails have 2-step verification
• Find someone to manage the account (volunteer, company, or consultant) – if you don’t use the account, you could lose the Ad Grant

If you hire a company/consultant

• Make sure they’re not trying to upsell you on a different product
• Find a company or consultant that offers a package including a website, Search Engine Optimization coaching, website review service, and Grant acquisition assistance
• Make sure they offer unlimited customer support
• Make sure you hire someone who’s willing to listen and learn about your unique situation
• Find a company or consultant who works exclusively with churches, with a church-focused strategy
• Make sure they’ll build unlimited custom ads for your church and do extensive keyword research

Non Discrimination Clause

What can we say? We’re over achievers!

In working with literally thousands of churches in some capacity, here are the most common additional issues that arise when discussing the Google Ad Grant.

• Concerns about the Federal Non-Discrimination Clause and its effect on churches
• Why is Google willing to give away so much money?
• Can you offer any real church results rather than just “theory” of how it might work?

In an effort to make this as complete an Ultimate Guide as possible, we include answers to those and more in this bonus section.

Understanding the Google Ad Grant Non-Discrimination Clause

At Church Fuel we feel best equipped to serve Jesus-Centered Evangelical Churches. Many Evangelical churches ask about the Non-Discrimination Clause that Google uses when they apply for their Grant Program. Here is how the clause reads:

“My organization does not discriminate against any person or group of people in either hiring/employment practices or in the administration of programs and services, including on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.” 

Church Fuel’s Recommendation

We’re not lawyers and this isn’t legal advice. (Consult your legal counsel.) This is how we process this clause with the churches we serve.

As we understand it, the US Supreme Court has ruled that churches have the freedom to hire in alignment with their religious beliefs and theology. The Supreme Court has clarified that this is not considered discrimination, but protected religious practice. 

We would estimate that Google has already approved thousands of Evangelical churches into the program. We have not observed a clarification from Google that would go against the Supreme Court’s rulings. We would anticipate that if Google chose to clarify its policy and go against the Supreme Court – then churches would be removed from the program at that time. In our experience, we have not seen Google use the Ad Grant Program as a way to control or limit churches. Therefore, we are comfortable recommending Evangelical churches apply for the Google Ad Grant. 

Now let’s go a little deeper into the details of this clause.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

Google’s clause language is taken directly from Title VII of the Rights Act of 1964 which prohibits discrimination in the workplace due to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, and sexual orientation, or gender identity. Because of that connection, some churches believe that Google is forcing them to agree to something their beliefs and doctrines do not allow.

In the United States, Title VII is the law of the land and all employers are expected to follow that law, including churches. However, there is a Religious Organization Exception to this Civil Rights Act. The gist of it is that your religious organization can hire and fire people according to your beliefs, and those beliefs supersede the broader discrimination definitions. According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the government Agency in charge of enforcing Title VII, that exemption states:

Religious Organization Exception: Under Title VII, religious organizations are permitted to give employment preference to members of their own religion. The exception applies only to those institutions whose “purpose and character are primarily religious.”  

For a more complete analysis, read EEOC’s Q&A on Religious Discrimination in the Workplace.

Why Is Google Willing to Give $10,000/Month to Churches?

Although Sheryl Sandberg, former CEO of Facebook, says she created the program to give nonprofits the opportunity to reach new audiences online and expand the impact they are making in the world, let’s be realistic and understand that Google’s primary strategy with the Adwords Grant is financial.

First, it makes Google as a brand look great. Second, it appears to be a massive tax write-off. Third, it also seems to increase Google’s profit by driving up the ad costs for businesses running paid ads that now have to bid against grant campaigns. 

Ultimately it’s an ingenious way to generate goodwill, decrease their tax bill, and inflate the keyword bids for paid for-profit advertisers.

Actual Church Experiences with Google Ad Grant

Nothing speaks louder than experience; fortunately for churches, there is much experience with the Google Ad Grant. Chad Hugghins from CV Outreach, an organization that works with more than 400 churches of all sizes on the Google ad Grant, offered the following observations:

“I can attest that Google is fully aware that churches use the Adwords Grant. In the documentation, churches are explicitly referenced as organizations that would benefit from Google for Nonprofits and the Adwords Grant.

“I can also attest that Google isn’t using the Adwords Grants as some sort of scheme to affect massive secularism of the U.S. In fact, there are less than a dozen people that are on the Non-Profits team at Google. It’s simply a financial gain for them, and they don’t devote a bunch of resources to it.

“I can also tell you that we are constantly calling Google and talking to our reps about our church campaigns, what the goal is, what the mission of our church organizations is, and that they don’t mind, and are oftentimes encouraged by it.

“Finally, I’ll just say that we’ve spent $16 million in Adwords Grant money for church partners this year, and because of that free money, we’ve seen millions of people visit a church website, hundreds of thousands of people exposed to the Gospel through short, video presentations, and thousands of people start conversations with our church partners directly.”

Nick Runyon of CV Outreach says they’ve run all of this past their lawyers who back up the points made about hiring practices, “For those of you who may be worried about legal exposure, it may be helpful to know that we’ve spent the time and money to have our legal team fully review our position on Google’s application process. You and your church have to make your own decisions. But after spending a lot of time on this issue we find no issue with applying as CV and recommending churches do the same.”

Church Fuel has been working with over 900 churches in our Grow Program utilizing the Google Ad Grant, some of them for several years. We’ve spent over $21 million annually in Google Ad Grant money for churches. Because of that free advertising money, we’ve reached over 26 million people with information about local churches and saw over 3.1 million new visitors to church websites – all in one year alone! 

Having worked with hundreds of churches for several years, we can say unequivocally that the Google Ad Grant is NOT a scam, even though your skepticism may believe that … however you do still need to be careful and wise in how you manage the grant. 

For help in applying for, maximizing, and optimizing Google Ads for your church, check out Church Fuel Grow. We’ll get you up and running – and keep you running – so you can focus on ministering to all the new visitors drawn to your church!

501(c)(3) Status

Ultimate Guide to Getting 501(c)(3) Status for Your Church

How do I get 501(c)(3) status for my church?  If you’re a church planter or church leader asking yourself that question, this guide is the place for you!

We’ll start with one of the biggest questions – how do you know if you need to get 501(c)(3) status? 

You’ll also discover how much it will cost to get a 501(c)(3) status for your church. 

And – you know Church Fuel! – we’ll make sure you have all the resources you need to make an informed decision.

We want to do the research for you so you can quickly and easily make decisions that help your church achieve its God-given mission and purpose. 

Does my church really need to get its own 501(c)(3) status? 

This may be one of the first and most critical questions any church faces. It may seem like “no big deal,” when you’re in the middle of ministry, but the answer has many ramifications. It’s not an exaggeration to say it affects virtually all church operations over the long haul. 

We can all agree that tax exemption under the Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3) provides a number of benefits, including:

• Exemption from Federal income tax
• Tax-deductible contributions
• Possible exemption from state income, sales, and employment taxes
• Reduced postal rates
• Exemption from Federal unemployment tax
• Tax-exempt financing

But those benefits are all afforded to churches just by their very nature. So, let’s start by saying there is no legal reason for a church to get a formal 501(c)(3) recognition because the IRS automatically considers a church to be exempt from taxes. That is to say, churches that meet the requirements of IRC Section 501(c)(3) are automatically considered tax-exempt by the IRS and are not required to apply for and obtain recognition of tax-exempt status. So as long as you meet the IRS requirements to be called a “church” you’ll be treated as tax-exempt by the federal government. 

But that’s just the federal government.

Many churches seek individual recognition of tax-exempt status from the IRS (even though it’s not required) because this recognition assures church leaders, members, and contributors that the church is tax-exempt and qualifies for related tax benefits. 

In other words, if you want to reassure your donors that they can write off their gifts to your church, you’ll want to make that official by getting a 501(c)(3) status for your church.

Churches are exempt under the tax code as taxable entities by the sheer fact they are churches. However, third parties, including your donors, will want to know you have complied with the IRS tax-exempt code. Without filing for 501(c)(3) status, each church has to prove they meet the requirements for each donor. More on that shortly. 

IRS “Church” Definition

To be tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, an organization must be organized and operated exclusively for exempt purposes set forth in section 501(c)(3), and none of its earnings may inure to any private shareholder or individual. 

How do you know if you meet the requirements? While there is no official definition of “church” in the tax code, the IRS uses a set of criteria when it examines a 501(c)(3) application for church status, essential guidelines to help the IRS and courts determine which organizations can be classified as a church for tax purposes. Some of those criteria include:

1. A distinct legal existence – Does your church have its incorporation and Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN)?
2. A definite and distinct ecclesiastical government – Does your church have its own pastor, minister, or ecclesiastical board?
3. A formal code of doctrine and discipline – Does your church have a set of doctrines and beliefs that your congregants are expected to follow?
4. Established place of worship – Do your worship services take place in a stable location, preferably a public facility instead of one’s home? (For all-digital churches, this could be an issue – more on that later.)
5. Regular congregation – Are your church services regularly attended by the same group of individuals? Are there multiple families?
6. Regular religious services – Does your church have regularly scheduled worship services?

Other attributes the IRS considers include:

1. Recognized creed and form of worship
2. Distinct religious history
3. Membership not associated with any other church or denomination
4. Organization of ordained ministers
5. Ordained ministers selected after completing prescribed courses of study
6. Literature of its own
7. Sunday schools for the religious instruction of the young
8. Schools for the preparation of its ministers

Your place of worship does not need to meet all 14 in order to be considered a church. The IRS looks at your organization’s attributes, together with other facts and circumstances, when they decide if they will legally consider you to be a church for federal tax purposes. As you can tell from the lists above, the tax code isn’t exactly up-to-date. It doesn’t reflect many modern churches.

What is the difference between a nonprofit and a 501(c)(3)?

These terms are often used interchangeably, but they mean different things. 

Nonprofit means the entity, usually a corporation, is organized for a nonprofit purpose. It doesn’t have owners or shareholders who profit off of the work of the corporation. A nonprofit is a designation of a corporation. Nonprofits can be taxed. 

If the nonprofit isn’t seeking donations, they don’t need 501(c)(3) status (since no donors will need a tax write-off). Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) can still receive benefits from their state, such as qualifying for grants or paying no sales taxes.

On the other hand, a 501(c)(3) is exempt from paying federal taxes – the designation means the IRS recognizes it as being tax-exempt by virtue of its charitable programs. 

What about Umbrella 501(c)(3) status?

When a denomination or parent organization applies for a special group exemption, it’s called an umbrella 501(c)(3) exemption. Individual churches don’t have to apply to the IRS. They’re covered under the group status when the parent organization gives an annual accounting to the IRS. You still need to incorporate and adopt your own bylaws, but you get a copy of the parent organization’s 501(c)(3) Exemption Letter. You’ll also get something on the organization’s letterhead that says, “they’re one of us.”

What’s the benefit of having an umbrella 501(c)(3) status? 

Particularly for church plants, going this route is incredibly faster than trying to get your own designation. You can also always get your own individual exemption later, if you decide you want it.

What are the detriments of having an umbrella 501(c)(3) status? 

As mentioned above, it may create confusion when you ask for donations. Donors may not understand why the name on the determination letter doesn’t match your church. Or, they may search for tax-exempt status confirmation online and are unable to locate your church specifically. 

There may be other considerations as well. For example, the parent organization may require regular (monthly or annual) status reports, a possible administrative burden. You may also need to share some resources with the parent organization, an ongoing budget cost.

How to Get 501(c)(3) Status for your Church – Possible Routes

In summary, there are three ways to get a 501(c)(3) exemption for your church:

1. Rely on the automatic blanket exemption recognized by the IRS
2. Apply for your own individual determination letter using IRS Form 1023
3. Use an umbrella 501(c)(3) exemption

Advantages of Getting Your Own 501(c)(3) Status

Why should a church go through the red tape of an individual designation if it isn’t necessary? There are a few basic advantages to a church having its own 501(c)(3) designation:

1)  Donor Assurance

You’re not dealing with the IRS, you’re dealing with the public. Unfortunately, the public doesn’t understand the nuances of the tax code. Having 501(c)(3) status assures your congregation and donors that the church is recognized – officially – by the IRS as legitimate and tax-exempt, thus guaranteeing their donations and tithes will be tax-deductible.

“Just walking into a prospective donor’s office, if you say ‘I’m a church so I’m automatically a 501(c)(3),’ they’re just going to roll their eyes at you and say ‘yeah, yeah, whatever,’” said Attorney Trinity Jordan of Launch My NonProfit, a legal firm specializing in helping churches navigate the IRS process. “That’s the truth – having that seal, that stamp, helps tremendously.”

Why Should We Get our 501(c)(3) Status?

Why should your church get its 501(c)(3) designation?  So you have something to give to the public. Whether it’s an individual donor, an organization, or your local governments – you want to be able to verify your tax-exempt status.

Bottom line, every taxpayer has the burden to prove their donations went to legitimate tax-exempt organizations. Anything you can do to make that easier will increase goodwill, and ultimately, donations to your church.

501(c)(3) status increases the transparency of the organization, as the church becomes part of the searchable IRS database of exempt entities.

For churches that provide missions work or children’s programs, this transparency can be a great way to let donors know that their contributions are going to a worthy and legitimate cause.

Often, people want to verify an organization claiming to have a 501(c)(3) tax exemption is actually exempt. The IRS Nonprofit Charities Database has a tool called The Exempt Organizations Select Check Tool, something well known to the public and prospective donors. 

It’s often the first stop to check on the legal status of an organization they are considering donating to. This tool allows people to enter the name of an organization to see if the organization is exempt or not. If you are utilizing a group or umbrella 501(c)(3) designation, your church would not come up in such a search. 

2)  Access

A group umbrella 501(c)(3) designation can work for donor assurance, although not always as noted above. However, sometimes, organizations or individuals will require you to have a separate designation with YOUR CHURCH NAME anyway, not the group’s name. Some that are more common among churches:

• Rental Issues: If you are covered under a group umbrella; a rental venue, like a local school district, may say, “This says the group is exempt, it doesn’t say YOU are exempt” – that can lead to a huge argument as you try to prove you are legally covered, even when lawyers present your case. If you’re a church plant without your own building, this could be an issue. Churches that utilize public venues for large outreach events can also be waylaid by it.
• Open Door Access – If you plan to interact regularly with local officials – school boards, city councils, county boards – they care about the 501(c)(3) designation. 

We might not care about it, the federal government doesn’t care about it, but the people you interact with locally care deeply about it. Having your own 501(c)(3) status will provide you access to critical areas later on, and open doors you couldn’t open otherwise.

3)  Additional Financial Benefits

501(c)(3) organizations qualify for a variety of discounts and benefits. Many companies offer discounts for established nonprofits like churches but require 501(c)(3) status to ensure legitimacy. Examples include:

Google offers $10,000 free advertising per month to qualifying 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations, churches included. That alone should be enough for a church to get its own designation. 

Some states provide additional tax exemptions for established 501(c)(3) organizations like exemption from state sales tax or state employment tax, freeing funds to spend on services, ministries, and programs, rather than on taxes.

The US Postal Service offers discounted rates for mailing and postage for established 501(c)(3) organizations.

Most tech companies (like Microsoft and TechSoup) offer discounts to nonprofits as do office supply stores and others. Most require a 501(c)(3) designation as proof of your tax-exempt status. 

If you get your 501(c)(3) status, remember to ask for discounts wherever you spend money, even if discounts are not “officially” advertised. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at how many there are and how much you can save!

Disadvantages of Getting Your Own 501(c)(3) Status

Like the advantages listed above, there are basic disadvantages to consider if you’re thinking about applying for the 501(c)(3) designation – cost, red tape, and public scrutiny/transparency. 

1.  Cost – in time and money

The biggest disadvantage to becoming a 501(c)(3) nonprofit is the expense. It takes time and money (up to a year and between $1000-$4000)  to go through the IRS process. You’ll have to pay fees to apply for incorporation and tax exemption at both the state and federal levels. The use of an attorney, accountant, or other consultants may also be necessary, or at least recommended to help you wade through the red tape. And the wait is sometimes 9-12 months for the IRS to respond.

But those disadvantages can be minimized when you partner with organizations adept with IRS interaction that have the heart to help the church. See the “How Church Fuel Can Help” section below.

 2. Red Tape

Each state has a distinct process of filing for incorporation (which has to be done before you can file for 501(c)(3) status), and its own process for granting nonprofits exemption from state taxes. 

So, there may be additional hoops to go through at the state level. 

The 501(c)(3) federal tax exemption is for FEDERAL taxes. However, most states will use what the IRS does in its exemption process (because it is the most intensive) to grant an exemption for its state.

Nonprofits are required to file annually with the IRS, but churches, at the time of filing for a 501(c)(3) designation, can request to be exempted from filing an annual 990. Churches are the only organizations who don’t have to file annually! So, there are no ongoing costs due to red tape federally.

However, as exempt corporations, nonprofits (including churches) are subject to laws and regulations, including their own articles of incorporation and bylaws which may have ongoing reporting requirements. 

 3. Scrutiny by the public/transparency

A nonprofit is dedicated to the public interest; therefore, its finances are open to public inspection. The public may obtain copies of a nonprofit organization’s State and Federal filings to learn about salaries and other expenditures. As a church, this one is probably the smallest concern, especially if you’re already reporting to your congregation.

How to Get 501(c)(3) Status for your Church

You must be a nonprofit organization to apply for 501(c)(3) status, so filing your articles of incorporation with your state is the first step. Then, a nonprofit corporation must apply to the Internal Revenue Service for recognition of tax exemption by filing IRS Form 1023. 

Relatively speaking, forming the corporation is fairly straightforward (assuming that one completely understands the process). In brief, it involves the following;

• Incorporating with your state
• Getting a Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN)
• Establishing a Conflict of interest clause for board members
• Developing Bylaws
• Developing Articles of Incorporation

That’s if you’re not an established church – for example, if you’re a church plant. If you are already an established church, you need to provide all those items to the IRS and go through the process to prove your existence. Typically it’s gathering things churches already have in various locations. In addition to those things noted above, churches must provide:

• Address of the church
• Names of board members/elders
• Explanation of who you are, where you’re located, and what your purpose is
• Finances for last 5 years (or projected budget for next 3 years if new church plant)

The most difficult thing is taking the information, digesting it, and translating it into bite-size pieces of what the IRS is most interested in. That’s where partnering with an organization experienced and adept at interacting with the IRS on behalf of churches is critical, one that knows the legal specifics and can navigate churches through the legal process.

“It’s not difficult at all, it’s simply gathering the information you already have – whether you’re an older church that’s already incorporated and has an EIN or if you’re new. We ask for what we know the IRS wants and we then take that information, digest it and translate it to what we know the IRS is most interested in,” Jordan explained. 

Costs & How Long it Takes to Get 501(c)(3) Status for your Church 

The federal application fee (filing fee for IRS Form 1023 is generally $600. There are some state filing fees as well, usually under $200. But professional fees to help you wade through the IRS red tape can run $2,000 – $4,000 in attorney and CPA fees.

According to the IRS, applying for 501(c)(3) status with Form 1023 can take between 3 and 6 months for processing, and it could take up to a year to get a determination letter confirming approval. 

Firms that specialize in helping churches apply for and receive 501(c)(3) status say the time is more like 6-9 months currently. But churches need not worry about gaps for themselves or donors because it will be retroactive to the day you incorporate if you’re a new church, and retroactive to the date you filed if you’re an existing church. Remember, every church is already considered a 501(c)(3) nonprofit by the IRS. There is no need to worry about your donors’ ability to write off gifts on their taxes no matter how long the IRS takes to approve your designation.

“At the end of the day, this is all about taxes and the government. They’re not coming after you for taxes,” Jordan said. “They’re looking to make sure you match the requirements for the designation; so it’s all very regulatory. But they’re also looking to see, are you trying to be fraudulent in trying to meet those requirements. Is there something nefarious going on here? We’ve done this so many times, we know what the questions are going to be, we know where they will have hang-ups so we cut them off before they happen.”

Services and Resources for Getting 501(c)(3) Status

There’s a multitude of resources available for getting your 501(c)(3) status – a Google search of “help getting 501(c)(3) status” generates 52,500 results! But what’s necessary and what’s worthwhile is a whole other ballgame. 

Navigating the IRS red tape on your own is certainly doable, but often takes much longer and can lead to mistakes that end up costing more in the long run. So, getting help from an experienced law firm does make sense. However, it only makes sense if the law firm specializes not only in the tax code but in churches as well. 

The legal profession is a very specialized field – a firm that practices family law may not be the best choice for nonprofit legal issues. Find a firm that specializes in churches – it will save you time and money long term.

Secondly, make certain the firm or entity you partner with has legal expertise on staff, not simply people who help you fill out and file the forms. There are many legal nuances that arise that require professional expertise.

For example, a church that meets mainly online needs someone who can legally explain how that meets the IRS definition of “an established place of worship.” The tax code is old and doesn’t, technically, recognize the changes we’ve experienced in what “church” is today, even before COVID hit and changed everything. If your church is all online or a hybrid of online and in-person, technically you don’t meet the “definition” of what the IRS considers a religious entity. Helping a church think through how it defines itself in terms of the tax code is critical to succeeding with the 501(c)(3) process.

Finally, it is important to work with an organization or firm that has a good reputation with the IRS itself and a strong history of success.

Why? Because when questions arise, as they frequently do, having someone the IRS knows, trusts, and understands is priceless in navigating those questions. “We want them to know if my name’s on the application, they can trust us and we’re vouching for the applicant organization,” Jordan explained. 

“I usually get called in on the back end from churches who’ve worked with firms on getting their 501(c)(3) status who got into a huge ‘pickle,’ and when we drill down to figure out what happened, it’s because they weren’t legally filed correctly. I’ve seen huge harm arise from that,” Jordan said. “So my advice to any church looking for help is to make sure you’re working with real experts, not just people that have a business online or who say they have a heart for churches. Or even attorneys in your congregation who don’t specialize in this area of the law.” 

How Can Church Fuel Help You Get 501(c)(3) Status?

Church Fuel believes so strongly in the power of the 501(c)(3) designation that they are offering to cover the cost for any church willing to commit to one year of membership in its Grow Program. Church Fuel has entered into a partnership with Launch My NonProfit, a firm run by a former U.S. District Attorney partnered with a lawyer who used to work at the IRS, to handle the application process for CF Grow churches (they also have extensive experience in church plants with a staff of over 400 attorneys across the United States). Why? Because everything Church Fuel does to bring churches to the next level in their marketing process is so much easier and more effective when a church has the 501(c)(3) designation – things like the $10,000/month Google Ad Program.

Helping a church get its 501(c)(3) status is the first step of the Church Fuel Grow Program Launch Track, but it’s only the first step. Here’s what else you’ll get:

1. Getting your 501(c)(3) Status (Legal, IRS, and State Fees included) – this is the “Launch Track” part of the program.
2. $10,000/month Google Ad Grant Program Management
3. Facebook Ads (Prayer Ads + Invite Ads)
4. Paid Google Ad Management
5. Church Fuel Enrollment (You and your team) 
6. Private FB Group
7. Church Website (Omega)
8. Daily Social Media Guides
9. Weekly Group Coaching Calls / Labs to get the work done 
10. Unlimited Access to Coaches who can help with any aspect of your ministry

Plus, you’ll get unlimited access to every marketing campaign Church Fuel has ever created and all future campaigns!

How to Proceed

If you are interested in joining Grow, you can enroll here, or join the waitlist here to get in as soon as an opening occurs. In the meantime, you can join Church Fuel and benefit from the huge library of resources, courses, kits, live member calls, and more! Apply for a Church Fuel Scholarship here.

So Why Should Your Church Get its 501(c)(3) Status?

There is some misinformation circulating about the tax code and its effect on churches. Some churches believe they don’t need the 501(c)(3) status because they are a Section 508 church  (Section 508 is the provision of the IRS code to which churches are described as being exempt from IRS taxes whether or not they apply for official status). 

When individuals argue they are a 508 church, they are simply saying they don’t need to pay federal income taxes. The rest of the benefits afforded to 501(c)(3) organizations with determination from the IRS are not automatic to churches. If you want those, you must file for a 501(c)(3) determination.

The problem is that the burden is still on each and every church to prove it is a 501(c)(3) entity. An actual court case involving this issue says “Section 508(c)(1) simply relieves churches from applying for a favorable determination letter regarding their exempt status as required by section 508(a). Nothing in section 508(c)(1) relieves a church from having to meet the requirements of section 501(c)(3).” 

As we stated previously, third parties (Google, Apple, etc.) want proof that you have met the requirements of section 501(c)(3) and will require a determination letter before they donate or give you discounts. They can deny you donations or grants based on the fact that you don’t have that determination letter. 

As a wise man once said, “It is better to have a tool and not need it, than need a tool and not have it.”

Getting your church’s 501(c)(3) status is not about giving into government restrictions. It is a God-given tool that removes unnecessary pressure from your church and your donors.

Resource Links:

IRS Resources

• 501(c)(3) Tax Guide for Churches & Religious Organizations
• 501(c)(3) Requirements
• Churches Defined by IRS
• Organizational Test for 501(c)(3)
• Form 1023
• Applying for Tax-Exempt Status
• Nonprofit Charities Database tool: The Exempt Organizations Select Check Tool,
• Public Disclosure and Availability of Exempt Organizations Returns and Applications 

Free Resources for Nonprofits

Who doesn’t like free stuff?

Is your church missing out on over $150,000 in resources per year? Here at Church Fuel, we want to help you get the best results from your time and money spent so we asked our Church Marketers community to help us round up some discounted and free resources for nonprofits (including churches). They delivered!  

Read on to discover how your church can get thousands and thousands of dollars of resources each year – for highly discounted prices, or even FREE! Our estimates in this article are based on having a team of 5 members.

Google Resources for Nonprofits

Google Ad Grant

Across the world, people make over 350 billion Google searches every single day. People are constantly searching for answers, how-to, help, and resources. Wouldn’t it be great if your church showed up at the top of those search results?

The good news is you can, and it won’t cost you a dime — with Google’s FREE Ad Grant! That’s what this Ultimate Guide is all about, but we couldn’t put a list of free resources together without highlighting this very big deal!

Quick Reminder: Google offers $10,000 a month (you read that right, the $10,000 renews every month!) of free advertising money to registered nonprofits. Church Fuel offers a course devoted to this grant, as well as a team of Google Grant Certified professionals who can run, or help you run your grant account. So, if you’re currently missing out on this fantastic outreach tool, learn more here:

Google Grant Eligibility Checker

Google Workspace (formerly called GSuite)

Google also offers discounts on its Workplace (previously known as GSuite) package for nonprofits, which give you access to awesome stuff like additional storage and an email address with a custom domain name. The Business Starter equivalent is free for nonprofits, saving you $72 per user per year, and Business Standard, Business Plus, and Enterprise equivalents are all steeply discounted (75%, 72%, and 70%+ off, respectively). 

YouTube Nonprofit Program

Google’s YouTube Nonprofit program offers nonprofits the following features: Link anywhere cards, YouTube giving, and nonprofit-specific Creator Academy courses.

Google Maps

Finally, Google offers a Maps for Nonprofit, so organizations with multiple physical sites can help people find locations near them.

Technology Discounts and Resources

Techsoup Software + Hardware Discounts

A TechSoup account opens a world of opportunities for nonprofits. Offerings vary by country, but for U.S. users the offerings include Microsoft, Adobe, vmware, Intuit, Cisco Meraki, Lenovo, New Relic, Amazon Web Services, Techsoup Courses, and Asana. 

Some of these offers, such as Microsoft donated cloud offers, have very specific usage requirements, while others such as Norton Lifelock exclude religious organizations in their eligibility requirements. Some companies, such as Adobe, require participants to provide information for case studies, surveys, or testimonials. 

Techsoup isn’t just for software deals, it has discounts on the physical components of tech as well. Check out the Hardware tab in the product catalog to browse new or refurbished products like tablets, monitors, internet hotspot beacons, and computers from major brands like HP, Cisco, Dell, and Samsung all available at steep discounts. 

It’s hard to say exactly how much you can save here – the admin fee varies by product and organizations are at the mercy of what is available – but hypothetically let’s say you requested and received the five brand-new HP laptops available at the time of this writing. You would save $2,000 over buying comparable laptops from traditional retailers!

Microsoft Tech

Microsoft 365 comes in three flavors, Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Microsoft 365 Business Standard, and Microsoft 365 Business Premium. 

• Microsoft 365 Business Basic normally costs $5.00 per user per month, but nonprofits can apply for a grant that makes it free for the first 300 users. 
• Microsoft 365 Business Standard is normally $12.50 per user per month, but the nonprofit version is just $3.00 per staff member. 
• Business Premium normally costs $20 per user per month, but nonprofits get free access for the first 10 staff members, and only pay $5 a month per additional member.

These discounts mean a team of 5 staff members could save up to $1,200 per year. Click here to compare offers and here for terms and conditions. (If you want volunteers to be able to use it too you’ll have to contact Microsoft and inquire about a discount). 

Azure Sponsorship

A $2,000 (USD) per year credit toward Azure products and access to all Azure cloud services is available through the Microsoft Azure grant. If your church’s resident geek is interested in improving the security and efficiency of your data and documents, this could be the tool for them. Click here for more information and to find training resources.

Apple Non-Profit Discount

According to this article by iMore, Apple exempts nonprofits – including places of worship – from paying sales tax. We called Apple customer service and were told that there is a form that charitable organizations can fill out at the time of purchase to apply to be exempted from paying sales tax. Unfortunately, the customer service representative we spoke with was unable to direct us to any further information, so we’re not sure what the exact eligibility requirements are or if it is available in every state. However, if you buy any new Apple products, be sure to inquire about this (slightly mysterious) perk.

Graphic Design and Photography Resources

Canva Pro

Word on the (church marketers) street is that Canva is easier to learn and use than Photoshop. As if that alone isn’t enough of a blessing, organizations with a 501(c)(3) designation can apply for access to Pro membership for free. This allows you all the time saving features of Canva Pro without the $119.99/year fee. More information here. 

Ministry Designs Free Church Graphics

Ministry Designs’ free resources for nonprofits include their graphic library. This library offers solutions to all your church media needs — from worship backgrounds, motion backgrounds, stock photos, high quality sermon series bundles, graphics for your social media posts, church marketing materials or flyers for your church. And they’re continually adding new materials monthly so it never goes out of style. 

SEED Sermon Series Graphics

SEED provides churches with professional sermon series graphics and marketing materials. Simplify your mid-week and Sunday planning with SEED. By our calculations, SEED will save 800+ hours a year in planning, asset creation, meetings, collaboration, team communication, revisions, team re-communication, quality assurance and implementation. Learn more about SEED here.

Unsplash

Unsplash is free for everyone (not just non-profits), but it’s such an amazing resource that we couldn’t help but mention it! On Unsplash, you’ve got access to over a million photos under the Unsplash license – which makes them free to do-whatever-you-want with.

Financial Resources

Digigiv by Ministry Designs – Digital Giving

DigiGiv by Ministry Designs provides churches with powerful data, robust reporting systems, and interactive giving options that will skyrocket your church’s giving. With industry-low transaction rates and world-class support, DigiGiv’s powerful suite of tools is sure to not only increase giving and generosity but also save you time. Processing for credit and debit cards are 2.5% + $0.30 per transaction. ACH transfers fee is just 1% + $0.30. There are no monthly, annual, or set up fees. Sign up for Digigiv for free here.

Marketing and Communication Resources

Church Fuel

Church Fuel helps you achieve healthy growth! If you join Church Fuel you’ll get access to a FULL resources library of over 400 resources, kits, and courses – including the Visitors Course, which will help you get your foundations in place to see new visitors every week.

Even if you have a small budget, give it a look! It’s been priced with normal-sized church budgets in mind! Learn more about the CF scholarship program and pricing here. And if you have serious financial issues, contact us at success@churchfuel.com and we’ll do what we can to help, including offering a free Church Fuel test drive. 

Grammarly Premium for Nonprofits

Unfortunately, Grammarly’s program for nonprofits and NGOs has been discontinued. But they do offer a free level membership that can still help you improve communication. Find out more details here. 

Omega Website Builder

Do you have a website that accurately reflects your church, looks current, and is super easy to edit? If not, check out the Omega Website Builder. It was voted #1 by Worship Leader magazine and has helped hundreds of churches reach more people. Sign up for Omega here: Omega Website Builder

Linktree for Non-Profits

Charitable Linktree users who fill out the correct form and provide proof of not-for-profit status can receive a free Linktree Pro account. The Pro account allows greater customization, more integration with other apps, link scheduling, and performance tracking. That’s a $60 savings per year!

One-By-One by 4imprint – Promotional Products

There are no guarantees with this one, but 4imprint may be able to help you out with some promotional products. Apply for a grant at least two months before your special event and tell the company how your church is making a difference in your community and how you would use the products you are requesting. If you are one of the few accepted, you will receive $500 worth of customized promotional products for your event. Apply here.

Tithe.ly 

Tithe.ly offers a free giving platform for churches with no monthly fees and transaction rates under 1%. However, there is a fee to use their App for the platform. Find your answers to frequently asked questions here: Tithe.ly.

Click-Up Non-Profit Discount 

Clickup helps you manage your people, projects, and other software tools in one integrated app. They offer a free plan with 100MB Storage, Unlimited Tasks, Unlimited Members, and Two-Factor Authentication or a paid plan with Unlimited Storage and a few additional unlimited features, such as integrations. Clickup’s site is noncommittal about which nonprofits qualify for a discount, but some nonprofits receive a 35% discount. That’s a yearly financial saving of $21 per team member plus more time in your schedule.  Explore more here.

Physical Resources

Naeir

Naeir is a subscription service that allows nonprofits to request items from an ever-changing assortment of office supplies, tools, crafts, clothes, shoes, toys, toiletries, books, party décor and more. Members request everything they think they can use and Naeir ships it for a small shipping/handling fee (described here). The most basic membership level costs $59 per year, and their premier membership costs $595 per year. However,  Naeir estimates that premier members receive an average of $18,000 worth of supplies per year, for an average annual savings of $17,405. Check it out here. 

Good360.org

Similar to Naeir, Good360 grants nonprofits access to physical goods (like office supplies) for a minimal fee. Unlike Naeir, membership to Good360 is free. Make sure you read the terms carefully–there are strict rules about how you can dispose of supplies you don’t need, so think things through before you order. Get the details here. 

Top 10 Google Ad Grant Tips With Church Fuel

In the Grow Program, the Church Fuel team will build Google Ad Campaigns for your church, creating an Automatic Invite System using Google’s money. Here are 10 tips to optimize your Grant impact and help you reach more people.

1.  Give Church Fuel Access to your Google Ad Grant

If you haven’t already, give Church Fuel manager access to your Google Ad Grant account. This will allow our team to do the heavy lifting for you and build out your Automatic Invite System.

Helpful Church Fuel Member Resources:

• Google Ads Access FAQ
• Access Course (Welcome to Grow)

2.  Ensure Google Analytics is Installed on Every Website Page

Google Analytics is crucial to running Google Ads! If Google Analytics isn’t properly installed on every page on your website, Google Ads won’t get the data it needs and won’t show your ads to anyone.

Bonus Tip: if your website loads very slowly, Google Analytics may not fire properly even if it is installed. Use the Website Assessment to check your load speed.

Helpful Church Fuel Member Resources:

• Google Analytics Access
• Google Analytics FAQ
• Website Assessment (Check Load Speed)
• Check Your Website for Google Analytics

3.  Request Map Pack Ads

Google now allows non-profits to utilize Map Pack Ads to reach more people. These ads are covered by the Google Ad Grant and allow people to click directly on your ads to get driving directions to your church (and allow your ads to show up in Google Map results!)

In order to install Map Pack Ads on your account, you’ll need to have a verified Google Business profile. The request process will show you how to get a Google Business profile!

Helpful Church Fuel Member Resources:

• Request Map Pack Ads

4.  Complete Your Visitors System

New visitors are a proven path to growing your church. Using ministry-first marketing strategies, we will help you create a system for inviting that works week after week.  

When your Visitors System is set up, you’ll start seeing increased Google Ad traffic (sometimes 2x traffic!). If you need help with your Visitors System, book a call with a Visitors coach!

Helpful Church Fuel Member Resources:

• Visitors Course
• Book with a Visitors Coach
• Visitors System Resources

5.  Book a Google Ads Coaching Call

Moving together is better – we want to walk with you through Church Fuel resources and courses! Book a call with a Google Ads specialist to review your account, learn about areas for improvement, and take your account to the next level.

Helpful Church Fuel Member Resources:

• Book with a Google Ads Specialist
• Find a Coach

6.  Google Performance Max Ads

Google just released a new type of ads, now available to Google Ad Grant accounts! Performance Max ads are a Google Ads campaign type that uses AI to optimize ad placement. The Grow team is installing these new ads on your account as soon as they’re available (they’ve been getting rolled out to more Grant accounts each week). If you have questions, meet the Ads Team on Church Fuel Live.

Helpful Church Fuel Member Resources:

• Church Fuel Live
• Contact the Google Ads Team

7.  Make Sure you have All 6 Core Pages

Core Pages are 6 of the top pages a visitor will look for when they visit your website:

• Kids
• Events
• Groups
• New Here / Plan Your Visit
• Sermons
• Prayer

These are also the top 6 topics people are searching for on Google, and if you have these pages, we can run ads on these topics for you! Accounts with these 6 campaigns reach the most people and spend the most of Google’s money.

Helpful Church Fuel Member Resources:

• Learn About Core Pages
• Example Church Website
• Request Core Google Ads

8.  Request More Google Ads

When the Church Fuel team gets access to your Google Ads account, we build ads for every page we can find on your website. However, we know that you often add new pages for new events, ministries, and outreach opportunities.

Anytime you add something new to your website, request Google Ads and our team will do the research and buildout for you!

Helpful Church Fuel Member Resources:

• Request Core Google Ads
• Learn About Requesting Google Ads

9.  Optimize Your Website for Google Ads

Our team studied the top performing Google Ads accounts and determined what those accounts had in common. That’s how we built our Website Assessment tool – this tool will scan your website and check for the highest-performing elements!

Run your website through the Website Assessment, then fix your areas for improvement to reach more people.

Helpful Church Fuel Member Resources:

• Website Assessment
• Image Optimization Tool
• Book a Call with a Website Specialist
• Easy SEO Steps

10.  Include 1000+ Words Per Page on your Website

As AI becomes more and more popular, search engines like Google are prioritizing websites with more available content. To help your ads rank, include 1000+ words on every main page of your website (including the core pages above). 

Don’t write your content with AI tools like ChatGPT – search engines can detect AI-written content. If you need help writing content, check out our example church website.

Need Help Getting the Google Grant or Building Your Google Ads? 

You got into ministry because you love to see God transform lives. And you want to see that happen each week in your church. 

But seeing more transformation often starts by getting the word out to more people in your community! It’s simple really – the number of people at your church this Sunday is a direct reflection of the number of people you invite to church. 

Simply said … If you want more visitors, you need to invite more people. 

And the good news is there’s an affordable, insanely practical way to do that through Church Fuel and the Google Ad Grant.

 In our Grow Program, we’ll do the following:

1. As soon as you enroll you’ll book a call with your Grow account representative who will help you get started inviting way more people to church.
2. Our team will help you apply for and secure the $120,000/year in grant funding from Google.
3. We’ll then set up and run your church’s Automatic Invite System – $10,000/month in Google Ads Management
4. You can meet one-on-one with your account rep, ministry coach, or specialist to make sure you get the most out of the Grow Program. Our goal is to help you get the word out about your services, ministries and events all year long.
5. Every week we meet together as a group to help you keep making progress reaching as many people as possible. 
6. We’ll personally be available to do the heavy lifting for you each step of the way.

Our more than 30-member team of professionals is currently helping 2,340 churches build what we call an Automatic Invite System. This is just what it sounds – it is a repeatable way to invite people every hour of the day, every week of the year – even if you don’t have a big team, budget, know-how, or already feel stuck or overwhelmed. 

Join our Grow Program today and expect to be amazed.  

Expect excellent customer service.  

Expect to start seeing more visitors within 4 weeks after we get your Google Ad Grant up and running for you.

And watch God change lives in and through your church as you reach out to your community!