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Church Outreach

A Marketer's Honest Guide to Google's Free Tools for Australian Churches

I've spent 20 years in digital marketing. I've managed Google Ads accounts with serious budgets. I also spend time around a number of different churches. So when I tell you that most Australian churches are leaving a staggering amount of free resources on the table, I'm speaking from both sides of the fence.

Here's the short version: if your church is registered as a charity with the ACNC, you're likely eligible for up to $10,000 per month in free Google advertising, plus Google Workspace (Gmail, Docs, Drive, Calendar, Meet, the whole suite) at no cost. And there's a good chance nobody on your team knows about either.

So, let me walk you through both.

The Google Ad Grant

What it is

Google offers eligible nonprofits, including churches, up to US$10,000 per month in free Google Search Ads credits through the Google Ad Grants program. That's up to $120,000 per year in advertising, funded entirely by Google.

This isn't some obscure program with a catch. It's been running for years. Australia is an eligible country. And the credits are for search ads: the text-based results that appear at the top of Google when someone searches for something.

What it isn't

Let's be clear about what you're getting, because the hype around this program can be misleading.

It's search ads only. Not display ads, not YouTube ads, not social media. Just the text links at the top of Google search results. That's still valuable, but it's not a $10,000 blank cheque for all of Google's advertising products.

It's credit, not cash. Google doesn't send you money. They give you credit to spend within a special Google Ads account. If you don't use it, it doesn't roll over.

And honestly? Most churches won't spend anywhere near $10,000 per month. The average is far lower. The grant has a $2 maximum cost-per-click bid cap (unless you use Smart Bidding strategies), and there are only so many people in your area searching for church-related terms on any given day. For most Australian churches, a few hundred to a couple of thousand dollars in monthly spend is more realistic. That's still genuinely valuable, but it's worth setting expectations early.

Is your church eligible?

To qualify in Australia, your church needs to:

  1. Be registered as a charity with the ACNC (Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission). This is the big one. Most established churches in Australia are already registered, but it's worth checking at acnc.gov.au.

  2. Have a live website with substantial content. Google wants to see that you have something worth sending traffic to. A single page with your address and service times probably won't cut it. You need content that demonstrates your church's mission, programs, and community involvement.

  3. Register for Google for Nonprofits at google.com/nonprofits. You'll need to verify your nonprofit status through Goodstack (Google's verification partner, which replaced TechSoup). This process typically takes 3–5 business days.

  4. Apply for the Google Ad Grant once your Google for Nonprofits account is approved.

  5. Agree to Google's terms, which include a non-discrimination clause. This is worth reading carefully.

What actually works

Speaking as a marketer who has literally spend decades in paid search, here are a few observations:

Don't just target "church near me." Yes, you should bid on local church-related searches. But the real opportunity is in the questions people are asking when they're open to community. Think about what someone might search when they're going through a hard time, looking for purpose, or just looking for something to do with their family on a weekend. Those are the moments where your church can genuinely be the answer, and where a well-placed ad can make a real connection.

Your website matters more than your ads. I cannot stress this enough. You can have the best Google Ads campaign in the world, but if someone clicks through to a website that's slow, confusing, or doesn't tell them what to expect on a Sunday morning, you've wasted the click. At minimum, make sure your site has clear service times, a "what to expect" page for first-time visitors, and an obvious way to get in touch. Most church websites fail on these basics.

Set up conversion tracking. This is the part that most churches skip, and it's the part that makes the difference between "we're running some ads" and "we know our ads are working." Track when someone clicks "get directions," views your service times page, or fills out a contact form. Without this, you're flying blind.

Use geo-targeting tightly. There's no point showing ads to someone 200km away. Target your local area: your suburb, your city, maybe a 20–30km radius. This also helps you stay within the grant budget and keeps your click-through rate healthy.

Maintain a 5% click-through rate. This is a Google requirement, not a suggestion. If your CTR drops below 5% for two consecutive months, your grant can be suspended. This means your ads need to be relevant and well-written. Generic, bland ad copy will get you into trouble.

What most churches get wrong

The website isn't ready for traffic. This is the number one issue. Churches apply for the grant, get approved, start running ads, and send people to a website that hasn't been updated since 2019. Before you touch Google Ads, get your website in order.

Nobody's managing the account. The grant isn't "set and forget." Campaigns need regular attention: updating keywords, testing ad copy, monitoring performance, and making sure you stay compliant with Google's requirements. If nobody on your team has time for this, it's worth getting help.

Expectations are unrealistic. The grant is a tool, not a miracle. It won't double your attendance overnight. What it will do, if managed well, is make sure that when someone in your community is searching for something your church offers, they can actually find you. That's valuable. But it's one piece of the puzzle, not the whole picture.

Google Workspace for Nonprofits

While the Ad Grant gets all the attention, there's another Google program that's arguably more useful for the day-to-day running of a church: Google Workspace for Nonprofits.

What you get

Through the same Google for Nonprofits program, eligible churches get free access to the full Google Workspace suite:

  • Gmail with your church's domain, so your staff can use yourname@yourchurch.org.au instead of a personal Gmail address. This alone makes your church look more professional.
  • Google Drive for shared cloud storage. No more emailing documents back and forth or losing files on someone's laptop.
  • Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides for everything from sermon notes to budgets to volunteer rosters.
  • Google Calendar with shared calendars for the whole team. Schedule rooms, coordinate events, manage the worship roster.
  • Google Meet for video meetings with up to 100 participants, up to 24 hours. No need for a separate Zoom subscription.

For most churches, this replaces several paid tools at once. The savings can add up to hundreds of dollars per user, per year.

How to get it

The process is the same as for the Ad Grant. Register for Google for Nonprofits, verify through Goodstack, and then activate Google Workspace from within your Google for Nonprofits dashboard. You'll need your church's domain name and access to your DNS settings (wherever your domain is registered: VentraIP, Crazy Domains, GoDaddy, etc.).

One important note: Google will ask you to start a 14-day free trial of Google Workspace during the setup process. Wait until your Google for Nonprofits application is approved before starting the trial, otherwise you risk the trial expiring before the free nonprofit pricing kicks in.

The bigger picture

Here's what I think most churches miss: these aren't just "nice to have" tech perks. They're tools that help your church be more visible, more professional, and more organised. And they don't cost a cent.

The Google Ad Grant helps people who are already searching find your church. Google Workspace helps your team actually run things well once people show up. Together, they're a genuine upgrade to how most churches operate, and they're completely free.

The only cost is time. Time to apply, time to set things up properly, and time to manage them ongoing. For many churches, that's the real barrier. If nobody on staff has the know-how or the bandwidth, it's worth asking for help. A few hours of professional setup can save months of frustration.

If your church could use a hand with any of this, whether it's getting the Ad Grant set up, making the most of Google Workspace, or just figuring out where to start, I'd love to chat.