Is the $397 readiness service a Google requirement?

No. $397 is our own readiness service level and standard. Google neither charges for Ad Grants nor requires a church to hire anyone.

Do we need a .org domain?

No. Google does not require a .org domain. The nonprofit must own and control the site its domain directly hosts.

Can our church website redirect visitors to a donation platform?

No. The domain must directly host the website and cannot automatically redirect to another address, donation platform, or social-media page. Donation links must work and be secure.

Should our church target people across the whole country?

No. Google says local-community organisations, including houses of worship, should show ads only in their town or local area.

Google Ad Grant readiness

Get the Foundation Ready Before an Ad Grant

Readiness is the preparation work that decides whether a church has a website and account foundation able to meet Google's policies.

Talk About Your Church Read about Ad Grants

Pricing: Ad Grant readiness service — $397/month
Inside the Department?: For churches in an active Digital Marketing Department relationship, readiness work sits inside the available capability pool and is not automatically stacked on as another monthly charge.
Separate service?: Google Ad Grant readiness is also available as a separate service at the price above. The price is Christian Marketing Pros' own service level and readiness standard, not a Google requirement.

The decision before the application

A Grant Does Not Repair a Thin Website

Google requires an eligible nonprofit to have a high-quality website and to be able to meet the program policies. Those requirements are why preparation belongs before campaign work.

Google Ad Grants provide qualifying nonprofits with in-kind search advertising, not income. Google does not charge for the grant, and Google does not require a church to hire Christian Marketing Pros or any other provider. Christian Marketing Pros is an independent provider, not affiliated with or endorsed by Google.

The readiness question is whether the church owns and controls the domain its ads would point to, and whether that domain directly hosts a clear, substantial, usable church website. If not, advertising traffic would be sent to a foundation that does not meet Google's policy.

The listed $397 readiness service is our own service level and standard, not a Google requirement. It defines the preparation work to address before a church treats an Ad Grant as useful outreach.

Website readiness

What Google's Website Policy Requires

A high-quality website is a policy requirement, not a cosmetic preference. This is the foundation we review before directing any ad traffic to a church site.

The church owns the domain and controls its content, structure, and technical settings
The domain directly hosts the church website and does not automatically redirect to another address, a donation platform, or social media
The website has substantial, unique content and clearly explains mission and activities
Identifying information, such as a physical address, is easy to find
Navigation works, pages load quickly, and the site is mobile-friendly
HTTPS covers the site, HTTP redirects to HTTPS, and there are no mixed-content errors
Commercial activity is limited, mission-focused, and discloses how proceeds support programs
Donation links work, lead to a secure donation page, and the site has no excessive third-party advertising or affiliate-link traffic activity

Common failures include thin content, unclear mission or identifying information, broken navigation, slow loading, no HTTPS, disallowed commercial activity, or a redirecting domain.

Two kinds of preparation

Readiness Is Both a Website Review and an Account Plan

The website needs useful pages; the account needs a policy-aware plan.

Preparing the visitor path

Checking that mission, activities, identifying information, and relevant pages are clear.

Reviewing navigation, mobile use, loading, HTTPS, mixed content, working links, and a secure donation path.

Preparing the account path

Planning keywords that avoid single-word, overly generic, and quality-score-1-or-2 terms.

Planning two ad groups per campaign, two unique sitelinks, and tracking for a meaningful action.

Setting local geographic scope and noting 5% account-level monthly click-through, Smart-bidding, and annual-survey obligations.

Our service price

The Readiness Service Is Our Standard, Not Google's Fee

Google does not charge for Ad Grants and does not require a church to hire anyone. The price below is for Christian Marketing Pros' independent preparation service.

Service	Price	What it addresses
Google Ad Grant readiness	$397	Preparation for the website foundation, conversion path, campaign structure, keyword approach, and local targeting plan.

Google Ad Grant readiness
Price
$397
What it addresses
Preparation for the website foundation, conversion path, campaign structure, keyword approach, and local targeting plan.

The $397 level is our own readiness standard, not a Google requirement, fee, or affiliation. In an active Digital Marketing Department relationship, this work sits in the available capability pool rather than being automatically added.

Readiness for a local church

Local Intent and Meaningful Actions Matter

Google's own geo-targeting guidance says organisations primarily serving their local community, including houses of worship, should show ads only in their town or local area.

The goal is not broad traffic. It is a clear local path for people looking for a nearby church, service, ministry, or information the church has prepared.

Valid conversion tracking is required for accounts created on or after 1 January 2018 and for any account using conversion-based Smart bidding. Accounts created on or after 22 April 2019 need at least one meaningful conversion type and one conversion per month. Google includes donations, purchases, ticket sales, sign-ups, information requests, calls, and content engagement; homepage visits and time on site do not count.

Readiness does not promise approval or traffic. It shows whether the church can meet the policies and give a local searcher a page worth acting on.

Questions churches ask

Ad Grant Readiness Questions

Is the $397 readiness service a Google requirement?: No. $397 is our own readiness service level and standard. Google neither charges for Ad Grants nor requires a church to hire anyone.
Do we need a .org domain?: No. Google does not require a .org domain. The nonprofit must own and control the site its domain directly hosts.
Can our church website redirect visitors to a donation platform?: No. The domain must directly host the website and cannot automatically redirect to another address, donation platform, or social-media page. Donation links must work and be secure.
Why does our church need conversion tracking before ads?: It is required for accounts created on or after 1 January 2018 and for conversion-based Smart bidding. Accounts created on or after 22 April 2019 also need a meaningful conversion type and one monthly conversion.
Should our church target people across the whole country?: No. Google says local-community organisations, including houses of worship, should show ads only in their town or local area.

Find out whether readiness comes first

Tell us about your church website and what you hope an Ad Grant could support. We will explain the policy foundation that needs to be in place and whether it makes sense to pursue the work now.