Testimonial
Direct Relief International
COO, Direct Relief International
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Google Grants recipient Direct Relief International uses AdWords to help support its mission to provide humanitarian medical aid to people adversely affected by poverty, disaster and civil unrest.
"How do you connect with a global audience when you're this smaller-sized non-profit?" asks Annie Maxwell, COO of Direct Relief International. "With limited resources, the undertaking can be truly daunting."
It's an undertaking that runs through Direct Relief's history. In the aftermath of WWII, William Zimdin, an Estonian immigrant, began sending thousands of relief parcels containing food, clothing and medicines to relatives, friends and former employees in Eastern Europe. Zimdin's efforts led to the formation of Direct Relief International. Based in a warehouse in Santa Barbara, California, the non-profit organisation has since provided medical aid to people adversely affected by poverty, disaster and civil unrest in more than 140 countries worldwide.
In 2003, Direct Relief's staff of 27 was efficient and effective at delivering aid to people in need, but it didn't have the budget or the human capital to invest in other functions. "I was heading up IT, communications and serving as chief of staff," says Annie. "And by heading up, I mean that there was no one else to do it."
One of Annie's projects was to develop and better leverage Direct Relief's online presence. "There wasn't much to leverage," she recalls. "We had a basic website and were getting about 9,000 visitors a month."
When it was suggested that she considers online advertising with Google AdWords™, Annie was hesitant. "We didn't do advertising, not because we didn't see the value, but because we didn't have the money to do it."
Did someone say free?
Shortly thereafter, Annie learned about Google Grants, a programme that awards free AdWords advertising – up to $10,000 per month – to qualified non-profit organisations.
"We thought, ‘Why not?' It looked like an interesting project," Annie remembers. "The grant structure relieved the financial barrier and then I just needed to invest the time. I'm kind of a geek in that I like to learn stuff, so I took on the application process, which was pretty straightforward, and discovered exactly what AdWords was."
AdWords enables organisations to advertise on Google by developing a campaign consisting of ads and keywords that are related to their offerings. When people search on Google using one of these keywords, the organisation's ad may appear next to the search results. Using AdWords, non-profit advertisers can inform and engage their constituents online.
Annie read through the AdWords material and submitted sample keywords, ad copy and a brief statement about how Direct Relief would benefit from a Google Grant. "Our application was approved and we launched our first AdWords campaign in August of 2003," Annie says. Two months later, monthly traffic to its website had grown more than 2,000 per cent to 200,000 visitors. "The campaign's impact was immediate and exponential. Before our Google Grant, our most successful online fundraising year had been 2001, when we had received $56,000 in donations. In December 2003, we received $59,000 in online donations. In that one month, we exceeded the best previous annual online total."
Unexpected benefits
Over the next year, Annie devoted more time to learning how to best use AdWords features and optimise Direct Relief's campaigns. "AdWords quickly became one of our most powerful communications tools and most efficient funding channels," she explains. "We wanted to make sure we understood how to get the most out of it." The increased visibility also led to unexpected benefits. "One donor, who found us online because of Google AdWords, gave us a significant donation, but he felt there was a disconnect with the quality of work Direct Relief was doing and the quality of our website. So he gave us additional funds to redo the website." In June 2007, the new website was launched, which has in turn helped to fuel donations and better articulate Direct Relief's activities and mission.
More than advertising
Since receiving a Google Grant over four years ago, Direct Relief has grown in many ways. It now has 49 staff members, with three employees in IT and one dedicated solely to online communications – which means that Annie can focus on her duties as COO.
"Google AdWords has helped drive investment for us as an organisation," says Annie. "We don't look at it solely as advertising; we use it to test messages, increase fundraising for specific initiatives and drive internal investment. And it's part of our emergency response plans. If a significant natural disaster or emergency happens, we immediately run a campaign to draw attention to it."
And what would she tell other non-profit organisations considering Google Grants? "I would absolutely recommend they apply. In our 60-year history, there are five events that have really affected us and our relationship with Google is one of them. It's been incredible to take this leap in online visibility, for Direct Relief to move forward as an organisation and develop sophisticated advertising in such a short period of time."
In Fiscal Year 2008, Direct Relief provided over $200 million in direct aid through medical material assistance and targeted cash grants providing more than 49 million courses of treatment to people in 59 countries worldwide.
About Google AdWords
Google AdWords™ is a performance-based advertising programme that enables businesses large and small to advertise on Google and its network of partner websites. Hundreds of thousands of businesses worldwide use AdWords for text, image and video ads priced on a cost-per-click (CPC) and cost-per-impression (CPM) basis. Built on an auction-based system, AdWords is a highly quantifiable and cost-effective way to reach potential customers.
For more information, visit http://adwords.google.co.uk
About Google Grants
Google Grants is a unique in-kind advertising programme that provides free Google AdWords text advertising to selected non-profit organisations. The programme harnesses Google's products, technology and resources to support groups that share Google's philosophy of helping the world through community service in areas such as science and technology, education, global public health, the environment, youth advocacy and the arts. To date, grants have been awarded to thousands of non-profit groups whose missions include animal welfare, literacy, supporting homeless children and HIV education.
For more information or to apply for a Google Grant, visit http://www.google.co.uk/grants