Here's what breaks my heart.
Nonprofits doing incredible work. Changing lives. Saving communities.
And nobody can find them on Google.
Their website is buried on page 7. Their donation page has no meta description. Their Google Business Profile is unclaimed.
Meanwhile, some dropshipping store selling plastic widgets has perfect SEO.
The world is unfair. But we can fix this one.
Why SEO matters for nonprofits
People are searching for causes they care about.
"How to volunteer in [city]." "Donate to [cause]." "[Issue] charity near me."
If your nonprofit doesn't show up for those searches, those donors and volunteers find someone else. Or worse, they find nobody and give up.
Every search you don't appear in is a missed connection.
The nonprofit SEO playbook
Claim your Google Business Profile
Free. Takes 10 minutes. Massively increases your visibility for local searches.
Add your hours. Your mission statement. Photos of your work. Respond to reviews.
Apply for Google Ad Grants
Google gives eligible nonprofits $10,000/month in free search advertising. Ten. Thousand. Dollars. Per month.
It's not SEO per se, but it complements your organic strategy perfectly.
Create content around your mission
Don't just have a donation page. Create content that:
This content ranks. And it converts visitors into supporters. Learn the fundamentals of writing headlines that get clicks and your organic reach will expand dramatically.
Optimize your donation page
Your donation page should be:
If it takes more than 3 clicks to donate, you're losing people.
Start with the fundamentals
SEO Checkup has 113 prioritized tasks that cover everything your nonprofit needs. Technical SEO, on-page optimization, content strategy, and more.
Free. No credit card. 30 seconds.
Your mission deserves to be found. Let's make that happen. Google's SEO starter guide is free and covers everything you need to get going.