Post-Approval Roadmap

Using Everything Google Offers Nonprofits

Rising with Melodies was approved for Google for Nonprofits in October 2026. Work through the phases below in order. Tick each box as you finish it, and your progress is saved in this browser.

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Google for Nonprofits Approval

The organization is approved and has access to the nonprofit dashboard at google.com/nonprofits/account. Approval rested on the 501(c)(3) Letter 947 (see the Grant Readiness Report).

DoneOct 2026

Google Workspace Email

The super admin is linderlopez@risingwithmelodies.org. contact@, info@ and notifications@ are aliases, and event@ is a group that also copies risingwithmelodies@gmail.com. Old contact@ mail was imported into Google and the old mailbox is cancelled. SPF, DKIM and DMARC all pass.

DoneOct 14, 2026

Website Admin Alerts Moved to New Address

New volunteer, enrollment and staff-service alerts now go to linderlopez@risingwithmelodies.org instead of a personal Gmail.

DoneOct 14, 2026

Google Analytics & Conversion Tracking

The GA4 property is live, and the donate_click event is firing and marked as a key event. This is what Ad Grants will use to measure results.

DoneG-TQ6NG6QS5Y

Phase 1 — Housekeeping

About 30 minutes, this week. Protects the account and keeps organization tools from depending on a personal Gmail.

Turn on 2-Step Verification for the admin account

Signed in as linderlopez@risingwithmelodies.org, go to myaccount.google.com/security → 2-Step Verification. Save the backup codes somewhere safe. This account controls all of the organization's Google services.

Important

Add the new address to the Google for Nonprofits account

At google.com/nonprofits/account, add linderlopez@risingwithmelodies.org as a user or contact, so the nonprofit account isn't tied only to risingwithmelodies@gmail.com.

Add the new address as a Google Analytics administrator

In analytics.google.com → Admin → Property access management → + → add linderlopez@risingwithmelodies.org with the Administrator role.

Update the Grant Readiness Report

The report now shows the approval and the completed email setup.

Phase 2 — Google Ad Grants ($10,000/month)

Free text ads on Google Search, worth up to $10,000 per month. When someone searches "free piano lessons Alpharetta" or "volunteer teach English online," an RWM ad can appear. Setup takes 1–2 hours plus Google's review.

Never enter a credit card. Ad Grants is free. If Google Ads asks for payment details at any point, stop: you are in a regular paid account by mistake. Always start from the link inside the Google for Nonprofits dashboard.

1. Start activation from the nonprofit dashboard

At google.com/nonprofits/account, find Google Ad Grants and click Get started or Activate. Complete any eligibility check, training video or quiz it shows.

Activate

2. Create the Ads account from Google's link

Use only the link Google gives you in the dashboard, not ads.google.com on your own. Choose Expert mode if asked, and skip any billing step.

Activate

3. Ad Grants approval received

Google reviews the account, usually within a few days to a couple of weeks. Watch the linderlopez@ inbox for the approval email.

Activate

4. Link Google Analytics to Google Ads

In Google Ads: Tools → Data manager → Google Analytics → link the GA4 property G-TQ6NG6QS5Y.

Tracking

5. Import donate_click as a conversion

In Google Ads: Goals → Conversions → New conversion action → Import → Google Analytics 4 → select donate_click.

Tracking

6. Track volunteer sign-ups and registrations too

More meaningful conversions help Google show your ads to the right people. Ask Claude to add events for a completed volunteer form and a completed registration, then import them the same way as step 5.

Recommended

7. Launch the first campaign (Donate)

Build it to follow the rules below: at least 2 ad groups, at least 2 ads in each, multi-word keywords, and Maximize conversions bidding. Everything is ready to paste in the Donate Campaign Kit →

Campaigns

8. Add at least 2 sitelinks

Extra links under the ad, for example Donate, Volunteer, ESL Classes and Upcoming Concert, each pointing to a page on risingwithmelodies.org.

Campaigns

9. Add the remaining campaigns

Volunteer, ESL Classes and Concerts & Events (see the campaign ideas below). Separate campaigns make it easy to see which program attracts the most interest.

Campaigns

Ad Grants Rules — Keep the Account Active

Google suspends Ad Grants accounts that break these. Keep this table handy when building or changing campaigns.

Rule	What it means
5% click-through rate	At least 5 of every 100 people who see your ads must click. Two months in a row below 5% pauses the account.
Conversion tracking	Must be set up and recording real actions such as donations, sign-ups and registrations (steps 4–6).
Account structure	Each campaign needs at least 2 ad groups, each ad group needs at least 2 ads, and the account needs at least 2 sitelinks.
Keywords	No single words like "music" or "piano", and no very generic phrases. Remove keywords Google rates 1 or 2 out of 10 for quality.
Bidding	Use Maximize conversions. It allows bids above the normal $2-per-click limit.
Activity	Log in at least once a month, make at least one change every 90 days, and answer Google's yearly program survey.
Landing pages	Every ad must link to a page on risingwithmelodies.org.

Campaign Ideas for RWM

Starting keywords for each campaign. Use full phrases, not single words.

Campaign	Example keywords	Landing page
Donate	"music education charity", "help children in peru" · full kit ready	Homepage → Donate
Volunteer	"volunteer teach English online", "music teacher volunteer opportunities"	Homepage → Get Involved
ESL Classes	"free English classes online", "learn English with native speakers"	Homepage → Programs
Music School	Not eligible. The Alpharetta music school (RWM-US) is a for-profit entity, and Ad Grants can only promote the nonprofit's own mission. Advertise it with regular paid ads, if at all.
Concerts & Events	"community concert Alpharetta", "student piano recital"	Concert page

Phase 3 — Other Free Benefits

These can be done in any order, at any time.

Join the YouTube Nonprofit Program

Apply from the Google for Nonprofits dashboard. You get link cards pointing to the website and a Donate button / fundraisers on videos. This fits the concert and recital videos well (YouTube channel: @RisingWithMelodies).

High value

Create a Google Business Profile

A free listing on Google Maps and Search, using the school address (5950 North Point Pkwy, Alpharetta). Families searching nearby will find RWM. Start at business.google.com.

High value

Set up a Shared Drive for organization files

In Google Drive → Shared drives → New. Files there belong to the organization, not to one person, so nothing is lost if someone leaves.

Create accounts for board members and key volunteers

Free name@risingwithmelodies.org accounts, created at admin.google.com → Users → Add new user. Workspace for Nonprofits is free for up to 2,000 users.

Use the organization's Google Meet for ESL classes and meetings

Create Meet links from the linderlopez@ calendar. Keep the settings that let teachers and students join on their own: Access type = Open and "Host must join before anyone else" = Off.

Check the dashboard for extra offers

Google adds offers to the nonprofit dashboard from time to time, such as AI tools (Gemini), Maps credits and Cloud credits. Review google.com/nonprofits/account → Products and activate anything useful.

Stop copying event@ to the old Gmail

When you're comfortable using only the new inbox, remove risingwithmelodies@gmail.com from the event@ group at admin.google.com → Groups.

Optional

Phase 4 — Monthly Ad Grants Routine

About 15 minutes a month, once ads are running. Logging in and making small changes regularly is itself an Ad Grants requirement.

1. Check the click-through rate is above 5%

Google Ads → Campaigns → look at the CTR column for the last 30 days.

2. Clean up weak keywords

Pause keywords with a quality score of 1–2 or no clicks in 30 days.

3. Review conversions

Are donations, sign-ups and registrations coming from the ads? Shift effort toward the campaigns that convert.

4. Make at least one improvement

For example, a new ad text, a new keyword, or a sitelink to an upcoming event.

Last monthly review: not logged yet

Need a hand? Claude can draft ready-to-paste campaigns (keywords, ad texts and sitelinks), add conversion tracking for volunteer sign-ups and registrations, and update this page as phases are completed.

Checkmarks are saved in this browser only. On another computer or phone they start blank. Ask Claude to mark finished items permanently on the page so the whole team sees them.