The global outbreak of the Coronavirus has affected many businesses regardless of their industry. But it is the small companies and local businesses that are struggling the most since the government started implementing lockdowns on different states.
In response to this, giant digital companies, including Google, Yelp, and Facebook, will offer small to medium-sized businesses some relief in the form of ad credits/grants and free upgrades.
And to help you take advantage of these opportunities, below is a summary of the companies’ ad credits and grants programs:
- Google Ad Credits for Small and Medium-sized Businesses
As a way to extend their support during these hard times, Google has announced to give small and medium-sized businesses worldwide with $340 million credits. These ad credits can be used in the Google Ads platform at any point until the end of 2020.
Small to medium-sized businesses who have been active advertisers since the beginning of 2019 will be eligible to receive the free ad credits. They will see a credit notification in their Google Ads account in the next months.
Businesses can use the free ad credits across the Google Search Ads platform, including Search, Display, Youtube, and all campaign types.
To know more about these free credits, you can check out this link: https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/9803410?hl=en
- Yelp Free Access to Page Upgrades for Local Restaurants and Nightlife Businesses
Yelp reported the devastating impact the COVID-19 pandemic had caused to local businesses, especially restaurants and bars. According to their data, consumer interest for restaurants in the U.S. has dropped by 54%, and for nightlife businesses by 69%.
To help these businesses, Yelp announced to give out $25 million in relief for local restaurants and nightlife businesses by waiving advertising fees, free advertising, products, and services, during this hard time.
As part of the program, restaurants and nightlife businesses that remain open during this period will get free access to Yelp page upgrades, which include Business Highlights, Call-to-Action, and Yelp Connect to help them communicate with their customers.
Furthermore, restaurants will also receive three months of free access to Yelp Reservations and Waitlist. And for restaurant businesses that offer delivery or/and takeout, Yelp will provide $100 in free search advertising.
For further details about Yelp’s program for restaurant and nightlife businesses, check this link: https://blog.yelp.com/2020/03/yelp-covid-19-response-and-support-for-local-businesses
- Facebook Grants Ad Credits to Small Businesses
Small businesses are the ones most affected by the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. In response to this, Facebook is offering $100 million in cash grants and ad credits to help small businesses during these difficult times.
More than 30,000 small businesses in more than 30 countries will be able to apply for Facebook’s Small Business Grants Program. Small businesses must have the following to be eligible:
- have 2 to 50 employees
- have been running for over a year
- have been affected by the COVID-19 global outbreak
- is located in an area near where Facebook operates
Facebook hopes that the program will be able to assist small businesses by covering their operational costs while helping them connect with more customers.
To know more about the program, you can check this link: https://www.facebook.com/business/boost/grants
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With these programs, we hope that your business will continue to grow despite the challenges. If you need any help in rebuilding your marketing strategy due to the current situation, please feel free to send us a message at Cybertegic.com, the best digital marketing company in Los Angeles.
