Elevation

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Elevation We are your behind-the-scenes experts that help organizations grow!

10/19/2026

If there's one thing we're constantly helping our clients fight, it's overcomplication.

The nonprofit and ministry space moves fast. New platform, new tactic, new "must-do" strategy every few weeks. Most teams end up spread across all of it, doing a little of everything and not much of it well. That's exhausting for a small team, and honestly, it rarely moves the needle the way people hope.

We're not in the business of adding more to your plate. Our job is helping you figure out what actually matters and do less, better. That shift alone changes more than most people expect.

Something people are usually surprised to learn about us: Elevation wasn't built as a typical marketing agency from day ...
10/15/2026

Something people are usually surprised to learn about us: Elevation wasn't built as a typical marketing agency from day one.

Our founder Darren spent years chasing the traditional markers of success before deciding to invest everything differently. At one point that meant selling his house and his vehicles to help build Elevation instead, not out of necessity, but because the mission mattered more than what those things represented. Early work included organizations like Feed My Starving Children, and that same purpose-first approach is still what shapes how we work today.

Here's a mistake we see constantly with new nonprofits and ministries: rushing straight to the IRS application and skipp...
10/14/2026

Here's a mistake we see constantly with new nonprofits and ministries: rushing straight to the IRS application and skipping the governance work first.

For anyone newer to this, that means things like bylaws (your org's internal rulebook), an independent board (directors who aren't just staff or family), and a written conflict-of-interest policy.

These aren't just paperwork.

The IRS specifically evaluates them, and missing or weak governance is one of the most common reasons applications get delayed.

Slow down on the front end. It saves real time later.

10/13/2026

Something we've seen come dangerously close to falling apart: a Google Ad Grant account nearly getting shut off entirely.

It usually starts the same way. An org chases broad, competitive keywords hoping for faster traffic. Click-through rate drops. Quality Scores slide below the threshold Google requires. Stay under that for two consecutive months and the account gets paused, sometimes for good.

Catching the pattern in time and shifting to a more specific, intentional keyword strategy is usually what saves it. It's a good reminder that in this work, moving fast isn't always the same as moving well.

You don't need a full strategy overhaul to get closer to a healthier donor list. Start smaller than that.Take a look at ...
10/12/2026

You don't need a full strategy overhaul to get closer to a healthier donor list. Start smaller than that.

Take a look at your email list. Not just who's unsubscribed, but who's been getting your emails and just... never opening them. A messy, disengaged list actually hurts your email performance across the board, even with the people who are paying attention. Tools like NeverBounce or ZeroBounce can help you validate and clean it up in an afternoon.

Pick one day this week. Just this one task. It's a small move that makes everything else you send more effective.

10/09/2026

Something we see nonprofits and ministries constantly trying to reinvent: the donation appeal itself. New platforms, new gimmicks, new funnels, all in search of some clever new way to ask.

Here's what we don't think is broken: a clear, specific, tangible ask. Campaigns with a defined goal and an easy call to action, like "help us reach $37,500" or "fund 100 meals," consistently outperform vague general appeals. People give when they can picture exactly where their money goes.

You don't need a smarter ask. You need a clearer one.

Here's an opportunity most nonprofits and ministries are sitting on without realizing it: if you're an approved 501(c)(3...
10/08/2026

Here's an opportunity most nonprofits and ministries are sitting on without realizing it: if you're an approved 501(c)(3), you likely qualify for the Google Ad Grant, up to $10,000 a month in free search advertising.

Most orgs either don't know it exists, or got approved once, poked around, and never actually built it out. It's not instant. It takes real setup and an intentional strategy to work well. But very few resources available to nonprofits offer this much potential reach for this little cost.

Sometimes the biggest opportunity isn't something new you have to go find. It's something you already have access to and just haven't used yet.

10/07/2026

Here's something we explain over and over: getting approved for something like Google for Nonprofits or the Ad Grant is not the finish line. It's the starting line.

We see orgs treat approval like the hard part is done. In reality, the Ad Grant still needs real setup (things like analytics and conversion tracking), an intentional keyword strategy, and ongoing attention to stay active and compliant. Same goes for a lot of the "free" nonprofit resources out there. Access is only step one.

We'll keep saying it because it's the difference between a resource that actually helps your org and one that quietly gets shut off from neglect.

The result almost every nonprofit and ministry wants: donors who give more consistently over time.That doesn't happen au...
10/06/2026

The result almost every nonprofit and ministry wants: donors who give more consistently over time.

That doesn't happen automatically. It comes from building an actual giving path: moving subscribers to first-time donors, one-time donors to recurring donors, and recurring donors toward bigger, more intentional gifts as trust builds. Each step needs its own specific, honest ask.

If you've never mapped this out for your donor list, that's usually the missing piece, not a lack of donors, but a lack of a clear next step for the ones you already have.

"Isn't the Google Ad Grant just free Google Ads?" Not exactly.Google Ads is a straightforward auction: bid the most, get...
10/05/2026

"Isn't the Google Ad Grant just free Google Ads?" Not exactly.

Google Ads is a straightforward auction: bid the most, get the visibility. The Ad Grant flips that. Because the budget is capped, chasing the same broad, competitive keywords a paid advertiser would use just isn't realistic. A smarter approach leans into specific, longer-tail search terms where there's less competition and higher intent.

Same system. Very different game plan.

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510 North 1st Avenue
Minneapolis, MN
55403

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Tuesday 8:30am - 5pm
Wednesday 8:30am - 5pm
Thursday 8:30am - 5pm
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