Google offers free products and advertising for UK charities

Google has launched a new initiative to provide nonprofit organisations in the UK with free products, including up to £6,600 a month in advertising credit and free access to Google Apps.

Unlike most businesses, which have to pay for access to Google’s online communication and collaboration tools, charity workers will be able to access applications such as Gmail, Google Talk, Hangouts and Drive for free.

They will also be able to develop campaign ideas in real-time with colleagues from other offices through Google Docs and brainstorm charity initiatives via the video conferencing tool Google Hangouts.

The idea is to help UK nonprofits cut IT costs, operate more efficiently, and communicate more effectively, according to Google. The advertising credit, which can be used to buy Google AdWords, will also enable them to promote their causes more widely and reach more donors.

“Through Google for Nonprofits, we want to support the incredible work of charitable organisations in the UK by eliminating some of the technical challenges and costs that they face,” said Dan Cobley, managing director of Google UK.