querstadtein · Digital marketing case study
A donated digital marketing engagement for a Berlin nonprofit whose city tours are led by people who have experienced homelessness, flight, or migration. We activated its Google Ad Grant, built search campaigns in English and German with privacy-first measurement, and trained its team to run them on their own.
querstadtein invites people to see Berlin through a different lens. Its guides have experienced homelessness, flight, or migration, and on each tour they share their own stories and the places that shaped them, from life on the street to a Syrian neighborhood in Neukölln. Since 2013, about 125,000 people have joined a querstadtein tour, and the organization has added school workshops, digital formats, and a second city, Essen.
Ticket sales fund about half of querstadtein's work, so every tour booked keeps the program running. When Tech To The Rescue matched us with querstadtein in April 2025, the team had built a strong, loyal following on its own, but had little room to grow it:
We followed the four-phase plan querstadtein approved at the start, with regular updates to its team and questions answered in writing so every decision was documented.
Phase 1
We reviewed querstadtein's website and social channels and learned who its tours serve, so the campaigns would reach the right people.
Key deliverables
Phase 2
We secured querstadtein's Google for Nonprofits approval and Ad Grant, then built campaigns from scratch under an account the organization owns.
Key deliverables
Phase 3
We connected the campaigns to GDPR-compliant tracking, then refined keywords, ads, and targeting month by month.
Key deliverables
Phase 4
We made sure querstadtein's team understood the strategy behind every campaign and could keep it running on their own.
Key deliverables
We started querstadtein's Google for Nonprofits application four days after the agreement was signed. Its Ad Grant was active less than four weeks after signing.
Everything sits under an account querstadtein owns, set up with an organization email address, so the team keeps full control. From the start, we advised the team to remove our access and update its passwords once the engagement ended.
We researched how visitors and locals actually search for experiences in Berlin, from "berlin walking tour" and "unique things to do in berlin" to "stadtführung berlin" and "touren berlin." querstadtein's team helped translate keywords so the German ads sound natural.
Ads lead with what makes querstadtein different, with links to tours such as Stories of Migration and Climate Migration Tours.
We set up Google Analytics 4 and Google Tag Manager with Google Consent Mode, so querstadtein can track bookings and campaign results while honoring each visitor's consent choices under GDPR. We worked directly with querstadtein's developer to implement it on the website.
We analyzed querstadtein's Facebook and Instagram performance, including the run-up to its slower months, since promotion for a quiet month happens the month before. The data showed that Instagram was performing far better than Facebook, a clear signal for where to focus the team's limited time.
Each month, querstadtein received a report covering clicks, search terms, audiences, devices, and timing, along with a three-month overview of the campaigns. Reports explained what the numbers meant and what to change, including suggestions to improve the website's visibility and structure.
We answered every question in writing, including a 14-page guide on managing the campaigns, and wrapped up with a handover call. querstadtein's team now runs its Google Ads on its own, and we've stayed available for questions since.
querstadtein's search ads went live in June 2025. From September through November 2025, its search campaign earned 218 clicks, up from 14 in the three months before, with a 28.87% click-through rate and a 100% optimization score in Google Ads.
By the final month of the engagement, querstadtein reported a click-through rate of 38.24%, with conversions improving steadily. The campaigns also gave the team a clearer picture of who's searching for its tours: people aged 25 to 44 accounted for 58% of ad impressions where age was known.
| Goal | What we delivered | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Increase visibility | An active Google Ad Grant and search campaigns for visitors and locals | Search-ad clicks rose from 14 to 218 from one quarter to the next (June to August versus September to November 2025). |
| Launch and optimize Google Ads within Ad Grants rules | Keyword research in English and German, targeted ad copy, and monthly optimization | A 28.87% click-through rate and a 100% optimization score on the search campaign from September to November 2025, rising to 38.24% in the final month. |
| Measure results in line with GDPR | GA4 and Google Tag Manager with Consent Mode, plus conversion tracking | Monthly reports and a three-month overview covering clicks, search terms, audiences, and devices. |
| Build the team's capacity | A 14-page written guide, process documentation, and a handover call | querstadtein's team now manages its campaigns on its own. |
Sources: Google Ads reports for September 1 to November 30, 2025, compared with June 2 to August 31, 2025; the 38.24% click-through rate is from querstadtein's Clutch review, February 18, 2026; participant figures are from querstadtein.org, October 2026.
Our click-through rate has increased to 38.24%, which is exceptionally strong, and conversions have been improving consistently as well. Beyond delivering results, the team ensured we fully understood the strategy behind the campaigns, enabling us to make informed decisions long term.
The engagement formally ended in January 2026, but our door is still open. querstadtein's team continues to run its campaigns, and we're glad to answer questions whenever they come up.
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