Grant fundraising can be challenging and demands a great deal of investment to get right. But it can also change the shape of your organisation and community forever. To help you hit the grant jackpot we present to you our Top Ten Tips for Grant Fundraising success…
1. Get to know your funder: Every grant making organisation have their own set of priorities, concerns and issue areas. Their business is in supplying grants to organisations who can reach the people they want to connect with and achieve the development outcomes they have set out to achieve. One of the most important aspects of any funding application is to demonstrate how your project can help the funder to achieve their purpose. Therefore, it is absolutely vital that you find a funder that shares your organisations aspirations.
2. Introduce your organisation before applying: Funding organisations look for more than just an excellent written application when deciding whether to award grants. Many will favour organisations that they already know, understand and trust. Just like face to face fundraising, developing personal relationships with program officers at funding organisations can give your application the edge over your competition. Make sure you get in touch with your chosen funder before applying, ask questions and make a positive impression.
3. Read the application directions carefully and follow them! Well written funding applications can consume a lot of time and skill. Therefore, it is crucial that you don’t waste your energy by failing to follow the application guidelines precisely. Too many good proposals fail because they haven’t followed the instructions of the funder properly. Most funders will provide guidelines, make sure you understand them and follow them to the letter, they are there for a reason and your application may be rejected before it is even read unless you follow their directions. If unsure, ask a friend or get in touch with the funder if you can.
4. Write a captivating introduction: Funders may receive hundreds or even thousands of proposals for just a small number of available grants. It is crucial that your organisation stands out and captures the funder’s attention as soon as they start reading your application. Make sure that the introduction to your proposal showcases the value of your project, particularly in regard to the individual lives your project will change. Demonstrate the real life dangers of the problem you are trying to resolve before highlighting the tangible, human outcomes that your project will deliver. Remember that program officers read a lot of applications so it is well worth your time taking the extra effort to stand out from your competitors.
5. Keep it simple: It is vital that your funding application makes its absolutely clear what it is your project will do, why it is important, exactly how you will use any funding and what results that project will have. Funding organisations will not support an application unless they understand exactly why your project is important, precisely how you will spend their money and what development outcomes will be achieved. Assume that your chosen funder doesn’t know about the problem you are trying to solve and explain clearly in simple language how you will solve it using their funding.
6. Create Urgency: With so many proposals landing on the desks of funding organisations it is important that you can show why it is vital that your project is funded immediately. With so many worthwhile causes the difference between winning and losing a large grant can be in establishing that your project needs to start today and that without it the situation will only get worse. Funders often receive similar applications and it is often the case that the proposal that appears to be most urgent will be selected.
7. Tangible outcomes: Funding institutions have a limited amount of money to achieve their objectives. Like everyone else, they think hard and carefully before spending their money. If you want to persuade them to invest in your project and organisation you will need to be able to clearly show them exactly what they will get for their money. How many people will you support? What difference will this make to their lives? Funders only want strong returns on their investments; make sure they understand the value of your project.
8. Maintain your online presence: In an increasingly competitive fundraising world with organisations around the globe all competing for the same pot of money, you need to ensure that your organisation represents itself well on the internet. If you are a new or unfamiliar organisation to the funder, which is often the case, one of the first things a program officer may do is to check your website. Is it up to date? Does it demonstrate your organisations work? A well maintained website will only encourage funders to support your organisation whereas a poor website may put them off even if you have written an excellent application.
9. Proofreading: Funding documents can often be long and require some technical information. It is easy to make mistakes. Ask a colleague or friend to check your application for spelling, grammar and other errors. They may also be able to highlight areas that you can improve. Don’t let a few easily fixed mistakes get in the way of winning that all important funding.
10. Be positive: Grant making organisations want to create a better world, funding proposals are your chance to show how you can help them to achieve it. Write positively about your project, the people it will support and the outcomes it will achieve. Take them on a journey and help them to imagine your project in action. If you can excited the funding organisation’s program officer you will stand a great chance of being successful. Be proud of your work and it will resonate positively with your chosen funder, giving you a better chance of fundraising success.
Do you have any top tips for grant success? Or do you have any questions? Get involved in our comments sections and learn from the fundsforngos community.
