Grants

There is no secret formula, no magic bullet, no golden rule to a successful grant proposal. There are, however, a number of tools and approaches the creative grant writer can utilize to greatly increase the odds of success.

In the October 2011 issue, Dr. Bev Browning, vice president of grants professional services at eCivis, outlined "10 Steps to Getting That Grant," and added four others to help grantees manage their money properly.

Good grantwriters have a unique perspective with respect to nonprofit organizations: We know what grantmakers want to hear, and we know what we'd like to be able to put into grant proposals. But when conspicuous gaps begin to show up in proposals, what should you — the grantwriter — do? Here are six elements of a good proposal that often are missing or inadequate, and some resources to help you and your employer/client address the problems they might be hiding.

Having spent time on both "sides" and organizing in the middle spaces, my conclusion is that grantseekers and grantmakers are not so different. I believe we would all be better off imagining each other to be actual people — with motivations, fears, joys and stories — who want to improve our communities by working in different professional functions.

Wanna know a secret? I once ran my own grant-writing business. I loved focusing on one thing and doing it well — a welcome break from the “many hats” conundrum in which development professionals frequently find themselves. Success in this area, however, requires adherence to a well-defined, logical process. Master this and you, too, can be a grant-writing phenom. Here’s my primer.

Getting in the door to community funders isn't always easy, but introducing yourself to someone new never is. The more you reach out to acquaint others with your organization, the easier it will become and the better you'll be at it. In the end, you're increasing the awareness of your mission, building your skill base and making new friends along the journey. A win-win-win for everyone involved.

Foundation Source, a provider of support and advisory services for private foundations, released preliminary findings on 2012 giving activity by U.S. private foundations with endowments of less than $50 million. The aggregated data show that giving was up in 2012, both in dollar value and relative to the overall size of foundation assets. Foundations with assets of less than $50 million represent a super-majority (98 percent) of all private foundations in the United States.

Ted Hart speaks with Michelle Greanias, executive director of the Grants Managers Network; Marcus McGrew, director of grants management for the Kresge Foundation and co-chair of Grants Managers Network; and Jessica Bearman, principal of Bearman Consulting, live from the Grants Managers Network Conference.

Garnering funder support, and long-term partnership, requires showing a return on social investment. Assessing and documenting collective impact also allows funders and nonprofits to learn from each other and establish meaningful measurements while working toward common objectives. The two key questions for grant-seekers are: (1) how do you know what you are doing is working (what is your level of evidence?); and (2) how is it innovative (how are you doing it differently with better results)?

During the session, "Who's Your BFF? Building Lasting Relationship With Grant Makers," at Blackbaud's bbcon earlier this month, Heather Stombaugh and Matthew Stombaugh from JustWrite Solutions provided a few resources fundraisers should utilize when seeking grants in order to find their "Best Fit Funder."