In grant seeking, nothing is too basic to ignore.
Following application instructions and including all of the standard elements of a grant proposal are just a few of the common-sense steps that are crucial to getting grants. Expert grant writers and program officers offered additional advice in several Chronicle webinars.
Here are some of the highlights.
1. Meet the grant maker’s criteria. Understanding what a foundation supports is key, explained Bob Wittig, executive director of the Jovid Foundation, in a Chronicle webinar.
Even if your proposal is polished, programs outside of a grant maker’s scope of interest may not be considered.
Most foundations list their guidelines and priorities on their websites. And a growing number of grant makers have gone a step further and provide would-be applicants with access to searchable databases of previously awarded grants. You can also check Part XV of a foundation’s IRS Form 990-PF to see which nonprofits it supports.
2. When in doubt, call. If application directions seem unclear or confusing, call before you submit.
“If you can get through and talk to a program officer, they can really help you understand if it’s appropriate for you to apply,” said Mr. Wittig.
The program officer might be able to give you some additional pointers for submitting your proposal, he said. And networking can get you far. Even if the foundation isn’t a good fit, the officer may be able to refer you to other opportunities, he added.
Having a good relationship with the program officer or the head of the foundation can only help an organization’s chance of winning a grant, said Mr. Wittig. “It’s no different than if you were approaching a major donor and asking for $10,000,” he said.
3. Consider your audience. Grant makers have distinct personalities. Understanding where they’re coming from can be key to getting support, said Deborah S. Koch, author of How to Say It: Grantwriting, in a Chronicle webinar.
People form foundations because they have beliefs about what problems need to be addressed, Ms. Koch said. They have ideas about why a problem developed and the best approach to solving it. Factors like their guiding principles, preferred approaches, and political ideology reveal areas where a grantee needs to be a good match, she said.
“Be mindful of these opinions and of these outlooks,” she advised. “Put yourself in the grant maker’s shoes.”
She recommended making a list of buzzwords used by the foundation and keeping that list close at hand during the writing process.
4. Clarity is essential. The writing in your proposal should be as accessible as possible, Andrea Johnson, a program officer at the Carnegie Corporation of New York, said in a Chronicle webinar.
You may live and breathe this topic, but chances are that your reader does not. Don’t assume specialized knowledge, Ms. Johnson said.
“You’re writing this for people who are going to be making the decisions in my foundation,” she said.
The need for clear, easy-to-understand prose is especially true for the executive summary, which will be read by the most people. Consider writing this section last so that you can draw from the rest of the proposal, Ms. Koch suggested.
5. Put your story and potential impact in context. When you give an overview of your program, be sure to discuss what difference the effort will make in the community—or state or country or world.
Grant seekers often forget to include information about the program’s impact, but it often carries the most weight, Mr. Wittig said.
Provide analysis of what other organizations have tried before to help put your story into context. Balance the story with data proving your case whenever possible, but make sure it’s current and relevant, he advised. Be careful not to overemphasize self-reported or qualitative data. There’s a place for it, he said, but also monitor how much quantitative data you use.
