When I go on vacation or to a conference, I'm reminded how much that I, as a consumer, appreciate good customer service and dedication to my satisfaction. When I walk into my hotel room after a long day, it's wonderful to be greeted by a well-made bed and fresh linens. I appreciate the coffee and snacks and I even appreciate the umpteenth recycled bag I've received filled with my conference goodies. It's all in the presentation, right?
Well, when it comes to your grant applications, yes and no. Yes, the overall style and appearance of your application matter but it's mostly what's on the inside that counts in swaying a grant maker's decision towards the positive.
There are actually six areas that a grant maker judges in deciding your funding outcome:
the need for your organization's services, how deserving your clients are of their support, your nonprofit's qualifications and experience, your program's benefits to the community, how sound an investment you are and proof that you're a good funding partner. Each of these areas will be discussed in more detail.
How Do You Present Your Need to a Grant Maker? If you spend more time talking about the needs of your organization rather than the needs of the people you serve, you're in trouble. Yes, you may be responsible for juggling a ton of responsibilities or using a computer that has seen much better days but if you don't relate your organizational deficiencies back to your clients, grant makers just view this as complaining. If you desire to hire additional staff to expand your service output or are requesting a computer that better allows you to track a client's progress, that's a much better worded statement of need because you're bringing the need back to your client and not yourself.
Do Your Clients Need Your Service? A grant maker wants to be assured that you are reaching the right audience and that they indeed need assisting. Describe your organizational background explaining why your nonprofit was formed to begin with. What group of people needed assistance and why? I think a great way to best explain how your service is needed in the community is to paint a picture of what would happen if your services disappeared. Not enough funding to expand your early childhood literacy program? Talk about the number of your target audience at-risk and the likelihood of their negative experience in school without your program. Don't be too doomsday but do be realistic based on facts and figures that back your claims.
What Makes You Qualified to Assist? An organization's programs are run by people. Do you have the most qualified staff running your programs? What makes them uniquely qualified and better than anyone else? It's time for an internal examination of your organization's staff, Board of Directors, volunteers and advisors. You want to ensure that everyone on board at your organization is well-trained and qualified to run your community programs. External recognition of best practices, internal systems for evaluation and ongoing continuing education all serve to ensure grant makers that your organization is led by a team of highly qualified professionals.
How Does Your Program Make a Difference? Your organization itself knows that it's needed but how good are you at demonstrating to others you are? Be able to explain the benefits of your nonprofit that clients are depending on. And what do those benefits mean to the community's bottom line? Grant makers have to have proof that what you're doing is working. Here is where you have to have some sort of measure in place such a pre-post program survey, case studies, focus group discussions or individual interviews. All of these measures are designed to gauge what's working and, just importantly, what's not working so that changes may be made as needed.
How Do You Prove That You're a Good Investment? Grant makers have to first trust you to handle the money they provide you with before investing in you and your organization. A good way to gain their trust is to have the support of your Board of Directors; clear and constant communication between Board, staff, clients and donors and all of your financial statements in order. They also like to see that you "play nicely" with others meaning that you have a good reputation in the nonprofit community as helpful and a willing partner for collaborations that make sense for your mission.
Are You a Gracious Funding Partner? Grant makers want to know that you will do what you say you will do. This includes actually funding the program that you requested funds for and delivering any promised advertising if funds are awarded. Always keep next year's grant cycle in mind. Your work doesn't end once the award has come through – it's just beginning. Also, be mindful of the funder's requested reporting system being sure to submit required reports on time.
Although these tips are simple, you'd be amazed at how many grant makers report that these recommendations aren't being followed. Don't give a grant maker a reason to cull your application from the very beginning – meet, and even exceed, their expectations of you.
Well, when it comes to your grant applications, yes and no. Yes, the overall style and appearance of your application matter but it's mostly what's on the inside that counts in swaying a grant maker's decision towards the positive.
There are actually six areas that a grant maker judges in deciding your funding outcome:
the need for your organization's services, how deserving your clients are of their support, your nonprofit's qualifications and experience, your program's benefits to the community, how sound an investment you are and proof that you're a good funding partner. Each of these areas will be discussed in more detail.
How Do You Present Your Need to a Grant Maker? If you spend more time talking about the needs of your organization rather than the needs of the people you serve, you're in trouble. Yes, you may be responsible for juggling a ton of responsibilities or using a computer that has seen much better days but if you don't relate your organizational deficiencies back to your clients, grant makers just view this as complaining. If you desire to hire additional staff to expand your service output or are requesting a computer that better allows you to track a client's progress, that's a much better worded statement of need because you're bringing the need back to your client and not yourself.
Do Your Clients Need Your Service? A grant maker wants to be assured that you are reaching the right audience and that they indeed need assisting. Describe your organizational background explaining why your nonprofit was formed to begin with. What group of people needed assistance and why? I think a great way to best explain how your service is needed in the community is to paint a picture of what would happen if your services disappeared. Not enough funding to expand your early childhood literacy program? Talk about the number of your target audience at-risk and the likelihood of their negative experience in school without your program. Don't be too doomsday but do be realistic based on facts and figures that back your claims.
What Makes You Qualified to Assist? An organization's programs are run by people. Do you have the most qualified staff running your programs? What makes them uniquely qualified and better than anyone else? It's time for an internal examination of your organization's staff, Board of Directors, volunteers and advisors. You want to ensure that everyone on board at your organization is well-trained and qualified to run your community programs. External recognition of best practices, internal systems for evaluation and ongoing continuing education all serve to ensure grant makers that your organization is led by a team of highly qualified professionals.
How Does Your Program Make a Difference? Your organization itself knows that it's needed but how good are you at demonstrating to others you are? Be able to explain the benefits of your nonprofit that clients are depending on. And what do those benefits mean to the community's bottom line? Grant makers have to have proof that what you're doing is working. Here is where you have to have some sort of measure in place such a pre-post program survey, case studies, focus group discussions or individual interviews. All of these measures are designed to gauge what's working and, just importantly, what's not working so that changes may be made as needed.
How Do You Prove That You're a Good Investment? Grant makers have to first trust you to handle the money they provide you with before investing in you and your organization. A good way to gain their trust is to have the support of your Board of Directors; clear and constant communication between Board, staff, clients and donors and all of your financial statements in order. They also like to see that you "play nicely" with others meaning that you have a good reputation in the nonprofit community as helpful and a willing partner for collaborations that make sense for your mission.
Are You a Gracious Funding Partner? Grant makers want to know that you will do what you say you will do. This includes actually funding the program that you requested funds for and delivering any promised advertising if funds are awarded. Always keep next year's grant cycle in mind. Your work doesn't end once the award has come through – it's just beginning. Also, be mindful of the funder's requested reporting system being sure to submit required reports on time.
Although these tips are simple, you'd be amazed at how many grant makers report that these recommendations aren't being followed. Don't give a grant maker a reason to cull your application from the very beginning – meet, and even exceed, their expectations of you.
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