One of the greatest hurdles that entrepreneurs face is the inability to financially support their vision; often limited by capacity, time, resources, or cash flow. To circumnavigate this, grants have been a great way to access funding, while enhancing your resource allocation. In turn, this enables you to focus on the activities related to the growth and success of your business. Grants are classified as financial awards from institutions, or government bodies, with the purpose of supporting a business or project achieve its goals. There are various types of grants, from capital purchases (i.e., computers, desks) to resource procurement to support the completion of a project (i.e., talent, illustrator for a book, a coder).
The foundation of any grant application is a proposal designed to secure funding, an investment, or the opportunity to gain access to resources that will lead to change or completion of something related to the end goal of a given business or project. Securing a grant or funding proposal might appear to be a daunting task – often assumed to be reserved for elite writers – but, the reality is that obtaining funding through a grant application can be developed with a bit of practice, skill, and insight.
Clearly Define and Express your Story:
Despite its many differences, the main similarity in any good grant application is the clearly defined story that funding bodies wish to be told about how providing funding will create change. This includes grants issued by government agencies, non-profit organizations, and private companies. The purpose of your grant proposal is to articulate what change will be created by funding you accordingly.
Based on the grant in question, you may even be invited to submit a short letter of intent. In doing so, you have the ability to act as a gatekeeper, and ensure that you have access to the detailed questions included in the grant application process. Keep your letter of intent short and to the point, while avoiding controversial statements, comparisons to competitions, or repetition. Even though you are telling a story in the hopes of tugging at heartstrings, avoid getting too emotional, or carried away with writing a science fiction masterpiece. You will need to share the story using logical and concrete action plans, outcomes and outputs, in an effort to showcase your credentials.
An important reminder is to do your research and take note of the language preferred by the grant giving organization. Some grants may require you to use sector-specific terminology or scientific vocabulary. In contrast, others might require you to use layman’s terms to keep it simple. Grants often have several requirements – from a simple high-level overview to a detailed project plan spanning several pages. These diverse requirements are usually based on the funding body’s purpose for releasing the grant, as well as their respective values, culture, and direction.
Be Prepared and Understand the Ask:
Before starting any grant application, it is crucial that you prepare by taking the time to carefully read through the grant’s eligibility criteria to ensure that valuable time and energy are utilized correctly. One of the biggest mistakes anyone can make is to start applying for a grant without reading the rules and parameters of the grant’s scope. That will undoubtedly be an express ticket to having your application disqualified as these agencies are often swamped with applications competing for limited resources.
Now that you have read the rules and are familiar with the requirements, the next step is to ensure that you have read the questions asked in the application thoroughly. This will give you a good indication of how to prepare your grant application, and whether the use of statistics, or data and research is even needed. These details are key to help make your application stand out from the others, and provide you with an opportunity to tailor-fit your application to the purpose of the grant. Like a good resume for a dream job, you will need to remember to customize and tailor your grant application to showcase exactly why you are the right fit for the role.
Invest Time in Relationship Building:
Grant agencies are interested in supporting applicants and organizations that will make the best use of the money and resources provided. For many, this means ensuring the project they fund aligns with the granting organization’s mission, values, and visions. When you understand the core values of the granting organization you are applying to, you are better positioned to help them help you. A key tactic is to develop an open line of communication and foster a working relationship with someone from within the grant agency, if possible. Depending on their capacity, you will be able to clarify questions around the ask, gain invaluable insights, and even be given a clearer roadmap to what a successful application will cover. This relationship will also be fruitful if the grant application is declined because you are then able to receive detailed feedback to improve your application for future submissions.
Be prepared to answer questions about your organization. Have information ready at your fingertips, such as your experience in delivering change, the history of the organization you are writing the grant for, if applicable, and the ability to identify the problem you are attempting to solve. It is also to your benefit to be able to provide information to better explain how you intend to measure this change. In any given application, the ‘ask’ will depend on the grant’s criteria. However, most also require that you know what you are asking for, in terms of budget, resources, or tools needed to implement your proposed change.
Although writing successful grant applications is a skill that anyone can learn, it is also not uncommon to outsource grant applications to professional agencies, or through ghostwriters with a proven track record of securing funding. Odds are, the higher the funding that is available, the greater the competition would be. As such, having professional writers increases your chances of aptly demonstrating your narrative to significantly reduce the chances of your application falling to the wayside for not being done correctly. Additionally, professional writers can also craft the grant application with a combination of compelling storytelling, with detailed project planning, involving timelines, funds and resource allocations, as well as a keen understanding of how to incorporate theories of change or logic models.
Government Resources:
- Government of Canada Grants – https://www.canada.ca/en/government/grants-funding.html
- Government of USA Grants – https://www.grants.gov/