Grant Writing 101 - Preparing a Successful Proposal

John Izzo

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Today’s Speaker

Hosting:

Sam Frank, Synthesis Partnership

John IzzoCo-Founder,

Community Grants Associates, Inc.

Assisting with chat questions: April Hunt, Nonprofit Webinars

Grants

Grants Are

• Competitive

• Time Sensitive

• Project Based

• Conditional

Grants are NOT

• Formula-Based

• Continual

• For things or general support

• “Free Money”

“When the gods wish to punish us, they answer our prayers”- Oscar Wilde

Preparing to Write

Issues

• Most Grants are lost before writing begins

• Organizational Issues

• Branding

• Power of Data

• Collaboration

• Mission Driven $$

Power of Data

• Rule: Funders increasingly demand measurement

• Collection of data is meaningless without management of data.

• Best Practices

• Longitudinal Data

Branding

• Rule: Run like a business

• What is your community profile

• Social Media

Collaboration

What it Means?

• Want big $$- collaborate

• Power of Synergy

• Selection of Partners

What it Does?

• Raises profile and shows community buy-in

• Specialization & Cost Saving

• Reputable

• Add Value

• Play Nice with Others

Mission Driven $$$

Rule: Do not chase $$$- let your mission lead to funding

What Do Funders Look For

• Social Research and Development

• Innovation is not scary!

– E.g. “Repeat”

• Reputable and Dynamic

• Need is OK – Results are Better

Finding Funders continued

• Technology and Change

• Glass Pockets Initiative• www.glasspockets.org• Transparency in Funding and

What it Means

REVIEWING THE RFP

“Have you even seen how complex these things are? If Einstein had to fill one these things out, God only knows

if we’d know what E equals”Josiah Bartlett (as played by Martin Sheen on T.V. Show “The West

Wing”)

Approach

• Read critically – What is mission and purpose?

– What about program design?

• Measurement

• Scoring Criteria

• Layout

• Read Conditional Language Unconditionally

• Review Scoring Criteria– This will help set up the narrative

FOLLOW THE MONEY?

“Money often costs too much”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

“A fire drill does not require a fire”

Bartholomew J. Simpson

Writing the Narrative

The Rules

The basics

• Follow the Directions (no matter how illogical)

• Good Writing is Good Writing– Write to win, not to impress– Simple sentence structure is better

• Data – Current and relevant data please

Let the RFP Do The Work

• Contains all questions, sub- questions and scoring

• Organizing Principle & Narrative Outline

• Scoring = How Much of Narrative to Devote to each section/question

Hemingway is Dead

• Answer the question……

• ….directly

• You are trying to convince people to give you money!

The power of G*O*A*M*s

Grant Writing Pyramid

• Goals

• Objectives

• Activities

• Measures of Success

G

O

A

Ms

Goals & Objectives

Goals

• Typically One of Two – E.g. Reduce Truancy in

Minority Youth in East Moncton

• Big Think but Be Real

• While not Quantifiable-Believable

Objectives

• Align under goals

– Reduce truancy by at least 20% in target population

• Flesh out the steps to get to goals

• Quantifiable

Activities

• The specific steps undertaken– E.g. Identify 300 youth who meet project criteria over three year

life of project– Provide after school programs/summer programs for 100 youth

per year.

• When, Where, Why, How

• Each activity is quantifiable when ever possible

Measures for Success

• Below Activities

• Quantifiable

• Measure Against Baseline Data

• Cumulative- i.e. if met for activities and objectives likely will reach goal

• Longitudinal – i.e. how you met Goal

• MUST HAVE

Benefits of Approach

• The Process Builds on Itself

• Should Use in Project Design

• Makes Writing Evaluation Easy

Why Limit Goals

Goal #1 Goal #2

G

O

A

Ms

G

O

A

Ms

Program Narrative = Story Telling

• The Funder Has Never Heard the Story Before – Grab Him or Her Quick Before Interest Lost

• Supported with Specific Data– Your organization (annual report)

– Prior Proposals

• Walk me Though the Process – Especially for Comprehensive Programs

Saving Space & Consistency

• Consistent Messaging– Typically 2 -3 key messages in narrative

• Need for creativity– E.g. if only 50% of a population has a high school diploma,

that means at least 50% have no college degree

• Importance of Page Limits– Remember the limitations in the RFP

• Space Saving Devices– Signals– Tables, Charts, Footnotes, etc.

Evaluation

• A well- written proposal should generate data

• Funders Demand It More Often

• Qualitative vs. Quantitative Measurement

Evaluation – cont’d

• Hiring and Outside Evaluator– Credentials = Data/Statistical Expertise

– The evaluator should be involved in writing the proposal

• Costs• Evaluator can cost up to 10-15% of project budget

• Negotiate up front

• Do Your Homework

Evaluation and G*O*A*M*S

• Sets the basis of an evaluation

• Typically use it to set up evaluation table• Power of Repetition

• Remember confidentiality protocols

– If applicable

Project Staff

• Appropriate people doing appropriate things

• Percentage of time dedicated to the project

• Cultural Competency

Narrative

• Must be consistent with the rest of the application

• Be persuasive

• Prepare Multiple Drafts & Have Someone Review .

Budgets

• Very Important – Often Overlooked

• Financial Road Map

• Involve Budget Folks Early

Sustainability

• What happens after the $$ is spent– It is OK to talk about fundraising strategy

– Nobody likes to pay for everything

• Program Design

Support

• Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)

• Letter of Commitment

• Letter of Support

MOU

• A Contract

• Each Party Specifies What They Will Do

• Usually Involves Legal Review

• Takes the Longest

Letter of Commitment v. Support

Letter of Commitment

• Written by Project Partner

• Partner Agrees to Specific Tasks

• Stronger

Letter of Support

• Provided by Politician or Other Senior Official

• Encouragement

• Usually Weaker

Budgeting Pitfalls

Overselling

• Overly Competitive

• Grant as Loss Leader

• Victory?

• Consequences

Gold Plating

• Grant = Lottery Ticket

• Red Flags

– Excessive Travel

– Entertainment

– Lifestyle Audit

• Consequences

Matching

• Cash Match • Usually Spend with Grant Funds• A Variety of Sources• Can Match Grants with Grants • Limitations• Sustainability

• In-Kind • Fair Market Value • Time CAN Equal Money• Rule: No Such Thing as 110%

Winning and Losing

• Winning• Thank You• Kick-Off Event/Recognition• Alert the Media• Manage Well

• Losing • How do I Improve• Ask Why• Schedule Phone Call/Meeting if Possible

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