“If you’ve seen one foundation . . . you’ve seen one foundation.”
—Anonymous
In Chapter 19, we discussed how important foundation funding is to a successful fundraising strategy. It accounts for 16 percent of the over $300 billion given to U.S. nonprofits in 2013, according to Giving USA. Foundations can be more accessible than major donors, since you don’t need to have a personal relationship with a high net worth individual; you just need to get in the door and prove that you are doing relevant work that meets their goals, using the tips we provided in that chapter. However, the vast majority of foundation grant requests are denied. In addition to putting those tips to work to get you to that 50 percent success rate, it’s still critical that you write letters of inquiry and proposals that break through the clutter and clearly articulate your work and impact, inspiring the reader to fund you. You need to get their attention, explain clearly what you’re seeking funding for and how it maps to their goals, and get them engaged as partners in your work so they’re excited about the impact they can help make possible.
When you write a letter of inquiry, also known as a letter of interest (LOI), the better the impression you make, the more likely you’ll be funded. An LOI is traditionally the first step in being invited to submit a full proposal—although this is changing and the LOI seems to be falling out of favor with some funders, who prefer a one-step application process—but can sometimes directly result in a grant. With few exceptions, I personally believe you should only apply for grants you’ve been invited to submit.
That said, the experts I interviewed for this chapter agree it’s ideal to be invited, but also suggest applying “cold” if your research tells you you’re a solid fit and the foundation’s guidelines prohibit you making contact. Either way, whether you’ve already done the hard work to get in the door and secure an invitation to apply, plus secured a few key additional pieces of information outlined in Chapter 19), or decided to apply anyway, then your next step is implementing the best practices outlined in this chapter for proposal writing to maximize your chances for success.
It’s not rocket science, and by implementing these tips, you can unlock huge sums of funding and build important relationships and credibility. In short, whether you’re writing an LOI or a full grant proposal, your primary objective is to eliminate any reasons they may have for saying no, and to give them compelling reasons to say yes. Ultimately, it’s not about you or your organization; it’s about how you can help advance their goals.
To learn more about the secrets to writing killer LOIs and proposals, I interviewed Susan Fox, veteran fundraising consultant and co-author of Grant Proposal Makeover: Transform Your Request from No to Yes, and Jane Geever, fundraising expert and author of The Foundation Center’s Guide to Proposal Writing. They outlined the following simple tips to improve your success rate and help you secure more funding, both from U.S. and global foundations.
An LOI is usually a one- to three-page letter introducing your organization and concisely laying out what you want funding for, how much, and most importantly, how your request maps to the funder’s goals. In order to write a successful LOI or grant proposal, you don’t need to be a great writer. You simply need to be able to succinctly articulate and clearly communicate key points to outsiders, ideally grantmakers who already expressed an interest in your work and invited your proposal.
Based on the funder’s priorities and insights gained in the call or meeting where you received the invitation to apply, focus your proposal on what you’re doing that will help meet their goals and clarify why you’re in a unique position to fulfill this need. Lead with your organization’s strengths, and include the dollar amount requested and use of funds in the first paragraph.
You also need to be detail oriented and follow the grantmaker’s directions and guidelines precisely—from the deadline, to the length, format, and things like font size and spacing if those are specified. And make sure you answer all the questions asked. Even if you are a perfect fit, you may be denied if you fail to follow the application directions.
Nothing annoys a funder more than having to read a proposal that is clearly out of sync with their priorities. Most foundations provide plenty of information on their websites about what they fund and why, and hopefully you gained valuable insights into why specific initiatives and programs are a fit in the call or meeting where you were invited to apply.
Either way, if you don’t educate yourself and align your application with their stated priorities, you are wasting everyone’s time, including your own. You need to succinctly articulate why you fit within the foundation’s scope of work; especially how the impact your work will have is aligned with the goals of the foundation. As outlined in Chapter 19, any language the program officer uses to explain why they may be interested in funding you should absolutely find its way into your proposal.
When applying for a grant, it’s very likely that there are lots of other great organizations competing for the same funding. You must convince the foundation that they should fund your organization rather than another because you have a vision and long-term plan in place. The foundation is looking to further a specific set of objectives so, as mentioned, you have to articulate how your work is in sync with that, but they also want to understand how the proposed program or initiative fits within the context of your overall organizational goals. Concisely explaining your long-term strategic goals and quickly articulating how the specific, proposed program advances those helps strengthen your case.
Programs should connect your vision to action, and this should be summarized in a simple sentence like: “Your support of $100,000 will help enable us to hire two field officers, enabling us to serve 250 additional homeless next year and advancing our vision of a Minneapolis where no one goes without housing, food, and medical care.” Even if you don’t volunteer this information, many grantmakers find the context helpful, and as such they sometimes ask for strategic plans as attachments to your proposal.
Nothing spells disaster for your proposal more than numbers that don’t add up or false citations. Before submitting your materials, make sure to review these one last time. Remember that your audience is likely an expert in your field, so verify your sources for all data and statistics used. And, of course, double-check the math on all your budgets and any numbers mentioned within the proposal to ensure they add up. Funders pay attention to these details and will notice if something is off, creating an embarrassing situation that undermines your credibility and potentially resulting in you not receiving the grant.
It is important that you demonstrate the competency of both the organization and the people undertaking the actual work you’re requesting funding for. By including short professional biographies outlining the relevant expertise of key personnel, in addition to a short overview of the organization and its accomplishments and accolades, you will bolster the funder’s confidence. You can also provide past examples of similar work, clearly articulating their impact, or compare your approach to similar methodologies successfully used elsewhere, showing that you are using proven best practices. Anything you can do to establish credibility will go a long way toward making your case for support.
When in doubt, cover your butt. On one hand, as mentioned above, you should assume the grantmaker reading your proposal is an industry expert who can spot faulty citations. At the same time, when it comes to jargon and acronyms, assume you’re talking with a novice. Spell things out and define industry terms when first used.
Re-read your application before you submit it with fresh eyes and ask yourself: What questions might someone possibly have when reading this? How can I proactively answer these so they don’t need to be asked in the first place? If possible, have someone else in your organization, or even one of your friends or family, read the proposal and see whether it makes sense to them and feels compelling. This is also a fun and useful way to get your mom to stop asking you what you do at work all day!
It’s also helpful to ensure your proposal is easy on the eye and not challenging to read. Use a minimum 11-point font and avoid using something smaller to meet a page number requirement. Put headers in bold and underline them to highlight key points, or put them in all CAPS if it’s an online form. You can also use things like colons and numbered or bulleted lists to underscore important ideas and break up your proposal so your concepts are easier to digest.
As outlined in Chapter 19, it’s important that you take the time to develop and nurture relationships with foundation staff. This is critical not only for getting a meeting or securing an invitation to apply, but also when one of your proposals is denied. Take the time to follow up and ask why it was determined that you were not a fit, ideally in a phone call.
Just like with individuals and major donors, this can provide important insights on your ongoing fundraising efforts and sometimes open a window for subsequent appeals. Geever likes to say, and Fox readily agrees, “A rejection is the first step in the process.” Perhaps it wasn’t the right timing for the foundation, or you didn’t clearly articulate your program. Odds are you won’t be able to convince them to change their mind, but you may receive feedback that can refine your efforts with other funders and help you prepare a more compelling ask for that funder on your next try.
You must be persistent and be willing to go back to foundations over and over again and, as you develop strong relationships, your chances of securing funding in the future increase. At all costs, avoid behaving rudely, being disrespectful, or talking badly of foundations if you are rejected; foundation fundraising is a smaller world than it seems, and developing a bad reputation is easier than you might think.
Just as nonprofits help people with resources achieve the change they want to see in the world, so, too, are they an integral partner for advancing foundation goals. In short, we are partners to foundations, and they’re in the business of serving the community by working with us. A program officer’s job is selecting the right partners to collaborate with, and if you can develop a relationship and submit a clear, concise proposal that makes a strong case for why your organization is in a unique position to advance their work, amazing things become possible. More than you think, foundations understand your needs and want to be your partner in creating impact and making a difference. They are very knowledgeable and passionate about the areas they fund, which creates a wonderful opportunity for connection. Take the time to gracefully and intelligently approach foundations and program officers, view them as partners, and nurture relationships with them. And when you’re writing LOIs and proposals, remember that there’s a human being out there who will read it. Make sure that you present something that is clearly and succinctly articulated, easy to read, engages your audience, and inspires them to fund your work.
Do. . .
Don’t. . .
Susan Fox has worked as an independent fundraising consultant to nonprofit organizations since 1980 and is co-author of Grant Proposal Makeover: Transform Your Request from No to Yes. Fox has held the designation of Certified Fund Raising Executive since 1995 and provides services in strategic fundraising.
Jane C. Geever is the founder of J.C. Geever, Inc. (est. 1975), the first woman-led fundraising company admitted into membership in the Giving Institute, formerly American Association of Fund Raising Counsel (AAFRC). Geever has written widely on topics related to fundraising, and is author of The Foundation Center’s Guide to Proposal Writing, now in its sixth edition.
This book provides numerous samples of successful grant proposals and gives you insight into the mind of foundation grant readers and what they’re looking for in a proposal.
Foundation Center maintains the most comprehensive database on grantmakers and provides resources through their website and local chapters.
Their international conference and regional fundraising days offers tracks on foundation fundraising. They also have regional chapters that do local events throughout the year.
This is a wonderful resource for fundraisers around the globe. Find great resources on their website, learn about educational opportunities, and check out their International Fundraising Congress conference.
Find a great resource library on their site, and connect to state nonprofit associations, management support organizations, and universities.
GPA has a robust website with many online grantwriting resources and articles, as well as an annual conference and regional chapters.
This is an introduction to the ins and outs of foundation proposal writing and grantmaking, which gives concrete examples of pitfalls to avoid and best practices for proposal writing.