In this webinar, Alice Ruhnke, President of GrantStation, shared 10 concepts that you can incorporate into your proposal development and writing strategies that will make your grant applications get positive attention from funders.
6. Partnerships—You Can’t Be
the Lone Ranger
Doing the root cause
analysis/reasons
behind the problem is
a great way to identify
potential partners
7. Partnership Identification Tool
Businesses and Corporations Possible
Motivations
Potential
Resources
Located in your community
Companies where your
stakeholders work
Companies that sell to your
stakeholders
Vendor corporations
Affinity corporations
Download a free copy at
www.thegrantadvantage.net
Resources tab
Grant Writing Resources
8. Partnership Identification Tool
Community Assets Possible Motivations Potential Resources
Social service agencies
Educational institutions
Communities of faith
Elected officials
Governmental entities
Civic groups
Community gatekeepers
Healthcare organizations
Media outlets
Funders
Public resources
9. Write With the Reviewer in Mind
• Reviewers are people too!
• Make no assumptions about
what they know
• Reduce/eliminate jargon
• Engage the heart and mind
of the reviewer
10. Highlight Your Strengths,
Not Your Needs
Demonstrate your solutions,
not your needs
Funders (and donors) invest in
your solutions
11. Follow the Directions
• Application instructions, request for proposals
(RFP), notice of funding availability (NOFA),
funding opportunity announcement (FOA)…
• Order, page limits/character counts, font sizes,
page margins…
• Headings and terminology
• Reviewers score sheet
12. Don’t Underestimate the Time it Takes
to Craft a Strong Proposal
• Proposal writing schedule
• List out all documents
required first then assign
tasks with time frames
• Due dates and times—
submission problems
• Add time for review
14. Demonstrate Your Cost-
Effective Solutions
Budget: Just the
numbers
Budget
Narrative/Budget
Justifications: Tell the
story behind the
numbers
Position Cost
Project Director $54,400
Therapist $45,000
Therapist $45,000
Case Manager $35,000
Recovery Coach $28,000
Total Personnel $207,400
Total project budget: $72,000; Serving 150 students; $480/student
16. Read Successful Grants
• Ask others in your network
• GrantStation: Award winning
proposals
• The Grant Advantage: Under
Resources Tab
Federal Grant Proposals:
• Freedom of Information Act
(FOIA)http://www.foia.gov
• List of current and past grantees