In the wonderful world of fundraising, there are countless opportunities for an organization to raise money for their respective charities. While some creative thinking will set your organization apart from your competitors, traditional grant writing is an area we advise our clients to focus on. Most major corporations, in America and beyond, have grants that your organization would be eligible for.

Grants are one of the most overlooked aspects of fundraising. For many organizations, the grant application process can be overwhelming. Most organizations are working within tight budgets and timelines, and it can be challenging to allocate the necessary resources to grant research. While it may seem logical to devote resources to new fundraising initiatives, traditional grants should not be overlooked in favor of the latest fundraising trends. It’s all about creating multiple income streams for your organization.

Preparation is the key to fundraising success. We cannot stress this point enough. The prospect of writing an extensive dossier on the relative merits of your charity can be a daunting task, but if you have done your research and preparation it will undoubtedly pay off. The best advice we can give you is to devote some time to researching available grants in your niche. Before attempting a first-draft, be sure that you understand the guidelines of the grant-maker. Once the research has been completed, the easy part is drafting the grant proposal and application.

A well-written grant proposal is absolutely critical for success. Be concise. Stay focused on your message. What will set your organization apart from the others? You must establish that your organization has a legitimate need of the highest priority within the first paragraph of your proposal, in order to capture the interest of your potential donor. Remember, that your proposal is but one of potentially hundreds. You have only one chance to convince them that your organization deserves their kind assistance. Get it right…the first time!

We are continually amazed at how many of our clients become intently focused on the minutiae of their projects at the expense of clarity. There are a few core issues you must address in your proposal. Who are you, and what organization do you represent? What factors determine your eligibility for the grant in question? What is the problem your organization hopes to address? Who stands to benefit from your efforts? What are your specific objectives, and how will the grant support your organizational needs? How will you monitor and track the results of your efforts? How does your grant request tie in with the overall goals of your potential donor? Answer these pertinent questions, and you will be well on your way to a successful grant proposal.

Thanks to Michelle Pearson for contributing this article to our grants blog:

Grants Tips

Zul asks about grants:

I’m one of many working on a short film project, and have been asked to lend a hand looking for grant opportunities. Any suggestions?

Have you claimed your Genesis site?

Have you ever reached for a brownie when you were trying to lose weight? Or stayed in bed when you intended to go to the gym? Or put off paying bills because it was “too much of a hassle”?

There are lots of different ways in which we sabotage ourselves. This is true of life in general and also true of the writing life.

Writing depends not just on discipline but also on the complicated interplay between what we know and what we feel.

I’ve worked as an editor for just about 30 years (honest, I was really young when I started) and I’ve noticed there are five key negative feelings or thoughts that tend to shut down our writing—in much the same way that a circuit breaker shuts down electricity. BOOM and the lights go out.

Often, simply being aware of these thoughts is enough to take away their power. At other times, it’s important to challenge them head-on. So let’s see which ones are disrupting your writing (and therefore taking a bite of your income) and figure out what you can do about them.

1)I’m a lousy writer; I don’t have the talent to do this.

This is probably the most common negative thought of all. My theory is it’s usually born in high school when writing teachers single out one or two people in the class for praise and use their red pens too liberally with the rest. (To this day, when I’m editing, I make a point of never using red to make suggestions or corrections!) And too much of a focus on grammar and spelling in childhood often mean trouble for the adult writer.

But here’s the interesting truth: We’re all born lousy marketing writers. The people who become “good” are the ones who are prepared to do the following simple things: – Read good writing and work to emulate it; – Write a lot—because writing is like exercise: the more you do, the better you get; – Spend double the time on self-editing that they spend on writing.

If you discover that you’re constantly bad-mouthing yourself as you write, replace the inner negative chatter with the following statement: “Writing is about practice. The more I do, the better I’ll get. When I finish this article (letter, report, etc.) I’ll have more experience and I’ll have improved.”

2) I don’t have the time to write

This is one of my favourite negative thoughts because it’s so common and sooo easy to blow out of the water. The writing world is littered with people who quit their day-jobs so they could work on their books. But here’s the secret: The published novelists and non-fiction writers are almost always the people who continue with their regular work and write in their spare time.

Just as the cactus thrives in a hot, dry environment, writing thrives in the absence of time. Yes, you read that correctly. Writing not only can be done quickly; it is better done quickly. That’s partly because, if you’re fast enough, you can usually out-run and out-write the negative chatter in your head.

People often make the mistake of trying to set aside huge chunks of time for writing (especially for reports). Me? I love writing in 10-minute bursts. Not only does this allow me to get ideas out of my head and onto paper when they are fresh, but it also gives me a big payback down the road. That’s because when I go back to the document I often discover my article is much further ahead than I’d realized. No blank page. It’s a great feeling.

I do like having a decent chunk of time to self-edit—a different task from writing—but I’m talking maybe 30 to 60 minutes. Not all day.

When you’re planning your writing time, think in small increments, not big chunks. Remember: If you write 300-350 words a day, you’ll have written a decent-length book by the end of a year.

3)I’d better do a really good job on this (article, report, letter) because my reputation/sales results hinge on it.

Of course you want your writing to be good. And of course certain pieces of work you do can be important to your business or career. But to understand why this negative line will do you in, it might help to think about professional sports. Take tennis for example.

Do you think Martina Navratilova won a record nine Wimbledon singles championships and 58 Grand Slam titles by telling herself, “I really need to win this game; if I don’t, I’m in trouble.” Of course not! I don’t know about Martina, but I do know many professional athletes work with psychologists precisely so they can learn to turn off this unhelpful chatter. After all, this sort of self-talk is more likely to cause them to choke than to win.

Similarly, when you’re writing, you need to shut down the tiny yet persistent voice that tells you how much you have riding on this job. Instead, do what the athletes do. Focus on the ball—in your case that means: focus on what you’re writing.

And if that doesn’t work, tell the voice that you don’t have time to listen to it while you’re writing, but you’ll attend to it when you’re editing the piece (when it can’t do so much damage.)

4)I need to write about this topic

Truth is, unless you’re a journalist or someone else who writes professionally, there are precious few topics that anyone is going to force you to cover. Sure you might need to write a pitch for a bank loan or sales letter to promote your product, but if you’re writing an article for your e-zine or website, don’t be bound by duty. Instead, focus on topics you feel passionate about.

Readers can smell disinterest the way lions can smell a steak. I’ve seen too many consultants who start an article by saying to themselves: “This is a hot topic in my industry right now.” Or, “I want the search engines to pick me up on this one.” Or, “People expect me to be an expert on this.” Yawn.

Instead, choose a topic that excites you and has you fairly bursting to write. Then think hard about how to make it relate to your business, your keywords or your target market. Your enthusiasm will not only captivate your readers, it will also inspire you to write quickly and fluently.

5)Writing is too hard

Let’s get something straight. Lifting bricks is hard; waiting tables is hard; telling someone they have cancer is hard. Writing is not hard. Writing is just writing.

There is a romantic notion—perpetuated by Ernest Hemingway, Raymond Chandler and others—that writers must be tortured. In fact, writing is just a job. Sure, sometimes it’s more difficult than other times —just like it’s hard to return voicemail messages when you’re headachy and grumpy or hard to go for a run when you’re bone-tired.

But overall, writing is actually pretty cushy. You get to sit in a warm dry place. You can have a steaming cup of tea or coffee beside you. You don’t have to do any heavy lifting (with Spell check, you don’t even have to lift the dictionary!) And best of all, you get the privilege of sharing your thoughts—the ones inside your head—with other people.

So, dismiss the notion that writing is an onerous act. Writing is something we all can do. Sure, some of us are better at it that others than others. But that’s mostly because of practice. And if you write more, you too will improve.

Get at it.

Thanks to Daphne Gray-Grant for contributing this article to our grants blog:

Single Parent Grants

SRK asks about grants:

Grants are everywhere but the strange thing is they must be invisible because no one can ever find out where they are or where to apply. I have searched for a long time to find a way to get a grant for any purpose and all I get is these stupid grant scam websites asking me to pay them $30 – $100 for the information on where I can get the grant at. This is so stupid why would I want to pay money for information on something that I should be able to get for free. Does anyone know how to help me get a grant without paying a fee first?

Single Parent Grants

Do You Know that Small Business Grants Can be Waiting for You Almost ‘Round the Corner’?

We are living in the times when governments understand the value of small businesses for the global economy. Small businesses are the pushers and testing grounds for new trends, they provide lots of jobs for the masses, they make any society more stable and happy. So governments have created special funds, programs, associations to provide government grants for small business.

You can be surprised to find out that there are so many types of grants that you can be missing and that can help you out almost instantly – minority small business grants, small business grants for woman, federal grants for small business, business start up grants and even free small business grants. All these types of grants act as a real proof that they really help many small businesses to succeed.

There are two typical issues about getting small business grants.

(1) WHERE to Get Small Business Grants.

Start with doing local search for ’small business grants’, ’small business bank loans’, ‘venture funds’ and ‘angel investors’. This will give you a pretty big list of places to apply for help.

If you are in the USA – there are some majors that provide this type of financial assistance – for example, Small Business Administration (SBA) that has many departments that fit all possible types of businesses or help. It can also be wise to check the catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance – there you can find many good places to apply for the grants.

For businesses outside US there is also a way to succeed. Government, public or private organizations in your country must be giving some help to new small businesses within the framework of these institutions:

- economic development programs, funds, departments, opportunities, initiatives; – banks (usually they have special small business loans and programs); – venture funds, companies, firms; – credit partnerships; – angel investors (this type of business got very popular recently).

The list is big, but it means that you do not need to trust one business grant opportunity. The more opportunities, the better for you!

(2) HOW to Get Small Business Grants.

There is no magic formula to safe getting of grants.

But you can increase your chances using these simple tips.

Build a good business plan. Surely you are starting your business with some plan, but here you need to be very convincing, well-prepared to any questions. People who read this plan must understand and feel that the only element necessary for your success is the money, the grant.

Keep in good contact with your grant agent (manager, officer, anyone who is in charge of all details). Don’t be a pusher, but make sure that you are in control of the situation. A lot will depend upon this person, maybe not the final decision, but a lot. Make sure he/she can reach you at any moment. And would be great if you have his/her contact details, the more, the better.

Resource Guide For Small Business Start Up Venture Capital

Small Business Resource Guide. The “How to Where to Guide” for all small business on advice, money, financing, public funding, grants, capital seed, venture capital, networking, product development, research, education, management and start up business plans. Get small business loans and start up capital. US Government and local contacts for Cleveland and Akron Ohio.

Consortium of African-American Organizations Minority businesses, research, education. Information about starting or running a restaurant. Industrial Incubator – Management services, capital, seed, incubator, operations. Bio Enterprise – Business Plans, validation, assess, strategy, capital, seed, venture capital, research, incubator, advice. bio tech. Advice, public funding, manufacturing, operations, product development, info, intellectual, tech. network. Information about structuring a business plan sample plans. Services Offered Advice: Help with big picture management decisions such as how to make or price a product. Assess: Assessment or your business Concept. Management Help to develop managers. Plan Help writing a business plan.

Strategy Thinking or rethinking your business concept works. Validation Making Sure your business concept works. Capital Help Finding debt or equity to capitalize your business. Grants Help finding grants (which you don’t have to repay).Micro Loans and help for very small or start-up business. Public Funding Leading programs tat gets some or all of their money from the Government. Seed Early stage money for business being developed. Venture Capital Investor equity that comes later in a company’s development. Biotech – Biotech or bioscience business help. Incubator Buildings that offer, rent, utilities and technical help to small businesses. Marketing for your future. View Guide



Thanks to Smith & Chen for contributing this article to our grants blog:

About Grants