Six tips for winning grants

Many not-for-profit organisations rely on multiple grants to fund their activities and few have the skills of a full-time professional grant writer on board. Community Directors training lead Nina Laitala shares her top six tips for grantseekers who want to increase their grant application success rate.

Tip 1. Read all the eligibility

Make sure you read all the eligibility requirements for the grant... and then read them again! If you have any questions about the eligibility, follow up with the grant maker as soon as possible.

Tip 2. Call the grant maker

Don't take up too much of their time, but make sure you introduce yourself, your organisation and your project succinctly. Confirm your eligibility with them and ask whether they think your proposed project aligns with their needs.

Think of this contact as the start of your relationship with the grant maker. You might not be successful this time, but having that relationship might serve you well in the future.

Tip 3. Information gathering

Start your application by gathering all the organisational information you need, including insurance information, bios of key people, project activities and timeline, evidence of need for the for the project, and letters of support from partner organisations and community representatives.

Tip 4. Create your budget

Map out your proposed activities on a timeline, including the outputs, what you'll deliver and the outcomes.

The result of the outputs. Then cost the activities to create your budget.

Tip 5. Tell a compelling story

Tell a compelling story of the why, what and how of your project. Avoiding jargon. Make sure your story clearly shows how your project solves or contributes to solving the problem identified by the grant maker.

Tip 6. Check, check, check

Check, double check and get someone else to check the grant application before you send it. You don't wanna miss out on funding because you had spelling mistakes or there is a zero in the wrong place in the budget.

If your grant application is unsuccessful, consider the work you've done as preparation for the next grant, and don't forget to keep the relationship going with the grant maker. If it's successful. Celebrate, carry out the project and tell the grant maker about your next project proposal.