Effective grant research is definitely a task that takes a while to perfect, but with the right tips, you can have staff trained in no time.
Here are 5 Grant Research Tips That’ll Help You Train Staff:
Know the Organization’s Total Operating Budget
Many foundations have limitations based on the operating budget. Some may only support organizations with operating budgets of $250K or less, or organizations with operating budgets of $1 million or more, etc. To determine if a foundation is a good fit for your organization, you MUST know the budget.
Know the Project/ Program Geographic Focus
Do you know your service area? Is it one city, county, region, state, national, international? Once you verify this information, you can search for foundations that fund those organizations in your specific area.
Identify When You Need the Money In-Hand
Prior to submitting a proposal, you need to ask yourself when you need the money in-hand. If the funds won’t come in time for the project and you can’t pay yourself back for the expense, you probably shouldn’t apply for the funding then. Identify when you need the money in-hand so that you can look at grant deadlines when grant proposals are reviewed, and when dollars are to be expected.
Create a Needs List
Sit down with staff and generate a needs list for the next 12 months. As far as need goes, what are some things that rise to the top? And then what are the ‘wants’? Create the list and narrow it down to the ones that staff feel should be goals for the next year.
Know the Cost Associated with Each Need
Not only must you know your needs, but you must know how much they cost. It’ll be difficult to identify prospects if you don’t know how much you need them to support. Most foundations place restrictions on award amounts, percentages of project costs they will fund, etc. DO NOT start research without this data. If so, you will not be able to exclude prospects whose frameworks are outside your need.
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