Learn Better Grant Writing in 2020 to Fund Your Nonprofit

Answer this simple question. What is the best money in America to put your hands on? The answer is free money. So, how does free money flow into the hands of those who need it? Well, free money is free money, right. But there’s a catch to it. If you own a nonprofit organization or are trying to start a nonprofit, you need grant money. Billions of dollars are out there waiting for organizations to act.

There goes the catch to find free money.

Thousands of foundations, corporations and private charitable groups want to give away free money to fund nonprofits. In order to snag your share of free money, a grant(s) must be written. And not just anyone with a computer, no matter how much of a wordsmith or keyboard warrior they think they are, can actually write a precise and compelling grant proposal, the kind that will shine among the brightest of proposals that will prompt foundations to select an organization to give money to.

Grant writing takes skills. Grant writing is no punk.

The work involved to produce an outstanding grant proposal is challenging, demanding of lots of time, energy, patience, and dedication. Hard work can pay off, though, because most grant writers agree that winning money from foundations and corporations is a great cause for celebration. To help mankind during various stages of life, uplift communities, feed the hungry, tend to the most needy, the sick, and find cures for deadly diseases, iDynamics behind free money can be extremely competitive due to other organizations trying to get a piece of the action as well. Expert grant writer and consultant Dr. Bob Zeanah shares his expertise on what it means to write an effective grant proposal.

“The first step for an organization is to determine its needs,” Zeanah said in an interview, with an online media website.

“As obvious as that sounds, many organizations skip this step and move straight to ‘we want money.”’ Zeanah further said, once an organization determines the needs of its’ clients, “The organization begins a search with the purpose of linking the mission and goals to a funding source.”

Grants proposals are important written projects with a defined focus to achieve the end results to obtain funds provided by foundations and corporations. Your nonprofit must have 501(C)(3) tax-exempt status to apply.

Proposals must clearly illustrate tangible results or funding will be rejected. There’s no 100 percent guarantee that your nonprofit will be awarded money each time you apply but a successful grant stands a better chance of obtaining funds because the proposal is superb work that is carefully planned and delivered within a time frame, and adheres to a foundation’s requirements.

All grants work similar in scope, yet there is a slight difference between a government grant and a non-government grant.

What are Government Grants; How do they work?

Government grants provide funds for people’s ideas and specific projects that provide public services which stimulates the economy. Grants serve many purposes including critical recovery initiatives, innovation research, medical research, science, the arts, agricultural projects and numerous other programs listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance and the Federal Directory Online(FDO).

Anyone considering writing a grant(s) must first plan, plan again, research, re-plan, then plan all over again. The work can be tedious

“Grant funders are social investors,” Jules C. Colvin, president of Grant Pathways, said during a webinar interview. “If you watch Shark Tank, see the Sharks approach of how they invest (then) you can draw similarities between social investors and Shark Tank investors because they want to know will you have a beneficial return for their money.”

Colvin points out a second factor, drawing comparisons between Shark Tank investors and foundations that give grant money to nonprofits, “Is your agency capable of doing what you say; will you handle their money well, and most importantly, will you have a beneficial return for their money?”

Non-government Grants

Non-government grants are major corporations, foundations and individual philanthropists that provide grant money to nonprofits or individuals for various worthy causes.

These non-government grants are often owned by corporations that disburse money as a grant to give back to people who may need seed money to start a business, scholarship grants, including grants for environmental studies, research projects etc.

• Non-government entities like Walmart Stores, provide scholarship grants of different amounts based on motivation and need(there are numerous others).
• Business Development Grant: State Farm Insurance provides grant funds for non-profit agencies that focus on community development, education and safety.
• Angel Investing Network is a unique program, comprised of wealthy individuals who provide grant money for entrepreneurs starting a business (www.angel-investor-network.com).
• Ben & Jerry Ice cream offers two types of grants each year to support grassroots activism and community organizing for social and environmental justice around the country.

Non-government and direct government grants can as well provide:(1) business development grants:(2) grants for minorities:(3) low income grants:(4) rural development grants.

Advertise Your Non-Profit “For Free” With online Google Ad Grants

It doesn’t hurt to advertise your nonprofit causes on the internet for the betterment of humanity and communities in need of support and guidance for a better life.

As a nonprofit, you may or may not have heard of the “Google Ad Grant.” Google Ad grants provides $10,000 of free advertising annually to qualified nonprofits. Over 45,000 nonprofits use Google’s free grant advertisements to promote their organizations online.

Your nonprofit can use the grant to elevate your ads at the top of search engine queries to attract more donors and volunteers. Example: with billions of searches happening 24/7 on Google, this powerful, magnificent technology, attracts innumerable visitors, individuals, and generous donors.

Just think, (if) a donor wanted to financially support a cause similar to yours, and a simple search on Google for “nonprofit(your nonprofit type or cause)” returns results with your organization positioned at or near the top, not only will the person(s) learn about your nonprofit, but they”ll be able to instantly click through to your online donation page. Here you can learn more of how to apply for free Google Ad Grants: https://www.communityboost.org/google-ad-grants/

Understanding Important Basics of Writing a Grant

Grant proposals are the most important documents to tangibly create for your organization. Grants easily support major new projects and also represent the beginning of a new phase of success for your nonprofit, that can attract increased attention and new future donors.

Listed below are the requirements that grant foundations usually look for in your written proposal:

• An organization’s mission, future vision, goals and objectives
• Dedicated board members or support
• Competent management, staff, and volunteers
• Is an organization legal and have proper standing to do business in your community?
• Correct tax status, financial and operational structures
• History of working on and organizing successful projects and initiatives.
• Solid accounting system
• Vital programs designed for the well-being of the community
• Facilities, equipment and maintenance
• Strong relationships with people and peers in the community

What the above information explains is that your nonprofit should already have evidence of a laser-focus vision, including an intelligent operational foundation. Before you pursue your next targeted nonprofit project make sure you have all your ducks in a row.

First Stages of Writing a Grant

Most organizations hire grant writers that are well experienced and capable of not only knowing how to write the information, but also understanding the important basics of nonprofit grant proposals.

Here are the basic components of a grant application:

• Cover Letter
• Executive Summary
• Statement of Need
• Goals and Objectives
• Methods and Strategies
• Plan of Evaluation
• Budget Projections
• Organization Information etc.

At this point the readers of this article should know that if foundations agree to give free money to a nonprofit, that the people in charge of the organization must know their project’s key goals before submitting a proposal.

Define your goals and give answers to the following:

• Why is the problem important?
• What are the demands from the community or targeted population to address a particular problem?
• Identify those who are impacted by a continuing problem
• Identify specific issues that your organization intend to address
• What are the positive benefits your project will create for your community?
• Explain how you”ll get community support
• Identify the number of people you want to engage with the project

Compiling Documented Evidence: How to Include Different data and Statistics into Grant Proposal

Grant writing is nonetheless a simple way to pitch your idea to swing foundations in your corner to rake in funds for your nonprofit. It is imperative to pitch well documented facts to make the strongest efforts to build a solid case for support, and explain how your constructive plans are simultaneously meaningful and achievable. Another key point of your grant proposal is to convince a foundation or city/county/state agency that your nonprofit is a stable and responsible steward of funds, driven by your actionable initiative.

A person’s passion and goals are only part of the equation. But data/statistics are usually the deciding factors for grant foundations that receive “tons of applications” from several nonprofit organizations across America. Will your proposal shine to approval and sway those in charge to green light funds for your organization? So, therefore, since data/statistics are vital to include in a grant proposal, include additional information below into your grant:

• Your nonprofit’s finances and financial trends
• Sociological or economic data of the problem your nonprofit will address
• Include your fundraising statistics that are usually kept on your donation list
• Supporting data which highlights your work and community involvement
• Describe target population and community

Here’s a partial written example illustrating how to present your cover letter request for funding:

The needs of our nonprofit organization is tremendous. Our community has struggled to cope with_______________for several years, and its’ effect have been amplified by the rise of________changes in________, and the loss of____________. Statistics show that this issue is on the rise in communities similar to ours. (Then properly cite statistics from an authoritative source.)

Next, move on to show how your nonprofit has dealt with specific community issues or whichever subject the grant proposal is about.

• In addition to other local groups, our nonprofit organization has confronted this issue in the past, including governing bodies have addressed this community problem, as well. Yet we believe a more coordinated effort with greater support will solve the issue.
• Timeline of the issue in your community and any past outreach initiatives, legislation, etc.
• To describe numbers (data statistics) try this writing formula: 19.4% or say; between 2000 and 2300 people live below the poverty level in Eudora Arkansas

By all means, make sure your grant proposal establishes clear data reporting protocols across all operations during the early stages. Your fundraising, accounting, marketing, and management tools should automatically provide the reporting you need.

Best grant writing practices can make the writing process much easier for two simple reasons:

• Well-organized, accessible data will verify any claims about your community work and previous successes.
• Complete, well-supported data allows you to make the in-depth connections that’s likely to win a grant for your nonprofit.

Bottom line: If a person cannot understand data statistics and geographic areas, they shouldn’t be writing a grant.

Find grant writing samples here: https://www.thebalancesmb.com/samples-and-templates-for-nonprofit-organizations-2502286

Searching for Grants to Fund a Nonprofit

Let’s assume you’ve identified the key goals and the financial needs of your nonprofit. Start your search for grants to match your financial needs. The great benefits of having correct information resources at your fingertips is to narrow down the grants you’re planning to pursue (either you or your hired grant writer & researcher).

Federal or state law requires tax-exempt foundations to file annual information returns with the IRS, specifically; (IRS Form 990 or 990-PF). https://www.thebalancesmb.com/what-nonprofits-need-to-know-about-form-990-2502284

There are four major grant sectors to research:

• Foundations and corporations
• Federal, state, and local government agencies
• Large organizations and endowments
• Private grant-giving foundations

Foundation and Corporate Funding

Just a reminder that foundations are nonprofit operations that give money for charitable purposes. Numerous foundations and related funders are located across the United States. An organization’s primary focus is to learn what it takes to identify these programs. Assuming the members of your nonprofit may not know the name of a foundation (i.e. independent, corporate, community or grantmaking public charities), try using the following to locate a grant to match your organization’s needs:

Foundation Directory Online (FDO) covers approximately 120,000 grant foundations and corporate funding programs in the U.S. FDO allows researchers to search for grants in the following manner:

• Grant maker’s name and location
• Geographic focus(localities where the foundation gives its money).
• The kind of financial help the grant maker provides from organizations including the amount of seed money or funding for buildings and equipment.

Guidestar is the world’s largest information network about nonprofits. It’s massive databases provide comprehensive details to verify a recipient’s organization is credibly established and that donated funds are sent to where donors intended for the funds to go to individuals looking forward to giving in the wake of disasters, according to Wikipedia.

National Center For Charitable Statistics(NCCS) is a clearing house of data related to U.S. nonprofit sectors. NCCS builds national, state, and regional databases, and the company develops standards for reporting the activities of tax exempt organizations throughout the nation.

Hiring a Grant Writer

Does all the information mentioned thus far pertaining to writing a grant make sense? Perhaps you’re too busy trying to keep things running smoothly at your organization to buckle down and write a comprehensive grant proposal.

Why not consider hiring a grant writer? Whichever grant writer you choose, grant writers should meet the following requirements:

• Has experience writing grants
• Can provide examples and references
• Communicates clearly
• Knows how to thoroughly research data and statistics, if needed

Nonprofit organizations in need of grant writers should check out the following websites to post a “Grant Writer(s) Needed Ad.”

• Grant Writers of America: https://m.facebook.com/notes/grant-writers-of-america-page/grant-writers-of-america-gwoa-who-we-are-what-we-do/833260917065015/
• American Grant Writer’s Association Job Board
• Indeed
• LinkedIn
• Associated Grant Makers
• Association of Fundraising Professional Job Board

For whatever reasons, (if) your grant proposal is rejected, revise it and re-apply at a later date. Persistence can pay off.