I used to write grants for the small nonprofits that we help with fundraising. (In fact, we used to be called Community Grantwriters, because so many organizations wanted that kind of fundraising.)
But guess what? We don’t write grants anymore. (And we’re so serious about this that we changed our name.)
Here’s why we don’t write grants.
Grants are a lot of work and have a low likelihood of success. Even when you do get a grant, funding can take a long time and is usually restricted. So now we help nonprofits reach more individual donors—they give now, give often, and many will give generously when you engage them in your mission.
For years, I’ve been writing on Substack (FunderFollies.substack.com) about the unrealistic expectations — and too restricted funding — that foundations have when it comes to nonprofit grants.
But if you insist…
Still determined to write grants? Here are some DIY, free resources.
Don’t despair! There are free grantwriting resources to help you find funders and write great grants. Here’s where to start.
1. Use templates to create compelling language for your proposals.
- Use our downloadable templates, including an Impact 2-pager (in a .doc format that you can edit and use as a master proposal template), a Program Budget (.xls) to articulate your impact, and a Funder Prospect List (.xls).
- Update and improve the language in these documents as you get feedback from funders, revise budgets, and build metrics showing the impact of your work.
- Repurpose the language everywhere — grant proposals, donor solicitations, campaign descriptions, program pages of your website, email communications, and social posts.
- Bonus idea: Whenever you update your program impact, add a short excerpt to your donor acknowledgment letter template, that sends automatically whenever you enter a gift into your donor database! Celebrate your success. (And if you don’t know what I mean by a donor database or gift acknowledgement template, let’s talk.)
2. Know who the leaders and peers are in your field.
Make a list of funders you think are a good fit, based on their funding priorities and past grants (which you can see in their Form 990 from their annual tax filing.) In addition to our free Funder Prospect List template, we also have a more in-depth Funder Guidelines template that is premium, members-only content. But you can create something from scratch to do the job.
Here’s where to find leaders in your issue area:
- Regional Community Foundation – Ask for an informational meeting with the grantmaking program officer at your local community foundation (here’s a map to find yours) to discuss how you might build grants capacity. (And also to let their Donor Advised Fund donors know about your work: sometimes they have a form you can fill out). Be sure to look at their website first, to make sure they fund your type of work. Use this resource and these relationships very wisely.
- Follow the leaders – Get to know the program officers at foundations that are a good fit with your mission and see what topics they cover. Follow them on LinkedIn and set up a Google alert for when they publish something. Add a comment to one of their articles to put yourself on their radar!
- Look for issue-focused networks – A quick online search will help you find funder networks in your issue area. Sign up for their newsletters. See if you can attend a meeting to connect with and learn from funders supporting the kind of work you do. Here are a few examples, but there are lots of others:
- Grantmakers in the Arts
- Grantmakers in Health
- Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (focused on racial equity, among other priorities.)
- Join fundraising networks – All offer affordable online learning, membership, events, and the chance to get to know others working at nonprofits. Fundraising can feel lonely, but you’re not alone! Here are a few ideas:
- Development Executives Roundtable is a great regional network that has tons of online programming that you can access remotely.
- Association of Fundraising Professionals is national, with regional and local chapters.
- Grant Professionals Association has a specialized focus.
- State nonprofit networks that offer connection, trainings, trends, and advocacy, like CalNonprofits and Maryland Nonprofits.
- Use LinkedIn to connect with colleagues and potential funders – Be respectful, honest and always “add a note” to your request to connect so they have some context. Remember that old adage: When you ask for money, you get advice; when you ask for advice, you get money. So ask for advice! I like the relationship-building focus of Susan Schaefer’s Major Grants newsletter on Substack.
3. Use grantwriting best practices.
Join fundraising networks – All offer affordable online learning, membership, events, and the chance to get to know others working at nonprofits. Fundraising can feel lonely, but you’re not alone! Here are a few professional education and networking groups:
- Development Executives Roundtable is a great regional network that has tons of online programming that you can access remotely.
- Association of Fundraising Professionals is national, with regional and local chapters.
- Grant Professionals Association has a specialized focus.
- State nonprofit networks that offer connection, trainings, trends, and advocacy, like CalNonprofits and Maryland Nonprofits.
4. Recruit a volunteer (or low-cost) grant writer or grants researcher to get you going.
Grantwriting is a virtual skill, so you can attract talent beyond your local area. You may find a qualified volunteer who’s a communications professional or person interested in a career transition to the nonprofit sector, or a student at the local high school or community college. You can use this same process to hire a part-time staff or contractor. (Look at gig sites like Fivrr and Upwork, or the Grant Professional Association’s consultant directory if you can offer a a small, paid grantwriting project.)
Here’s how you can make the vetting and hiring process easier on yourself, whether for a paid or unpaid grant writing role:
- Create a sentence or two “job description.” What kind of help do you need? You can cut-and-paste from another nonprofit’s listing for a grantwriter on Indeed or Idealist. In your job description, include a link to…
- Gather replies online. Direct interested volunteers to a (free) Google form that you create to get additional info, like name and contact info, why they’re interested, availability, and projects where they’ve written grants. You can even have them upload a work sample, and set it up to send an automated reply that you’ve received their application. That way, you’re not bombarded by emails or calls. Better yet, have a board member check responses and follow up. Include a link to this form wherever you post the job description.
- Post the volunteer job listing on volunteer sites. Catch-a-Fire* and Volunteer Match are national listings, and Volunteer Now is a regional example (northern California). *Ask the local community foundation if they will pay for your nonprofit’s Catch-a-Fire registration fee; they often do!
- (Optional) Add the volunteer job to your website. Consider cutting and pasting that job listing into a page on your website, so you can link to the volunteer “job” listing anytime you want to share it.
- Promote in your social media. Send a simple eNews to your list, post on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram. You can add an eye-catching free graphic from Canva, Unsplash, Pixabay or MyStock. (Include that link to the online application/Google form you created above.)
- Review, interview, select, start and train! You will need to spend some time here to get the right person and get them up to speed. Have a shared folder with any information they’ll need to learn about your work or see past proposals you’ve written. This can be a very rewarding role for a volunteer, if given proper guidance and direction.
Can you promote from within? Is there a part-time or administrative staff member who could learn grantwriting. A newsletter editor or staff member with excellent communication and project management skills can be a great grant writer.
Fundraising is a terrific learning opportunity, with no single set of qualifications. A candidate with good communication skills and an entrepreneurial mindset could do a great job launching your grants proposal process.
Back to individual donors…
And if you’d like to learn more about cultivating individual giving instead and building your board’s comfort with fundraising, let’s hop on a free fundraising brainstorm. You can schedule time with me anytime at cultivategiving.com/meet.
