What Foundations Want Applicants to Know
Modified from an article from GuideStar, a national database of nonprofit organizations.
Ten Crucial Tips
1. Do your homework—research, research, research
Before sending your letter of inquiry, make sure the Knott Foundation supports the kind of program or activity you want funded. If unsure, please call us. Also review “What should be included in a Letter of Inquiry?”
Read our grant guidelines carefully. If you don’t fit, please don’t apply. If you are unsure, contact us to discuss the matter.
2. Follow the application guidelines
Please pay special attention to guidelines that specify proposal length, content, and any additional documentation that is requested including all financial information that is requested
3. Be concise
Keep the letter of inquiry and proposal short and to the point. Avoid using a lot of adjectives or jargon. It’s hard for our reviewers to work through those extra words to determine what you are actually doing. A professional presentation outlining who you are and what you are trying to accomplish is much easier to assess. We will ask for more information if needed.
4. Be specific
Provide a strong and credible description of the need for the project. Although we use the ABAG Common Grant Format as a template, customize your request for support.
5. Define precisely your goals, how you will reach them, and how you will measure your success
Make sure your project has clear, reasonable and measurable outcomes.
Be very specific about outputs or indicators (things you can count) and outcomes (changes in status or behaviors). If you are in Baltimore City, review the Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance to locate suitable indicators.
Help us understand exactly what your goals are and how you know when you meet those goals. It is easier for our foundation to make an investment when we know what our investment will accomplish.
6. Show how the project relates to your organization’s future
Have a strategic plan that communicates your long-term growth; where you want to go and how you plan to get there. Link your proposal to your strategic plan.
7. Describe how you will fund the project once our grant money runs out
You will have a better chance of success if you have a long-term fund-raising strategy for the project/program. Such a plan, however, doesn’t mean you can’t come back for funding future projects.
8. Think beyond grant money
Are there other ways we can help you? Examples might be technical assistance, cashflow loans, meeting space, or a smaller discretionary grant.
9. Make sure the application is legible and on time
Your fifth-grade teacher was right: Neatness counts! Rushed applications give themselves away.
10. Provide clear contact information
- Make sure an individual, organization, and complete address or valid e-mail address are indicated on the letterhead or within the letter itself.
- If the letterhead indicates multiple organizations, indicate in the letter or signature block which organization is to receive the response.
- If several individuals are signing the submitted request, identify one person for future contact.
Four More Tips
1. Avoid sending piles of fliers, videos, books, and similar materials
Instead, make a list of what is available, a summary if not self-explanatory, and how to obtain these items easily.
2. Don’t send copies of the same request to multiple staff members or trustees
All proposals should be addressed to the Executive Director. Multiple submissions merely increase handling and phone call costs for both grant seekers and grantmakers.
3. Send information electronically whenever possible
Once your letter of inquiry is accepted, The Knott Foundation will e-mail you all the necessary forms and offers an optional draft review.
We typically receive hundreds of requests per year. In the unfortunate event your request cannot be located, was not received, or not accepted, please call to discuss the best way to resubmit.
4. Start early
It may take awhile to identify and locate a funding partner for your project. While it can be disheartening to receive one decline letter after another, many worthwhile projects are successful at locating dollars eventually.
Don’t expect to send a letter for support and expect the check to arrive the next month. (Unless it’s a true emergency, in which case a discretionary grant may work well with turnaround of less than a week). Expect at least a 6 to 9-month lead-time from the time you recognize the need for funding to the time you actually receive it.
Following these suggestions won’t guarantee that you will receive grant or loan you seek, but they will make the process smoother and your application more competitive.