center for social creativity
Grant Writing: Prospecting Opportunities
start
Overview
Click on the buttons below to understand the layout of this training, what will be covered, and a view of all trainings available.
Layout
Content
Trainings
Content
What is Prospecting
How to get started
Resources to help search
What to look for
Creating your list
What is prospecting?
Why is it important?
Put simply, prospecting is the act of searching for funding opportunities. While the concept seems simple, the practice is generally a bit more complicated. Funders have different schedules, interests, funding capabilities, requirements etc which can make it complicated to find opportunities that are winable and available when you actually need them.
How to get started?
Even with a fine tuned prospecting list, only about 1/3rd of applications submitted are awarded- its a game of numbers
Where and how to look
The competition for grant dollars is massive. It's no longer enough to have a skilled grant writer on your team- you need to have the ability to submit multiple applications and manage multiple possible funding opportunities. Developing your skills in prospecting will afford your team the best chance at getting your project funded. To get started:
- Find out where your funders are and how to get in touch- even in the internet age, the vast majority of private philanthropists still aren't online.
- Be aware of your key words
- Expect about 10% of your search results to be applicable to your needs
- ALWAYS check the website (if it exists) for more information
- Prospecting requires Strategic Thinking- there is almost always room to make something fit- but its not always a good idea to do so. Thinking through the opportunity and your needs strategically will help save you from applying for opportunities that you might win but struggle to execute.
Resources for Finding Opportunities
Where to look
There are many ways to access grant funding. Most organizations are familiar with accessing specific Government Notice of Funding Opportunties but fail to seek out and find alternative options.
Private Philanthropies are often a little harder to prospect because they fund on their own schedule, change their priorities often and may or may not repeat grant programs from time to time. They also may or may not have a website.
Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) are often the easiest to find. They are passed around by organizations with similar programs via word of mouth or found in newsletters and are often presented TO your organization. Often these are regularly renewed programs with recurring government funding. Their funding cycles are sometimes even predictable.
+ info
What to look for
Determine if it is a good fit
+ info
Funding Cycles
+ info
Exclusions/Eligibility
Program Officer contact information
+ info
+ info
Past Grantees
Funder's current prioritiy areas
+ info
Strategic Thinking
Adapting leadership skills
Often referred to as a leadership skill, Strategic Thinking is highly valuable in prospecting for grant opportunities. Funding opportunities are usually written in a way that deters organizations from applying because they can not see how their project will fit. Exercising Strategic Thinking enables you to creatively challenge what is provided and expand the list of opportunities available to you. This 6 minute video focuses on the leadership skill of Strategic Thinking but does a great job of highlighting the major components that can be applied to prospecting, grant writing, and organizational development
Creating your list
Questions to narrow down your prospects
- Think like the funder: What are the motivations and expectations? Does our project meet them?
- Alignment with mission: Does our work advance their mission? Do we have to adjust our project to fit? Does that meet OUR mission?
- Qualifications: Are we a competitive applicant or are others better fit?
- Award amount: Is it enough to cover our project? Do we need other resources? Does this require unnecessary spending?
- Writing: Can we follow the instructions for the application? Do we have the time?
Additional Considerations
thinking outside the box
You may find funders that currently do not have open funding opportunities but are mission aligned and have funded similar projects in the past. These funders should still make it onto your list.
Keeping a running list of possible funders can be useful for future projects. With private philanthropies there might be additional ways that you can partner or obtain funding outside their regularly scheduled award periods. Most private philanthropies will need to give a certain percentage of their annual revenue and may need to make additional gifts outside their grant cycles to meet this expectation.
This is not usually a great option for larger funding needs, but can be a really great resource for smaller, less restricted giving which can be very useful in building an administrative or organizational budget. You can cross check an organization's guidestar profile and 990 to plan out a list of organizations to reach out to for smaller directed donations.
"You miss a 100% of the shots you don't take." - Wayne Gretzky
Additional Resources
More detail
More detail about grant prospecting.
Success rates
Expectations for winning proposals
dos and don'ts
Basics of how to stay on track
Resources
Online resources to aid in prospecting
Thank you for learning with us!
“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” — Mahatma Gandhi
Trainings Available
We are regularly adding to our curriculum. So, if you don't see one that you need, let your CRES know!
Organizational Development
- Strategic planning & project planning
- Organizational lifecycles
- Organizational structure
- Leadership development
Grants
- Prospecting
- Relationship building
- Grant writing
- Grant submission
- Grants management
- Funding strategies
Policy Influence
- The role of associations
- How to impact policy & building social capital
- Nonprofit policy rules and latitudes
- The social network analysis
- Statute versus legislation
How to search?
WEb resources to help find opportunities
There are many web based resources that can help improve the process of searching for opportunities. Some are free, and others charge a fee for this service. If you are looking to add a paid service make sure that you are choosing one that searches the appropriate types of funding for your organization. Some specialize in Federal and/or state opportunities and others are more broad in scope. Some search engines may include:
- Grants.gov
- Grantstation.com
- Foundationsearch.com
- instrumentl.com
- Grantwatch.com
- Guidestar.org
- TA provider websites
- Good old fashioned Googling
Exclusions/Eligibility
Do we fit the build?
Many funders have limitations on who they are able to give funding to and it largely depends on what kind of organization/funder they are. Pay close attention to the exclusions or eligibility section of the specific Notice of Funding Opportunity- if not available, make sure to check the website or any available resources connected to the funding opportunity to ensure your organization meets any outlined limitations. These could be things like your tax structure, your industry, your size, your location, etc.
Funding Cycle
When and how much funding is available?
When looking at a prospective funder you want to make sure that the funds they have will be enough for your project and available when you need them (or that you can comfortably adapt to their timeline). You will also want to look at where funding is available, if there are any geographic preferences/limitations. If an award amount is not provided, you should look for past grantees and see what their average giving amounts look like.
Past Grantees
Insight on what the funder funds
Make sure to scope out the previous winners of the opportunities you are seeking. They clearly have done something that won the attention (and funding) of the funders and you can learn from their success. Some things to think about when looking at previous grantees:
- How much were they funded?
- What was their project?
- What kind of success did they plan for?
- Where are they located?
- Is there a contact or someone you can talk to about their proposal?
How to use this training
Method of learning. The training may be facilitated by your CRES and/or as a self-study tool. Navigation. Click on the links in the beginning of each section if you'd like a targeted understanding of a certain subject. Additional resources. At the end of each section, you'll find links to further learnings, if you want to go deeper. For each topic. Each topic contains definitions, practical applications, the pros and cons, and additional resources.
Overview
Content to be covered
This training will help you identify a mission, vision, and values. It will also give you practical exercises to build them with your team. This section covers:
Program Officer Contact Information
Often overlooked
Some grants will need to be submitted via email directly to the program officer, but even for those that do not have this submission style you absolutely should be aware of who the PO is and how to get ahold of them! A good PO will talk to you about the opportunity and talk you though your project. They will give you an honest opinion of fit, and if they like your idea will often give you insight on how to best communicate it in your proposal!
Current Priorities
What is the hot button right now?
Funders, particularly philanthropies, can be fickle in their interests. They may have a long history of funding projects similar to yours but if they aren't interested in that TODAY then you won't be funded. Check out their previous funding patterns but also be aware of any current or new priority areas. These should be clearly stated on a specific funding opportunity or expressed as a theme on their primary website.
Grant Writing- Prospecting
Melissa
Created on October 3, 2024
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Transcript
center for social creativity
Grant Writing: Prospecting Opportunities
start
Overview
Click on the buttons below to understand the layout of this training, what will be covered, and a view of all trainings available.
Layout
Content
Trainings
Content
What is Prospecting
How to get started
Resources to help search
What to look for
Creating your list
What is prospecting?
Why is it important?
Put simply, prospecting is the act of searching for funding opportunities. While the concept seems simple, the practice is generally a bit more complicated. Funders have different schedules, interests, funding capabilities, requirements etc which can make it complicated to find opportunities that are winable and available when you actually need them.
How to get started?
Even with a fine tuned prospecting list, only about 1/3rd of applications submitted are awarded- its a game of numbers
Where and how to look
The competition for grant dollars is massive. It's no longer enough to have a skilled grant writer on your team- you need to have the ability to submit multiple applications and manage multiple possible funding opportunities. Developing your skills in prospecting will afford your team the best chance at getting your project funded. To get started:
Resources for Finding Opportunities
Where to look
There are many ways to access grant funding. Most organizations are familiar with accessing specific Government Notice of Funding Opportunties but fail to seek out and find alternative options.
Private Philanthropies are often a little harder to prospect because they fund on their own schedule, change their priorities often and may or may not repeat grant programs from time to time. They also may or may not have a website.
Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) are often the easiest to find. They are passed around by organizations with similar programs via word of mouth or found in newsletters and are often presented TO your organization. Often these are regularly renewed programs with recurring government funding. Their funding cycles are sometimes even predictable.
+ info
What to look for
Determine if it is a good fit
+ info
Funding Cycles
+ info
Exclusions/Eligibility
Program Officer contact information
+ info
+ info
Past Grantees
Funder's current prioritiy areas
+ info
Strategic Thinking
Adapting leadership skills
Often referred to as a leadership skill, Strategic Thinking is highly valuable in prospecting for grant opportunities. Funding opportunities are usually written in a way that deters organizations from applying because they can not see how their project will fit. Exercising Strategic Thinking enables you to creatively challenge what is provided and expand the list of opportunities available to you. This 6 minute video focuses on the leadership skill of Strategic Thinking but does a great job of highlighting the major components that can be applied to prospecting, grant writing, and organizational development
Creating your list
Questions to narrow down your prospects
Additional Considerations
thinking outside the box
You may find funders that currently do not have open funding opportunities but are mission aligned and have funded similar projects in the past. These funders should still make it onto your list.
Keeping a running list of possible funders can be useful for future projects. With private philanthropies there might be additional ways that you can partner or obtain funding outside their regularly scheduled award periods. Most private philanthropies will need to give a certain percentage of their annual revenue and may need to make additional gifts outside their grant cycles to meet this expectation.
This is not usually a great option for larger funding needs, but can be a really great resource for smaller, less restricted giving which can be very useful in building an administrative or organizational budget. You can cross check an organization's guidestar profile and 990 to plan out a list of organizations to reach out to for smaller directed donations.
"You miss a 100% of the shots you don't take." - Wayne Gretzky
Additional Resources
More detail
More detail about grant prospecting.
Success rates
Expectations for winning proposals
dos and don'ts
Basics of how to stay on track
Resources
Online resources to aid in prospecting
Thank you for learning with us!
“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” — Mahatma Gandhi
Trainings Available
We are regularly adding to our curriculum. So, if you don't see one that you need, let your CRES know!
Organizational Development
- Strategic planning & project planning
- Organizational lifecycles
- Organizational structure
- Leadership development
GrantsPolicy Influence
How to search?
WEb resources to help find opportunities
There are many web based resources that can help improve the process of searching for opportunities. Some are free, and others charge a fee for this service. If you are looking to add a paid service make sure that you are choosing one that searches the appropriate types of funding for your organization. Some specialize in Federal and/or state opportunities and others are more broad in scope. Some search engines may include:
Exclusions/Eligibility
Do we fit the build?
Many funders have limitations on who they are able to give funding to and it largely depends on what kind of organization/funder they are. Pay close attention to the exclusions or eligibility section of the specific Notice of Funding Opportunity- if not available, make sure to check the website or any available resources connected to the funding opportunity to ensure your organization meets any outlined limitations. These could be things like your tax structure, your industry, your size, your location, etc.
Funding Cycle
When and how much funding is available?
When looking at a prospective funder you want to make sure that the funds they have will be enough for your project and available when you need them (or that you can comfortably adapt to their timeline). You will also want to look at where funding is available, if there are any geographic preferences/limitations. If an award amount is not provided, you should look for past grantees and see what their average giving amounts look like.
Past Grantees
Insight on what the funder funds
Make sure to scope out the previous winners of the opportunities you are seeking. They clearly have done something that won the attention (and funding) of the funders and you can learn from their success. Some things to think about when looking at previous grantees:
How to use this training
Method of learning. The training may be facilitated by your CRES and/or as a self-study tool. Navigation. Click on the links in the beginning of each section if you'd like a targeted understanding of a certain subject. Additional resources. At the end of each section, you'll find links to further learnings, if you want to go deeper. For each topic. Each topic contains definitions, practical applications, the pros and cons, and additional resources.
Overview
Content to be covered
This training will help you identify a mission, vision, and values. It will also give you practical exercises to build them with your team. This section covers:
Program Officer Contact Information
Often overlooked
Some grants will need to be submitted via email directly to the program officer, but even for those that do not have this submission style you absolutely should be aware of who the PO is and how to get ahold of them! A good PO will talk to you about the opportunity and talk you though your project. They will give you an honest opinion of fit, and if they like your idea will often give you insight on how to best communicate it in your proposal!
Current Priorities
What is the hot button right now?
Funders, particularly philanthropies, can be fickle in their interests. They may have a long history of funding projects similar to yours but if they aren't interested in that TODAY then you won't be funded. Check out their previous funding patterns but also be aware of any current or new priority areas. These should be clearly stated on a specific funding opportunity or expressed as a theme on their primary website.