Meeting Foundations’ Needs

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Joanne is the author of the CharityChannel Press In the Trenches book, Confessions of a Successful Grants Writer: A Complete Guide to Discovering and Obtaining Funding.

It was written to help the practitioners, who has responsibility to increase donations through foundation, corporate or government funders, to increase their acceptance rate. The book is a guide for

• Grant writers

• Foundation, corporate and government relationship professionals

• Other development professionals

• Anyone wanting to raise more revenue through proposals

It will help the reader to:

• Understand various funder motivations

• Relate to funders in language they understand

• Discover new prospects

• Build successful relationships

• Write proposal narratives

• Present effective budgets

• Work with organizational and program staff

• Position the reader and the reader's agency for success

• Currently 0.00/5 Stars.

Tags: fundraising grantsmanship
Categories: Fund Development Grantsmanship
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Fundraising is NOT about money. It is about meeting mission. And mission is about meeting needs – meeting the needs of your donor and meeting the needs of your organization. If you meet the needs of your donor, they will respond by meeting the needs of your organization which, in turn, meets the needs of your clients, thus fulfilling your mission.  Today, I am going to talk about meeting the needs of one type of donor: foundations.

As I explain in my book Confessions of a Successful Grants Writer, foundations exist to meet defined needs. They are nonprofit entities with defined missions, just as any nonprofit. They choose agencies to fund based on how well those agencies meet the foundation’s mission. To get foundation funding, then, you must match missions with them. The foundation has resources to meet defined needs, agencies have the operational structures to deliver services that meet those same needs. In other words, foundations meet needs through the organizations they fund. They give through organizations rather than to organizations. So when you are looking for foundation funding, make sure to match missions. Make sure you fit with their giving guidelines.

If you do submit a proposal, make it easy for them to find the information they are looking for. Organize the information in your request is in the form they are most accustomed to. If they have a preferred format, use it. If they provide guidelines that outline what information they are looking for, order your information in the same way they do theirs. If they list the questions they ask when evaluating your proposal, answer them. Use headings and subheadings that reflect their concepts. Take your cues from them rather than asking them to follow yours.

They need to know that if they do fund you, you will do what you say will do. Give them evidence of your credibility. Tell them what your goals are and where you are in the process of meeting them. Give them examples of your successes. Let them know what your clients’ experiences are with you. Let them see your professionalism with correct grammar and no typo’s or spelling errors. Make sure your budget adds up correctly. Make sure that the numbers in your budget are the same as in your narrative. Make sure all your budget items are explained in the narrative and that everything you explain in your narrative is in the budget. Be consistent. Show you are reliable.

Foundations not only want to invest in good organizations, they also want a good return on their investment. Let them know how you leverage your resources. In your narrative request and in your budget, show who your other funders are and their levels of contribution. Show what you will give to the program. On a nonfinancial note, tell them who your community partners are. Tell them how you collaborate to increase impact and meet more need. Let the foundation know far their donation is reaching.

So, when you write your next proposal, remember to meet the funders’ needs first. You are entering into a partnership with them – you will both give and receive something of value. Show them your value. Show them you know how to meet needs.