Early in my grant writing years, I mistakenly thought that grant funders understand that the need for the services exists if the non-profit organization exists.
I was wrong.
When a non-profit is created, there is no “need threshold” requirement. Theoretically, someone could open a non-profit animal shelter in a community with only 5 stray cats. Someone could also start a non-profit afterschool program for kids in a retirement community. It wouldn’t be wise, but it is possible.
The point is that grant funders don’t assume a need exists in the community you serve. You have to SHOW them in your grant application.
Once I began including clear data to support the need for my clients’ programs, my grant success rate shot up by 10%.
It makes perfect sense. Before a funder awards your org a bunch of money, they want to make sure you are addressing a community need. No need, no money.
How do I find this compelling, award-winning data?
Grant Writing Tip of the Day
Read and follow the grant application guidelines meticulously to avoid being disqualified for administrative reasons.
There are a few strategies I have used to compile data supporting a non-profit’s mission:
- Search for a community needs assessment. Typically local community foundations will fund these types of reports to address specific community needs.
- Use census data to track demographics.
- Search for peer-reviewed research studies.
- Request data from referring community partners.
One of my clients provides free interscholastic athletic programs for students who attend underfunded schools in a metro region. To demonstrate the need for our programming, I uncovered the amount of funding that more affluent schools in the area receive for sports programs and compared it to the funding received by the schools we serve. It is public record. I displayed the data in multiple visual formats.
Then, I discovered that there was a lawsuit alleging discriminatory practices in the allocation of funding for sports. The lawsuit was settled by the school board in favor of the students. That is compelling!
Next, I developed a list of peer-reviewed research studies supporting youth sports’ numerous physical and mental health benefits.
Finally, I asked a few of our principals to write letters of support explaining that without our services, they would be unable to provide sports to their students because of underfunding.
When a grant application asks me to explain how our services fill a community need, I have the information ready to go.
Until next time,
Write Epic Grants
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