There’s no question that the grant space has changed considerably over the past decade. What we write and how we write have evolved. Successful grant writers evolve with the changes while others are left in the dust.
One of the biggest changes I have seen in recent years is the trend towards collaborative grants. What’s better than one organization with a vision? Two or more organizations with the same vision.
A few years ago, I partnered with a large children’s hospital to co-write a grant on behalf of my client. My client provided supportive services for children served by the hospital. The hospital grant writer and I sat down and developed a grant proposal for a collaborative program that was already in progress.
How did this benefit my client?
- As a smallish organization, we would have been limited to a grant ask of $50K if we wrote it ourselves. The collaboration allowed us to ask for $150K.
- Formally collaborating and co-winning a grant with a well-respected children’s hospital lent more credibility to our organization, and I leveraged this grant to win subsequent grants.
- We grew and learned with the help of the larger, more established children’s hospital. We parlayed this opportunity into other opportunities.
- Having the children’s hospital next to our name gave us a better chance of winning.
How did this benefit the hospital?
- The hospital doesn’t provide the supportive services we provide and wouldn’t have been eligible for the grant without the collaboration.
- Big donors love community collaborations, and the press from this collaboration encouraged an increase in hospital donations.
- Because of the grant funds, we expanded the services provided to the patients, improving the patient experience.
Grant Writing Tip of the Day
Keep your grant attachments (990s, board list, budget, IRS letter, etc) organized in an easy-to-access digital folder. Providing these supporting documents should be the simplest part of the grant proposal process.
I was so thrilled that we were awarded the grant.
Thankfully, the collaboration was well-defined and cooperative. We had already established how funds would be divided and how the expansion would be implemented. The co-writer and I completed the grant reports together, and it was a successful endeavor.
If your organization provides direct services for other organizations, consider boosting your grant awards through collaborative grant proposals.
Until next time,
Write Epic Grants