Writing a Winning Grant Proposal
March 28, 2019
Competition is as fierce as it has ever been for private and public grants to not-for-profits. If your funding model depends on receiving adequate grant money, you can’t afford to submit sloppy, unprofessional grant proposals. Here are some tips on writing a winner.
Do your research
Just as you’d research potential employers before applying for a job, you should get to know grant-making organizations before asking for their support. Familiarize yourself with the grant-maker’s primary goals and objectives, the types of projects it has funded in the past, and its grant-making processes and procedures.
Performing research enables you to determine whether your programs are a good fit with the grant-maker’s mission. If they aren’t, you’ll save yourself time and effort in preparing a proposal. If they are, you’ll be better able to tailor your proposal to your audience.
Support your request
Every grant proposal has several essential elements, starting with a single-page executive summary. Your summary should be succinct, using only the number of words necessary to define your organization and its needs. You also should include a short statement of need that provides an overview of the program you’re seeking to fund and explains why you need the money for your program. Other pieces include a detailed project description and budget, an explanation of your organization’s unique ability to run this program, and a conclusion that briefly restates your case.
Support your proposal with facts and figures but don’t forget to include a human touch by telling the story behind the numbers. Augment statistics with a glimpse of the population you serve, including descriptions of typical clients or community testimonials.
Follow the rules
Review the grant-maker’s guidelines as soon as you receive them so that if you have any questions you can contact the organization in advance of the submission deadline. Then, be sure to follow application instructions to the letter. This includes submitting all required documentation on time and error-free. Double-check your proposal for common mistakes such as:
- Excessive length,
- Math errors,
- Overuse of industry jargon, and
- Missing signatures.
Take the time
To produce a winning proposal, you need to give yourself a generous time budget. Researching the grant-maker, collecting current facts and statistics about your organization, composing a compelling story about your work and proofreading your proposal all take more time than you probably think they do. Above all, don’t leave grant proposal writing to the last minute.
non-profit
What nonprofits need to know about the new tax law
January 25, 2018
The number of taxpayers who itemize deductions on their federal tax return — and, thus, are eligible to deduct charitable contributions — is estimated by the Tax Policy Center to drop from 37% in 2017 to 16% in 2018. That’s because the recently passed Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) substantially raises the standard deduction. Many not-for-profit organizations are understandably worried about how this change will affect donations. But this isn’t the only TCJA provision that affects nonprofits.
Donors have fewer incentives
In addition to reducing smaller-scale giving by shrinking the pool of people who itemize, the TCJA might discourage major contributions. The law doubles the estate tax exemption to $10 million (indexed for inflation) through 2025. Some wealthy individuals who make major gifts to shrink their taxable estates won’t need to donate as much to reduce or eliminate their potential estate tax.
UBIT takes a bigger bite
The new law mandates that nonprofits calculate their unrelated business taxable income (UBTI) separately for each unrelated business. As a result, they can’t use a deduction from one unrelated business to offset income from another unrelated business for the same tax year. However, they can generally use one year’s losses on an unrelated business to reduce their taxes for that business in a different year. The TCJA also includes in UBTI expenses used to provide certain transportation-related and other benefits. So, the unrelated business income tax (UBIT) a nonprofit must pay could go up.
High compensation risks new tax
Nonprofits with highly compensated executives may now potentially face a 21% excise tax. The tax applies to the sum of any compensation (including most benefits) in excess of $1 million paid to a covered employee plus certain large payments made to that employee when he or she leaves the organization, known as “parachute” payments. The excise tax applies to the amount of the parachute payment less the average annual compensation.
Bond interest exemption revoked
The TCJA repeals the tax-exempt treatment for interest paid on tax-exempt bonds issued to repay another bond in advance. An advance repayment bond is used to pay principal, interest or redemption price on an earlier bond prior to its redemption date.
Be informed
Note that other rules and limits may apply. We can provide you with a detailed picture of the new tax law and explain how it’s likely to affect your organization.
nonprofit - non-profit - TCJA - donor
Don’t let donor fatigue erode support for your nonprofit
January 12, 2018
After a flurry of year-end fundraising, you and your not-for-profit’s staff are probably ready for a little break. Your supporters may be tired, too. At some point, even the most philanthropic individuals experience donor fatigue and start saying “no” — even to their favorite charities.
Here’s how to remain engaged with donors and yet keep your fundraising efforts from eroding relationships.
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charity - non-profit - fundraising
How nonprofits can successfully execute a capital campaign
December 25, 2017
When your not-for-profit desperately needs a new facility, costly equipment or an endowment, a capital campaign can be the best way to raise funds. But to be successful, a campaign requires strong leadership, extensive planning and dedicated participants.
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5 strategies for struggling nonprofits
December 19, 2017
If your not-for-profit is struggling financially, you’ve probably already taken steps to cut costs, such as wage freezes and layoffs. But to keep your organization afloat, you may need to come up with more creative ways to generate operating cash flow. Here are five:
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