A great deal of work goes into the preparation of a grant proposal. It may last several weeks, often requiring lots of research and professional input.

In reality, with loads of data to peruse and material to put together, grant proposal writing can be overwhelming.

Yet, close to two-thirds of funding requests still get rejected. Most failures are experienced in the early stages of grant proposal writing and several writers find it hard to recover from such debacles.

Fortunately, successful grant proposal writers confirm that failures offer the greatest opportunity to learn.

In addition, with proper planning, and expert help you can improve your chances of success.  For a start, there are many successful grant proposals on the internet to help you identify key areas that you must zero in on to impress potential funders.

A grant proposal is a formal application for funding from an agency or organization. It is also an invitation for a partnership to attain mutually agreed outcomes. Annually, several organizations, offer billions of dollars to entities that commit to addressing problems that are of interest to them. As a result, it is important to tailor your proposal to match the aspirations and goals of the (prospective) funding agency. You must also outline the justification for action using convincing and incontrovertible arguments.

A grant is an offer, contribution, or support by a funding agency (or grantor) to a qualified organization (grantee) to execute a project or program of mutual interest.  To qualify for a grant, you must meet stringent conditions ranging from use, adherence to certain principles, or percentage of contributions by both parties.

.

Preparation for a grant proposal

Since grant proposal writing is a protracted and demanding exercise, careful preparation must be made. The following guidelines can make your experience more bearable:

• Cultivate a particular, significant, realistic outline of the issue you intend to address and reasons for addressing it;
• Reflect on the way you will meet the desired outcomes;
• Identify potential funders of your program or project. pay special attention to funders with whom you share common strategic interests; and
• Evaluate past successful proposals from other agencies similar to yours for critical points of discussion.
• You could contact (by e-mail or phone) a funding agency for further discussion of opportunities for cooperation.

The aforestated guidelines are critical as they foster understanding of reasons why grant proposals get rejected and what you can do to avoid that.

Essential Features of a Good Funding Proposal

A common misconception among grant applicants is to believe that they can receive funding from a single proposal. Despite the optimism that comes with writing the first proposal, the grant application is highly competitive and it is probable that by the time you succeed, you will have written many proposals.

Great organization

To increase your chances of being funded, it is advisable to begin the grant writing process early.

Early preparation will give you enough time to collect and organize critical information for the final write-up. For instance, financiers will be interested in your organization’s mission statement, operations, and how their interests match yours. A poorly organized proposal could omit vital pieces of information that could see you beat others to the tape.

Appropriateness to the Audience

You can never overemphasize the need to persuade your funders to support you. To do this, your proposal should be a clear, and straightforward document capable of convincing the funding agency of that your abilities in two ways:

• That you have a significant and well-thought-out strategy to address an issue for the common good; and
• You have the technical capacity to execute that strategy.

Still on the audience, you should go a step further to consider some critical questions before you begin writing your grant proposal.

For instance, who is your audience? Reflect on particular members of the team that will process your application. What are their beliefs? How should you put your arguments to convince them?

With regards to the funding agency, ask:

• What is their vision? Mission? Values? Goals?
• Does your mission support theirs?
• What is their level of understanding or interest in what you are proposing to do?
• What does the grantor expect from your agency? Remember that these expectations are met when you provide adequately respond to every question or provide every detail required by the funding agency. If you can, peruse every successful proposal that is similar to yours.

You should be guided by answers to these questions should determine the wording of your document, what to include in the introduction, how to phrase your goals.

Remember also to emphasize things that are likely to earn you the trust of your potential funder. Experience has shown that statistical data (to back your claims) and commendations from previous financiers are potent enough to put you over the line. Such recommendations are loud endorsements and could greatly enhance your credibility in their eyes. However, the validations should be backed up by a good piece of writing. Try to project meticulousness, be intentional, and don’t be afraid to highlight past projects you have completed. An outline of joint ventures with similar organizations could further enhance your standing.