How to Write Grant Proposal
How to Write Grant Proposal
A proposal helps you to pitch an idea or state your requirement for a project. Basically, there are different reasons why one may want to write a grant proposal. Grant proposals are usually written for the purpose of persuading a reader, or rather say a receiver, towards the sole aim of convincing the reader of the suitability of a certain course of action. A proposal is a written document that can either be written in formal or informal way. One thing that you should know is that, your proposal must contain all the needed information in a very concise and persuasive which will help you get what you want. Proposals can be written for the purpose of getting a government grant, business approval, scholarships and lots of other purposes.
A Grant is a bounty bestowed by a government or an organization for specified purposes to an eligible recipient. A grant proposal is mostly written by entrepreneurs for the purpose of helping their businesses. It is a request for an investment only to a non-profit organization or individual. A grant proposal must be very direct, concise and clear document written to a particular organization or funding agency with just one purpose of persuading the reviewers to provide you with support because you have an important plan to achieve with the grant. You should always note that in writing a grant, your request reason must be clearly stated and it must be very achievable because all of these things will be considered when reviewing the plan.
Before you start with the drafting of your proposal you should be able to ask yourself some questions:
- Purpose of the grant: the major purpose of the grant proposal must be known to you as this will help you to be able to navigate your proposal so well.
- Who is your audience? One thing you should know is the identity of the recipient of your proposal. You should think about the agency behind the grant and you should know their mission and goals because this will be included in your proposal content.
- Do Your Research: You should do a research about the funding organization as it will help you to know more about the organization and also help you to know about the processes your proposal will go through before being approved.
- How do you establish your credibility: Make sure that you are able to present yourself as being capable of receiving the grant? You can also establish your credibility by stating the thoroughness of your plan and your ability to succeed in your project, and in that way, you will be seen credible for the grant.
- The outcome of your plan: Explaining the result you hope to achieve after using the grant for the intended purpose is also very important when writing your proposal. This will clearly portray you as someone with vision, and knows what he is doing.
- Estimate the cost of your goal: This will be in a form of informing your rewardee about the amount needed for the grant and it will also tell how accountable you are.
- Develop the timeline of your project: Having being able to answer all of these questions, then I can fully say that you are ready to write a very purposeful grant proposal.
HOW TO A GRANT PROPOSAL
Introduction: You should talk about yourself, your business, your staff, your business growth and achievements over time, and the goals of your company. You can also include the reasons why you think your business should be selected and if you are writing for personal purpose then you should state reasons why you should be selected. For start-ups, you should include your business certification to show the originality of your business.
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How to Write Grant Proposal
- Purpose Of Grant Proposal: Your proposal summary should contain at least two to three paragraphs comprising of the important or key objective of the project. The purpose of the grant must be very detailed with enough information about you or the business including the purpose of the proposal.
- Need Statement: With this statement, you should be able to propose well to the funder stating the reason why you need the grant and that your organization is the best for the grant. Stating the reason you need the grant cannot be overemphasized well enough because this the premise at which your proposal will be accessed and this means that you need to give the funder reasons you really need the grant and remember to be professional while stating your reasons. Make sure you also explain in full details the need of the grant and do not for once assume that the funder knows those reasons.
- State Your Objectives And Goals: This should explain what your organization tends to accomplish with the grant. Spell out your plans on how to achieve the objectives and goals of the project. You can do this by giving a graphical representation of the plans and objectives. This will make them more realistic. Also, be detailed by including the personnel that will be involved in helping you achieve the said goal.
- Identify Your Obstacles: Identifying the possible obstacles to the proposed project, either as an organization or as an individual, will tell your prospective funder that you have done your due diligence, and that you understand the risks that are involved. This will give your funder an insight into the problems you are faced with and will make your proposal gain the attention of the funder even more quickly. You should note that when stating your obstacles, you have to be plain and sincere enough and of course you should also state the provided solution to your obstacles too as this will help the decision making of your funder.
- Conclusion: Let your conclusion be as brief as possible because there’s really nothing o be said here but you can just include an appreciation message to show that you believe the credibility of the proposal.
- Recommendations: Including recommendations from high profile personnel can also be of help because this will help boost your credibility with the funder. This will also help to show that you have people that are in support of your business and they are fully aware of the fact that you are requesting for a grant.
Including story telling in your proposal can also be of a good advantage, you can tell a story of how you have volunteered in a non-profit organization stating the things you did while with them. Giving a powerful story about your organization’s impact will help you build a connection with your funders. You can create stories by focusing on those benefitting from your organizations as well as concentration on those involved with the support of your organization. You can generate nice storytelling content by interviewing people that have benefited from our organization.
Establishing a connection with your potential funder in the writing of your proposal can also be helpful, you can also get to know them by talking with them on phone or by other means.
Applying for grants requires hard work and persistence but once you are able to make use of the tips given in this article, you can be rest assured that you will write a very good and acceptable grant proposal.
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