Category: Finance

A Posting by Gail Meltzer, CFRE

From time to time, we are asked about the advisability of creating a separate private foundation to raise funds for an existing nonprofit. I’d like to offer an example of when such a foundation was a good idea and has provided great benefit.

(Please note – I am not an attorney and this information should not be considered legal advice in any way.)

Years ago, I was the chief development officer at a Jewishly-sponsored nonprofit senior care provider. In its 40th year of operation, the organization’s leadership changed the corporate structure, establishing a nonprofit holding company as the “Corporate Member.” At the same time, four other 501(c)(3) independent entities were created, with their own governing boards and budgets, that reported to the holding company: the nursing home; the independent living community; a licensed geriatric training school; and, the Foundation, the purpose of which, according to the by-laws, was to “provide resources to enhance the quality of life for the aged … primarily through financial support of the nursing home’s system of services.”

While it always served people of all faiths, when the nursing home provider was established in 1946, the by-laws required that only those of the Jewish faith be allowed to serve on its board. Once the above-referenced 501(c)(3) organizations were established and by-laws created, that restriction on religious affiliation no longer applied.

As a result, individuals from the entire community joined the boards, bringing their unique perspectives and wisdom. That diverse group of board members have become champions for the care of and services to older people, and they’ve become long-term ambassadors for the organization. This, of course, is especially helpful for the Foundation and for fundraising.

Those individuals who join the Foundation board know that their primary purpose is relationship building and fundraising, and they bring their contacts and their own philanthropy to the table.

Through their involvement with events such as a black-tie gala and golf tournament, both of which have been ongoing for 20 successful years, they have helped brand the Foundation with a special panache, with a reinvigorated identity and a broader appeal.

Another benefit of having philanthropic funds raised, managed and allocated through the Foundation, which functions as a separate and distinct entity with its own board, minutes, by-laws, articles of incorporation, etc., is that these funds are generally considered to be protected from litigation activity that might occur with the other entities.

If you are considering the creation of such a supporting organization or foundation, let me offer some suggestions.

1. Examine the financial and “emotional” health of the parent organization, the
    history of trust and collaboration between volunteer leadership and executive
    staff, and their mutual commitment to the mission, vision and values of the
    organization. Establishing a Foundation is not the way to heal or overcome any
    troubling issues in this regard. Deal with those issues first if needed, and allow
    the organization to strengthen.

2. Clearly establish the purpose of the Foundation — where its funds are primarily
    to be allocated, job descriptions for board members, how the board members
    are selected and elected (in the above example, the board members are
    elected by the corporate member and can be removed by same, and there is
    little overlap of membership among the five boards).

3. Ensure that the benefits outweigh the costs, and that the parent organization
    will commit to continued involvement in friend- and fund-raising.

4. Engage legal counsel right from the beginning to assure all legal issues are
    addressed, especially with regard to the purpose of the fundraising (i.e. to
    support the work of the parent organization) and how Foundation board
    members are elected and/or removed.

Putting a separate entity such as a foundation in place with the responsibility to raise funds for a parent organization can be a wise idea. However, you must commit to doing your due diligence to determine why and how, in order to protect the precious philanthropic assets and reputation of the organization.
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Gail Meltzer is a founding principal of the Miami-based full-service consulting firm CoreStrategies for Nonprofits, Inc. and can be reached through the website Corestrategies4nonprofits or by email at Gail Meltzer
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Click this link to find descriptions of all the titles in
    The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
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This posting by: Jayme Sokolow

Being a Success
According to Dr. Heidi Grant Stevenson, a blogger for Psychology Today and the author of an intriguing new book, Succeed: How We Can Reach Our Goals (2011), even very bright people are often clueless when it comes to understanding why they succeed or fail. Recent research on achievement shows that successful people reach their goals not because of any inborn traits or extraordinary IQs but because of what they do.

Dr. Stevenson identifies nine things that successful people do differently from their less successful peers. How many of these traits do you have as a grant proposal professional?

1. Get Specific
When you set a goal, you are specific as possible. Being concrete gives you a clear definition of success.

2. Seize the Moment and Act on your Goals
Because we are all very busy, we often routinely miss opportunities to act on our goals. To seize the moment, decide when and where you will take action to achieve a goal.

3. Know Exactly How Far You Have Left to Go
To achieve your goals, you must candidly and regularly monitor your progress and determine what remains to achieve your goal. “It will take 15 more hours to finish producing our grant application” enables you to adjust your behavior and strategies so that you are likely to succeed.

4. Be a Realistic Optimist
Positive thinking is very important in achieving goals, but you must be realistic about how likely you are to achieve them. Simply telling your proposal team that the “first draft must be finished today” is meaningless unless there is a high probability that this is possible.

5. Focus on Getting Better rather than being Good
Our talents and skills are very malleable. To improve, you should focus on getting better at doing something specific rather than just being good. This is a more realistic and motivating goal than trying to achieve some abstract standard of excellence.

6. Show Grit and Determination
Grit and determination are common characteristics of successful people, especially in the face of difficulties. By planning, by developing good strategies to accomplish difficult tasks, and by sheer persistence you often can succeed.

7. Build your Willpower
Successful people have strong willpower. They are determined to succeed. Identifying difficult challenges and satisfactorily addressing them will increase your sense of willpower and enable you to be more successful.

8. Have a Sense of Limitations
Today, it is fashionable to say that we all have unlimited potential. This is simply not true. We all have limitations, and we must understand and respect them.

9. Focus on What You Will Do, Not on What You Will Not Do
One of the best ways to succeed is to ask a simple question: “What can I do differently?” Focus on behavioral changes you realistically can make rather than on simply avoiding unproductive behaviors.

I think that Dr. Stevenson has identified nine important things successful grant proposal professionals do differently. As he concludes, “You usually do not have to become a different person to become more successful.”

All of us, however, need to do our grant proposal development differently – and better.
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Dr. Jayme Sokolow, founder and president of The Development Source, Inc.,
helps nonprofit organizations develop successful proposals to government agencies. Contact Jayme Sokolow.
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Look for Jayme’s ebook on Finding & Getting Federal Government Grants. It’s part of The Fundraising Series of ebooks
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This posting by: Hank Lewis

An issue was raised on a listserve:
“I have become more and more concerned about the exploitation of clients and “their stories” as fundraising tools.” “How do you counsel clients about the ethics/morality of using client stories as appeals?”
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Whenever a question is posed about ethics/morality that includes the words “using” and “exploitation,” it’s a pretty good bet that the writer has already made a judgment.

“Exploitation” was/is a favorite word used to describe/condemn how employers who use young (physically attractive) women to generate business. The word was never used by the employers (who increased the bottom line), the employees (who were being paid for their labors), and the patrons of the businesses (for their own reasons).

The word was only used by outsiders who did not and/or could not agree with the perspective of either of the three participants.

I am commenting, remember, on the use of a word, not on the writer’s discomfort.

Before using the word “exploit,” one should ask oneself what, if any, harm is being done. If no harm is being done… that’s your answer. And, if only an “outsider” is seeing the “harm,” is there really any harm being done?

In the case of using the story (with or without photos or live appearances) of a consenting adult (client-of-a-nonprofit), it would be incorrect to attach the emotional content of “exploitation” to the transaction — because it is, indeed, a transaction.

The client would agree to having his/her story told in exchange for something that makes him/her feel good — be that gratitude, a desire to give back, the understanding that s/he will benefit when the nonprofit benefits … or any other reason s/he might have.

That does raise a few questions: Have (for example) those starving, barefoot children in the tv solicitations given their consent? Are they capable of giving “informed consent”? Are they being harmed by having their stories told and their faces “displayed”? Do they benefit by having their stories told and their faces “displayed”? Are they being exploited?

What do you think ??
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Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating or expanding your fundraising program? With over 30 years of counseling in major gifts, capital campaigns, bequest programs and the planning studies to precede these three, I’ll be pleased to answer your questions. Contact me at [email protected]
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Click this link to find descriptions of all the titles in The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
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If you’re reading this on-line and you would like to comment/expand on the above, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page, click on the feedback link at the top of the page, or send an email to the author of this posting. If you’ve received this posting as an email, click on the email link (above) to communicate with the author.

This posting is by Lynn deLearie.

I initially want to refer all readers to an excellent post about Needs Statements written previously on this blog by Andrew Grant (see the link at the bottom of this post).

In that piece, “Impress Funders With Your Grant Proposal (Writing a “WOW” Needs Statement),” Andrew said that, “the Need Statement must be well structured and supported by research to make the case.” He went on to say, “depending on the subject, citations and data can be used as long as they don’t disrupt the narrative flow.”

I agree wholeheartedly, and almost always cite relevant research in the Needs Statements that I write.

I have done most of my recent grant writing for a private middle school that serves impoverished, African American students and families living in North St. Louis. The other accessible educational option for these students is the unaccredited St. Louis public school district, which had an average 2012 graduation rate of 64%. The need to provide a low-cost, quality education to the students that this middle school serves is obvious and compelling…

So, why did I cite research in these Needs Statements? Because, as Andrew states, it helps to build the case for support, and “captures and holds the attention of the funder reading your proposal.”

In addition, citing credible research adds to the credibility of your organization. It shows that you clearly understand the needs of your target population within the broader context of your community.

Citing credible research can also demonstrate that your program staff has done its homework, and use evidence based methods when implementing the programs that meet the needs of your clients.

Now that you know why to cite credible research in your Needs Statements, where do you find the research to cite?

Start with your program staff. They are the experts on what your organization does and will have the most relevant and up-to-date research related to their programs. You can ask them for data and statistics to use to make a strong case for supporting what they do.

Also look at what your competition is saying… on their websites, in their newsletters, in their annual reports. It’s a good bet that they have also applied to the same foundations you are writing to, and you need to be aware of the research they are citing, as well as the results their programs are delivering.

A Google-Search will also turn up other sources of citable research; but not every source that such a search turns up will be credible – double check. The last thing you want to do in your Needs Statement is to cite an unverifiable source.

Impress Funders With Your Grant Proposal
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Lynn deLearie Consulting, LLC, helps nonprofit organizations develop, enhance and expand grants programs, and helps them secure funding from foundations and corporations. Contact Lynn deLearie.
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Look for Lynn’s ebook on Grants & Grantsmanship. It’s part of The Fundraising Series of ebooks
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If you’re reading this on-line and you would like to comment/expand on the above, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page, click on the feedback link at the top of the page, or send an email to the author of this posting. If you’ve received this posting as an email, click on the email link (above) to communicate with the author.

This posting by: Tony Poderis

That riveting question was actually written in the marginal notes of a proposal asking for funding for an orchestra; and, it was written by a trustee of a grant-making foundation during a meeting to review the proposal in question.

Another trustee of the foundation, the one who presented the proposal on behalf of the orchestra, later showed that note to me and asked what I could do help counter his colleague’s questioning remark.

Arts and cultural institutions are often forced into such defensive postures. They’re accused of only benefiting the elite. The needs of the hungry, the homeless, the physically, mentally/emotionally challenged are cited as so great that something as “frivolous” as the arts should not be drawing from the pool of available support for non-profit organizations.

Those of us who work with … and passionately support the arts, are asked how we can justify “diverting” funds to the arts when such needs exist.

The arts community rightfully provides data showing its economic impact and benefit to the community—statistics tabulating the number of people employed by arts and cultural organizations, tourists attracted to the area, money spent on purchases from vendors, etc. Those facts deliver a true story, but they are not always compelling. Then there is the “quality-of-life” argument, but it, too, does not always convince. We’re told it is too subjective, too broad, too general.

I believe the answer is to stop defending the arts. We must step out of the defensive postures our critics would-and-do force us into. We need to start asserting the value of the arts with some questions of our own.

Would the community be a place that draws the successful people able to support other needs, if there were not an orchestra, art museum, ballet, opera, theater, etc.? Without the quality-of-life amenities that arts and cultural organizations provide, would private companies, corporations, and firms be able to retain and attract key employees—the very people who keep business thriving and civic endeavors moving forward?

• Without the draw of arts and culture organizations, how many individuals of affluence would there be in the community?

• Would as many new enterprises choose to make the community their home?

• Without the retention of “old money” and the creation of new wealth, where would the philanthropy to support all those “more worthy” institutions come from?

• What would happen to the hospitals, schools, and social-service agencies? To me, the gist of the argument to make when the value of the arts is questioned is simple. Without the arts, without cultural institutions, the people who make up the strong backbone of support for civic and social needs would be far fewer in number.

It would be as if the community was trying to stand upright with vertebrae missing from that backbone of support. That leads to one last question.

How many vertebrae would have to go missing before that backbone collapsed under the weight of the load it was being asked to carry?
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If you have a question or comment for Tony, he can be reached at [email protected]. There is also a lot of good fundraising information on his website: Raise-Funds.com
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Have you seen The Fundraising Series of ebooks ??
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If you’re reading this on-line and you would like to comment/expand on the above, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page, click on the feedback link at the top of the page, or send an email to the author of this posting. If you’ve received this posting as an email, click on the email link (above) to communicate with the author.

For local charities that want to apply to the CFC as an independent local charity (and not as a member of a federation), for most of the more than 200 regional CFCs, the applications are accepted between late February and the end of March.

Each local CFC sets its own specific application deadline, and the instructions on where to e-mail, mail or deliver the local applications are different for each CFC, but all 200 regional CFCs can be located from the central OPM.gov/CFC website. For example, this is some of the information from the Texas Gulf Coast area, which includes Houston.
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Texas Gulf Coast CFC (CFC 0845)
Austin, Bolivar Peninsula, Brazoria, Brazos, Burleson, Colorado, Fort Bend,
Galveston Island, Grimes, Harris, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Madison,
Mainland Galveston, Matagorda, Montgomery, Polk, Robertson,
San Jacinto, Waller, Walker, Washington, and Wharton Counties in Texas
2011 Results: $2,896,212.00

The 2013 CFC Texas Gulf Coast application period will be from:
March 1, 2013 – March 30, 2013

Applications, which include instructions, will be available on the Application tab on the “Gulf Coast” website on March 1, 2013. 2012 applicants will receive the applications electronically via the email address on file in the Texas Gulf Coast CFC database. Agencies not in the Texas Gulf Coast CFC that provided email addresses will also receive the applications.

New potential applicants that want to receive electronic copies of the applications must send an email to: [email protected]

The memorandum on Requirements provides direction for a pro forma IRS Form 990.

2012 CFC participants, should review the CFC memorandum at 2013 Eligibility. It provides guidance on several parts of the requirements for the CFC to be implemented in the 2013 application period.
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Other resources that are on the OPM.gov/CFC website include the CFC logo in multiple formats and in both color and black and white files. As mentioned in earlier posts, the CFC logo is one of the million dollar benefits provided by the CFC that CFC charities should take advantage of. The CFC logo has a high recognition factor among potential Federal donors, and it is free for use by CFC charities. The logos can be found at the www.opm.gov/cfc/ under the Reference Materials tab.

Review Your 25 Word Description
Each CFC charity gets a 25-word description in the CFC catalog, this is one of the most important marketing tools a charity has, and it is often ignored. It needs to be accurate, but it is a marketing message, so review the one for your charity and make sure it makes sense. If your charity has been in the CFC for several years, make sure that if it needs updating, that you update it.
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Upcoming in the March 28th post:
Massive changes are being proposed to how the CFC operates, and my next post will have an introduction to these changed regulations, along with guidance on how to comment on proposed Federal regulations to make sure they address the concerns of CFC non-profits.
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During his 25-year career in the Federal sector, Bill Huddleston, The CFC Coach, served in many CFC roles. If you want to participate in the Combined Federal Campaign, maximize your nonprofit’s CFC revenues, or just ask a few questions, contact … Bill Huddleston
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Click this link to find descriptions of all the titles in The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
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If you’re reading this on-line and you would like to comment/expand on the above, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page, click on the feedback link at the top of the page, or send an email to the author of this posting. If you’ve received this posting as an email, click on the email link (above) to communicate with the author.

I’m not enough of a philosopher or debater to extend the discussion of ethics much beyond the development arena, so I’ll address the concept in that context; and, even though it sounds as if I’m making statements of fact, I acknowledge that these are my opinions and that not everyone would agree with me.

The definition/application of ethics has little to do with “accepted norms.” Many actions/activities become generally “accepted” by society, but acceptance or common practice doesn’t equal ethical practice.

Honesty is, of course, an element of ethical behavior, but they are not equivalent concepts. I can imagine circumstances where being dishonest would not be unethical — i.e., complimenting my wife on her appearance in a new dress that I hate.

Ethics for fundraising counsel, as I learned the concept, has to do with ensuring that our behavior keeps in mind the best interests of the NPO and of the donor, with the understanding that what we do under contract — and what we advise the client to do is not to benefit ourselves, but the donor, the client and those the client serves.

An ethical system (as in the code that AFP and others have promulgated) defines itself not as “regulating/controlling” certain behaviors, but in precluding behaviors that could have undesired (unethical) outcomes.

Under a code of ethics, we are precluded from thinking, in hindsight, that since everything came out o.k. and no one was hurt, that the action/activity must have been ethical.

People (my clients, at least) should be able to say that, “Hank Lewis subscribes to the XYZ Code of Ethics, therefore we can rest assured that there are certain things he’d never do, certain circumstances that can never occur, that certain questions will never be raised, and that we can be comfortable….

Of course, it would help if my (prospective) clients were aware of the existence of such a code, and that I subscribed to it. Sad thing is that most people — most NPOs — haven’t a clue.

So, bottom line, I, like you, do what I do and refrain from doing other things that wouldn’t feel right. That AFP wrote it down on paper only helps me put it into words. And, honestly, some of what’s in the code I had not considered before being exposed to it. My reaction, on hearing those concepts and (in some cases) having them explained to me, was to say, “Of course, that makes great sense.”

I don’t find an ethical code to be in the category of telling-me-what-to-do-or-how-to-do-it. It just reminds me of the kind of impact on others that (hopefully) I would want to avoid anyway.

I guess an ethical code has to do with consideration for how our actions will — or could — impact others.

For a number of years I taught a (2 hour) class in Fundraising Ethics as part of a certificate program in fundraising management. The hardest task for me was in not just coming out and telling the participants what actions/activities are acceptable or unacceptable. My role, as I saw it, was to pose “hypotheticals” to get them to discuss how they’d react.

But, as it turned out, no matter what the question, the class always split in their opinions/reactions/thoughts – and that split was usually along income/cultural lines.
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Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating or expanding your fundraising program? With over 30 years of counseling in major gifts, capital campaigns, bequest programs and the planning studies to precede these three, I’ll be pleased to answer your questions. Contact me at [email protected]
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Click this link to find descriptions of all the titles in The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
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If you’re reading this on-line and you would like to comment/expand on the above, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page, click on the feedback link at the top of the page, or send an email to the author of this posting. If you’ve received this posting as an email, click on the email link (above) to communicate with the author.

Last month I defined Planned Giving.

Why have a Program? I’ve got a few reasons.

Build lifetime relationships. When a donor tells you they’ve put you in their estate or retirement plan, you’ve got the rest of their life to thank them. And you should take every opportunity. Draw them close to your work by inviting them to events; offering insider emails and print pieces; picking up the phone to say, “I was thinking of you;” dropping them a handwritten note or card; and generally showing your charity’s gratitude for their gift. Sincerity need not cost a lot.

Build endowment. Most gifts by will are unrestricted and I routinely encourage clients to put as much unrestricted gift revenue as possible into endowment. I know it’s hard, but do it. Restricted gifts that are non-expendable belong in your endowment without question—and in many states, by law. If you don’t have a Planned Giving program, don’t you wish your office had started it years ago? What size would your endowment be today and how much revenue would it produce each year? This is the time to start—or expand—your endowment.

Grow other giving. It’s not unusual for those who invest in your charity for the rest of their lives, to increase their cash giving as they get more familiar with your good work. See the value of those lifetime relationships I mentioned?

Welcome people of low or modest means. Most of the planned gifts have no lifetime cost. Think of the bequest in a will or naming your charity as beneficiary of an individual retirement account. They come from your donor’s estate and cost nothing while she’s living. For lots of people, Planned Giving offers the only way they can make their ultimate gift to you. They’d like to do it now but can’t afford to. Welcome those people and give them an opportunity.

Help through the next recession. People die irrespective of the unemployment rate, the state of the economy and earnings on the NASDAQ and Dow Jones averages. When money is tight in your office because other sources of revenue like lifetime individual giving, government contracts and foundations have constricted, cash still flows from your donors’ wills, life insurance, pensions, IRAs, charitable trusts and other planned gifts.

Look to these if you need to convince a reluctant boss or board why they should let you start a Planned Giving program. Tell them, “There’s gold in them there wills!”

Next month’s third Thursday: “What You Need To Get Planned Giving Started.”
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Tony Martignetti, Esq. is the host of Tony Martignetti Nonprofit Radio. He’s a Planned Giving consultant, speaker, author, blogger and stand-up comic. You’ll find him at TonyMartignetti.com.
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Click this link to find descriptions of all the titles in The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
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If you’re reading this on-line and you would like to comment/expand on the above, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page, click on the feedback link at the top of the page, or send an email to the author of this posting. If you’ve received this posting as an email, click on the email link (above) to communicate with the author.

A Reader wrote: “Even after 18 years in development, and earning the CFRE credential, I still have a hard time making the mental adjustment from thinking about our clients’ and organization’s needs to thinking about the needs of the donor. And it’s a totally foreign concept to my Executive Director.

“I also have difficulty understanding how one can ask for a major gift that is not for construction, or renovation, or major equipment, or some other kind of one-time expense.

“We have only asked for unrestricted operating support from our donors, and for program-specific support we write grant applications.

“Our donors are wary of making a major gift because they fear they will then be expected to give at that level from then on. How do you deal with that, when, in fact, we do hope that the long-term effect will be an increased level of on-going support.”
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One thing that the CFRE program/process doesn’t teach/emphasize is that the development operation at a nonprofit is different/separate from the program side.

The focus of development/fundraising is and must be to create the relationships that will produce the funding to support the programs. (And, by the way, I held the CFRE credential for twenty years … and taught preparation courses for the CFRE exam.)

As a development officer, your focus must be on the needs of the donor, and how satisfying those needs will result in the funding needed to satisfy the needs of your clients. If you can’t show a donor how, by making a gift to your organization, s/he will be satisfying his/her own needs, then you can’t come anywhere near reaching your fundraising potential.

Everyone at a nonprofit should be an “expert” in the areas in which they function: program officers, those who provide service to clients, must have the experience and insight to be able to deal with the needs of client’s … and how to satisfy those needs. That is not the role of the development officer.

A development officer does not provide direct service to a nonprofit’s clients. A development officer provides “service” (cultivation/stewardship) to an NPO’s (potential) donors.

The attitudes/perspectives you describe for yourself and your executive director don’t deal with all of the realities. From what you said, above, there seems to be a lack of understanding of the role/purpose/focus of development (see: “Development” and “Fundraising” Are Not Synonymous

Also, in the CFRE process, there is no discussion to the effect that all major gifts should be restricted to capital/emergency purposes. Major gifts are, very often, part of an organization’s unrestricted operating support. (See: “What Is A Major Gift?”)

That your organization relies solely on grants for program support is, at the least, shortsighted. With a proper development program, you could likely identify other potential clients who would benefit from your service … and provide them with that service.

And, finally, that you believe that your donors are wary of making major gifts suggests that they are not motivated to do so – that their needs are not being identified/considered/addressed.

To readers of this blog, let me add one additional thought. The CFRE credentialing process is available to those with a minimum of five years in the field. The credential is designed to be “evidence” that the holder has demonstrated (by passing a written exam and meeting other criteria) an understanding of the basic principles of development. “CFRE” does not equate to “expert.”
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Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating or expanding your fundraising program? With over 30 years of counseling in major gifts, capital campaigns, bequest programs and the planning studies to precede these three, I’ll be pleased to answer your questions. Contact me at [email protected]
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Click this link to find descriptions of all the titles in The Fundraising Series of ebooks.
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If you’re reading this on-line and you would like to comment/expand on the above, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this page, click on the feedback link at the top of the page, or send an email to the author of this posting. If you’ve received this posting as an email, click on the email link (above) to communicate with the author.

Grant proposals should go through a five-step writing process:
•  Plan: Think through your proposal section.
•  Organize: Use the grant guidelines as your outlining format.
•  Write: Write in a free-flowing manner.
•  Examine: Step back from your writing; review it later; then, let others review it.
•  Revise: Emphasize clarity, conciseness, correctness, and persuasiveness.

I already have discussed planning, organizing, and writing. In this post, I will outline the process of examining and revising your grant prose. The more kinds of effective reviews you receive, the better will be your final version.

Examine: The Big Picture

All reviews should answer these questions:
•  Can the focus on the funder be improved?
•  Is the funder focus communicated sincerely”
•  How can strategies and theme statements be strengthened with stories, data, and other kinds of evidence?

Revision Stage 1: Be clear

•  Write effective theme statements.
•  Keep introductions brief.
•  Keep the focus on the funder.
•  Organize according to the points emphasized in the grant guidelines.
•  Highlight key information.

Revision Stage 2: Be concise

•  Revise paragraphs.
•  Revise sentences.
•  Revise words.

Revision Stage 3: Be correct and compliant with the grant guidelines.

•  Check your sections against the grant guidelines’ evaluation criteria.
•  Check grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
•  Use the shortest and most correct word.
•  Simplify, simplify, simplify.

If you follow these steps in revising your proposal writing, you should be able to produce a very good revised version of your proposal sections.
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Dr. Jayme Sokolow, founder and president of The Development Source, Inc.,
helps nonprofit organizations develop successful proposals to government agencies.
Contact Jayme Sokolow.
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Look for Jayme’s ebook on Finding & Getting Federal Government Grants. It’s part of The Fundraising Series of ebooks
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