Winning Grants Step by Step: The Complete Workbook for Planning, Developing, and Writing Successful Proposals

Strong grant proposal writing made easy

From small startups to established national organizations, nonprofits large and small depend on grant funding to survive and thrive. Winning Grants Step by Step: The Complete Workbook for Planning, Developing, and Writing Successful Proposals has long been the go-to resource for individuals and organizations looking for a clear, easy-to-follow approach to tackling the grant-writing process and winning funds. Now, in this revised Fifth Edition, changes and developments in the not-for-profit sector are integrated into the time-tested grant-writing formula that has proven effective time and again.

New to this edition, you’ll find an expanded discussion of the importance of relationship building, social media, and online resources to successful nonprofit funding. The text has also been revised to include guidance for nonprofit program budgets for both foundation and public funding grants. Never before has Winning Grants Step by Step been so easy to comprehend. Updated worksheets and forms will improve your comprehension and make your grant proposals stronger and more successful than ever.

• Learn the proven step-by-step approach to writing strong grant proposals for foundation grants and public funds
• Complete worksheets and activities to practice your grant-writing skills and break the process down into easy pieces
• Understand how to integrate your ideas and insights with research and facts to demonstrate your organization’s potential

• Learn the best approaches to building relationships and networking both in-person and online to push strong grant proposals into the winner’s circle

This guide is perfect as an introduction for the novice grantseeker or a refresher for the more experienced. Whether your organization needs only a thousand dollars or several million, following this step-by-step process will improve your ability to transform an idea that needs financial support into a proposal that deserves to be funded.

Tori O'Neal-McElrath is the Vice President of External Affairs at Demos, a United States based nonprofit think-and-do tank that combines research, policy development, and advocacy to influence public debate and catalyze change.

Lynn Kanter is a consultant for national nonprofits, writing and editing a broad range of fundraising, communications, and organizational outreach materials.

Lynn English is a strategy and resource development consultant in fundraising, strategic planning, and program development for community-based and national nonprofit organizations and foundations.

List of Figures, Samples, and Worksheets vii

Acknowledgments ix

About the Authors xi

How to Use This Workbook xiii

Introduction: An Overview of the Grantseeking Process 1

Step 1 Developing the Proposal Idea 11

Step 2 Developing Relationships with Funders 19

Step 3 Writing a Compelling Problem Statement 29

Step 4 Defining Clear Goals and Objectives 39

Step 5 Developing the Strategies 51

Step 6 Preparing the Evaluation Component 59

Step 7 Developing a Statement of Sustainability 69

Step 8 Developing the Proposal Budget 75

Step 9 Writing the Organizational Background Component 91

Step 10 Writing the Proposal Summary 99

Step 11 Submitting the Application 105

Step 12 Sustaining Relationships with Funders 111

Resources

A. Sample Proposal 117

B. How to Research Funders 125

C. Resources for Grantseekers 129

Index 133

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