Do you have a business plan that has detailed descriptions of your products and services? A written guide for how you intend to reach your goals is likely the biggest factor in determining if your business is qualified to apply for a grant award. The popular saying, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail, is very true. Not being clear about your vision and anticipated outcome may communicate to a donor that you are not serious about your business idea. There are some organizations already operating and are successful and may not have a written plan. If this is not you, keep reading.
Another reason I recommend having a business plan is that it will prove very useful in the grant writing process, as you will extract the information contained therein and use it to develop your grant proposals. Do not be frightened by the notion of developing a business plan. Your plan could be a chart or a list. The purpose of the plan is to detail the organization’s mission, goals, and the paths toward their fulfillment. To learn more about starting a nonprofit click here.
Your plan will contain information regarding your nonprofit structure and capacity to deliver. It will contain a profile of your target consumers and why your product is needed. Including partnerships shows that you have the ability to yield external in kind, which is always a plus from the grantor point of view. Product design is critically important as it communicates to the reader how you plan to make a difference. Your goals, objectives, and benchmarks will speak to the likelihood of your success. You will also want to address human resources. Will you use volunteers or compensated staff? What are their areas of expertise? Are they experienced enough to fill key roles?
The last two areas if addressed well may likely give you a a leg up over your competitors. They are evaluation and sustainability. How will you knowif you are having the influence you intended? Measuring your work you will know if you are succeeding in your work. If you are not, then do not expect to receive a grant award. Additionally, do not take too lightly the importance of sustainability. Having a sustainable business that is not reliant on grants speaks volumes about your credibility and proficiency to run a business.
On top of the business plan, there are numerous documents you will want to have available as you prepare your grant proposals. A few are: board of director’s list, complete with contact information and professional affiliation, federal tax exempt letter, audited financial statements, and current and previous year operating budgets. You may want to purchase a binder to store these and other management related papers for your organization. To learn more about writing a grant click here.
Do not consider this as an exhaustive list. As a guide, I’ve created a checklist titled, “Capacity Building Checklist”. To review the full list, visit www.GrantSourceConsulting.com/faqs. If you have most of the items, you are in good shape to start applying for grant money; if not, you’ve got some work to do. If you’re just in the start up phase, or you have had your tax exempt status for some time, but just haven’t launched your programs yet, don’t expect start-up grants. You’ll more than likely finance the initial phase yourself. The principal thing to do here is develop a business model that is dependent upon earned revenue, and record it all on paper. To learn more about grant writing training click here.
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