Cheryl A. Boyd
HSM/270
March 3, 2013
Patricia Zindler
Steps to Writing a Grant Proposal
Writing and obtaining grants will require more than just a great idea, and a source to obtain funding. An organization needs to be well managed, and have a clear understanding of its mission and purpose. Funders want to know that the organization they pick to give funds has a clear vision of its mission, and knows how to use available resources efficiently. The grant proposal should be an important part of any fundraiser’s planning and research process. What are the steps to writing a good grant proposal? In order to be successful this should be part of your overall fundraising plan.
Grants are obtained from a variety of sources. There are many different foundations and government entities that provide grants, but most will require the same information to process the grant. It is important to know what sections need to be included in a good grant proposal, and what information must be included in each section.
The cover letter or abstract is usually the last thing you write, but is very important to the grant proposal. This is the first impression that the funder will have of your organization. This needs to be well written and make a good impression with the funder. It is much easier to make a good first impression than to try and fix a bad first impression later in the proposal. This needs to be addressed to a specific person, briefly state what the proposal is asking for, and to summarize the essence of the program. This can be just a few well written lines, but not over one page in length.
The next section of the grant proposal would be the table of contents. This will make it possible for the funders to understand the structure of the proposal and to find the information needed to make a decision on funding. The next section would be the needs statement part of the grant proposal. This section needs to convince the funder that the