Grant searching and grant writing are time-consuming, labor-intensive processes. Have you ever just finished one grant, are partway through two others, and the perfect funding opportunity lands in your lap and all you have to do is apply for it? Does it sound exhausting? Does your team groan in despair? Do you die a little inside? That means it’s time to expand your grant writing capacity.
Whether you are an independent grant writer or a grant-seeking entity, more grants mean more money, and expanding your grant writing capacity is how you get there. Here are three pro tips that we use at Boyd Grants to ease those growing pains:
- Develop a grant assessment template.
The grant assessment is an excellent tool to streamline making decisions about which grants to pursue and to set a timeline for client and partner cooperation and task delegation. The grant assessment clearly shows the purpose and priority areas of the grant, along with project requirements and budget information. A grant assessment also lays out what information and documentation will be needed from the client when it will be needed by, and lays out deadlines for all elements of writing and submitting the grant application. This tool streamlines the grant selection and application process, sets clear expectations for all parties, and establishes a timeline.
- Hire help
If your team is drowning in work, hire more grant writers. This sounds easier in theory than in practice, but there are plenty of professionals out there looking to get into the grant writing field and plenty of seasoned grant writers looking for more work. The nature of grant writing lends itself to the graceful onboarding of new hires since each grant has so many elements. When you hit your capacity, don’t be afraid to hire help. This is how your business grows, or your grant department expands. Either way, it means more money.
- Develop boilerplate content
As you work with specific clients and specific grants for extended periods of time, you will be able to develop some boilerplate content. That way, you won’t have to start from scratch every time you start a new grant application. Of course, boilerplate content will always need to be adapted to fit the changing nature of organizations, the demographics they serve, key personnel, and the grant itself. It will save a lot of time and helps writers get into the flow of work faster.
Obviously, this is not a comprehensive list. If you are missing out on grants because you don’t have the bandwidth to apply for them, we can help! Don’t pass up an opportunity for funding. Visit www.boydgrants.com for a consultation for how to best expand your capacity to get money!
Do or do not. There is no try.
-Master Yoda
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