How to Identify and Secure Grants for Community Projects

Introduction to Grant Funding for Community Projects

Non-profit organizations working in communities across the country rely on grant funding as an essential revenue stream. In fact, as much as 20% of a non-profit's operating budget can be based on grants. Individual donations are essential for operations but often, large block grants are what enable the life-changing work these organizations provide.

Grants are monetary gifts that are not required to be repaid and are most frequently earmarked for specific projects. These gifts are doled out after a lengthy and competitive grant application process. Along with guidelines and stipulations pertaining to use cases for the funds, community grants typically have financial and progress update requirements.

Let's dive in and get a better understanding of why grants are important, how non-profits can identify them, and how they can best be managed.

Why Securing Grants is Crucial for Community Development

So, why are community project grants so important? These gifts fund the work that important community organizations perform to improve the lives of those in need. These non-profit organizations operate with considerable overhead costs including office space, insurance, many full-time employees, marketing and communication needs, outreach capability, and various projects to further their mission. In short, operating a non-profit organization can be expensive.

Additionally, the nature of a non-profit organization places it in a precarious budgeting situation where money is generated through donations and gifts and cannot be made up by simply producing more of a particular product. These organizations exist almost solely through funding through community project grants.

At the end of the day, grants for community projects keep these valuable organizations afloat.

Types of Grants Available for Community Projects

Grants for community projects can be broken into three primary categories.

The first are government grants. These are grants that are most often from federal agencies or state funds and exist to help with any number of initiatives that are aligned with the goals of the government agencies providing the funding. Common examples may be grants for community projects such as housing, education, and recovery programs.

Secondly, there are corporate grants available. Typically, there is a particular set of values that drive the types of grant money for community projects that businesses target. For instance, Google is well known for supplying Ad Word grants to non-profit organizations to help them in their online advertising efforts. This is a sort of in-kind type of funding that gives organizations access to Google's effective search engine ad structure.

The third type of grant for community projects comes from foundations. These are non-profit organizations established by businesses, wealthy donors, or trusts that help to fund other non-profit organizations that have missions aligning with their values.

Step-by-Step Guide to Identifying Suitable Grants

Here are the essential steps in identifying a suitable community project grant:

• Laser focus on your core values and strengths: It is very important that a non-profit and the individual preparing a grant application have a clear understanding of the organization's strengths. This allows for the weeding out of grants that might not be a good fit and prioritizing those which suit the organization's unique abilities best.
• Targeted internet searches and grant databases: The best place to start is with targeted web searches with verbiage that is as specific as possible to the type of community project grants you are seeking. This is where the focus on your core values and strengths can really pay dividends in giving you the search terms to use that will provide the best results.
• Shared goals: Seek out grant providers that share the same goals your organization upholds. For instance, if you know that one of your non-profit's core values is helping provide affordable housing to homeless veterans, start your search with federal agencies that working in this area. The Department of Housing and Urban Development website will provide a list of funding opportunities. There is also value in searching for other non-profits that have partnered with them to see if they have any grant opportunities themselves.
• Patience and persistence: It takes time to find the right grant. The search process can be tedious, time-consuming, and uneventful but it is important to remember that the right grant will become available eventually.

Researching Grant Providers: What to Look For

There are a few specific things that non-profit should look for when researching grant providers:

• What are the values and mission of the grantor? This is the primary indicator of whether organizations are a good match for working together. Values and mission aligning are the first step.
• Take note of the grantor's giving history. This will show who they have donated funds to in the past and will indicate whether they are a good fit for your organization. This can also help to customize the application to their specific missions.
• Familiarizing yourself with a funder's leadership can help you understand how the grantor operations and who the decision maker's in the organization operate.

How To Write a Winning Grant Proposal

Much of a community project grant proposal will be specific to the organization and the specific requirements of the grantor but there are certainly some best practices that can be applied to any grant proposal.

• Be specific in what your organization hopes to accomplish and how it will specifically disburse the funds made available to it. This can help to differentiate you from your competitors who are seeking the same funding you are.
• Follow the guidelines of the proposal requirements closely. Corporate givers, state and federal agencies, and foundations will provide very specific requirements in their proposal instructions. This can include requests for financial documents, detailed plans for use of the money, and even the particular formatting of the requested information. Adhering to these requirements demonstrates attention to detail and respect for the grantor.
• Keep it simple. Grant funders wade through a high volume of applications and are likely not impressed with verbose proposals that contain a lot of fluff. Keep the proposal concise and simple by distilling your goals and process to the most fundament aspects. If you have a good idea, it will speak for itself.
• Proofread the application several times. This includes checking for spelling and grammar mistakes as well as ensuring that the layout and flow of any long-form text is logical and easy to read.
• Allow plenty of time to complete the application. Rushing to finish against a deadline will only generate mistakes. Schedule carefully to be able to submit the application in advance of the deadline.

Essential Components of a Strong Grant Application

• Specific goals: Stating clearly and concisely what your goals with the funds are is an essential component of a confident grant application.
• Organization values and mission: Donors want to see a defined mission and value set that aligns with their own goals. Make sure values and the mission are overtly explained.
• Financial documents: Being financially transparent and organized conveys professionalism and instills a sense of trust with donors.
• Details for reporting measurables: Communicate a willingness to provide updates on expected deliverables.
• Outline for how funds are used: A clear roadmap for how the funds will be disbursed for the outlined goal.

Tips to Strengthen Your Case for Funding

The single best way to make a stronger case in your grant application process is to highlight how effective and efficient your organization has been in achieving its goals. Effectiveness speaks to a non-profit's ability to execute a project. Efficiency shows that it can be done within the scope and budget that was outlined. Being effective and efficient is very attractive to prospective grantors because they will have a higher degree of trust that their funds are being used responsibly.

Overcoming Challenges in Grant Application Processes

Common challenges associated with community project grant application processes include staffing, balancing a variety of reporting metrics, tracking various projects simultaneously, grant research that is time and resource-intensive, and outdated workflows.

These challenges exist above and beyond the important work that is done with the grant funds. These challenges are also part and parcel of the process however there are resources available that can streamline these time-consuming activities. A robust grant management software can mitigate staffing challenges, make reporting simple, and streamline tracking. PlanStreet's grant management software excels in this arena.

How PlanStreet's Grant Management Software Can Help

• Streamline Grant Research and Tracking: There is no substitute for having all of your organization's information in a centralized database. PlanStreet's grant management software allows for financial and status reports to be generated and customized for specific community project grants.
• Collaborate Effectively with Team Members: Sometimes it takes a village to secure grant funds. With PlanStreet's grant management software, teams can collaborate remotely by updating the status of applications and projects.
• Stay Organized with Application Deadlines and Compliance: Tracking how funds have been used and providing regular updates are essential components of the grant management process. Being able to accurately provide details on the use of funds and the status of a project helps ensure that a non-profit is being a good steward of their grant funding but also provides a track record that can help secure funding for community projects in the future.

Post-Award Grant Management: Ensuring Compliance and Accountability with PlanStreet

While the majority of the focus is rightfully on the grant application process and securing funding for community projects, there remains the issue of compliance and accountability. Grant funds come with strings attached in the form of donor expectations, federal and state reporting guidelines, and the efficacy of the projects the funds are supporting.

PlanStreet's grant management software can execute the disbursement of funds and deduct them from various grant categories to ensure that funds are accounted for and each bucket of funds is up to date. Because of this granular tracking style, up-the-minute reports can be generated for donors ensuring that every cent can be accounted for at a moment's notice.

Building a Sustainable Community Through Grant Support

Non-profit organizations make a real difference in their communities. Project grants allow these organizations to help change people's lives by making them safer and healthier. Arming non-profits with the tools they need to craft compelling grant proposals is what PlanStreet does. Take your non-profit grant writing, research, and compliance to the next level with PlanStreet for grant management.