Frequently Asked Questions
Here are answers to the questions asked most.
What is The Grant Plant's service goal?
The Grant Plant’s service goal is to raise grant money, improve your organization's operations, and assist in your group's budgetary, operational, programmatic, strategic, and leadership goals.
Why is this the goal?
A nonprofit benefits from an open relationship with its financial supporters. Foundations connect to the causes that they support through their interest in the cause, and giving to a nonprofit that provides the solution that they think will help. In this way, the nonprofit has an opportunity to set itself apart through its mission statement, success rate, and operational transparency (e.g. fiscal reporting). The nonprofit exists to meet a community need and grant donors participate by donating grants to make that work possible. This is a donor/organization or investor/solutions provider relationship and our goal.
How does a nonprofit acquire a grant?
Grants, in part, are received when nonprofit organizations meet their goal, deliver on their
mission, and meet that community need very well. Foundations donate to agencies
working in a field that interests them and is located in the geographic area
that they support. Make sure they hear about your agency and its successes.
There is never a guarantee that your agency will receive any
one grant. The Grant Plant's services increases the likelihood. Some of the reasons that grants
are not funded may be because of possible previous loyalties to other non profit organizaqtions that
do similar work as yours'. Timing can be an issue if the economy has reduced how much a
foundation can grant. The grantor's different Board of Directors' interests may
compete from year to year when they determine which agency receives grants. For
these reasons you need a grant writer familiar with foundations and their
preferences. The Grant Plant knows the preferences of Pacific Northwest grantors.
Are grant writers in charge of whether a grant is received or not?
No. A grant writer performs as a 'ghost writer'
who must write a strong, compelling, clear, concise, and informative grant
application. The nonprofit and its work speak for itself in a well written
grant application. Yet, successfully raising grants is equally encumbant on the nonprofit organization; a grant is raised when an organization has an excellent success rate, a strong track record, and when it is providing compelling, innovative, effective, efficient, and successful programs or services. You will receive direction throughout the grant application
process to forge a relationship with the potential grantor. The decision to
grant or not is, in the end, only up to the grant donor. For this reason I
recommend that grant writing should be a component of an diverse overall agency Development
Plan followed by your nonprofit agency. In other words, grant writing should not be the only way a nonprofit raises its money.
How is The Grant Plant compensated?
The Grant Plant will come to an agreement with
your agency's leadership and sign a service agreement and statement of work. Some of the The Grant Plant's services are charged in a flat rate fee. Other services are charged on an hourly basis. No portion of a received grant should ever be paid
out as a commission payment to a grant writer (i.e. writer's payment contingent
on receiving a grant) because the grant writer is providing a service, as a
lawyer or an accountant does. For example, grant writing is usually a long term
fundraising strategy requiring more time than it takes to form and mail one
grant application. Grant writing, as a component of the agency’s overall
Development Plan, and is an investment in acquiring donations. Any
consultant should mostly be removed from the relationship between a nonprofit and
potential donors. Foundations do not want to pay
for a nonprofit’s grant writer fees. A grant is given to any
nonprofit because the money is intended to go to meet the non rofit’s program
or project's goals, not to a consultant.
What are grant writers responsible for?
Any professional grant writer must have an
excellent command of the grant securing process, follow professional ethics, be
a very strong writer with experience, and most importantly, be able to convey
your agency's mission, program, or project thoroughly, clearly, and in a
compelling manner while following and fulfilling each grantor’s guidelines. A
grant writer is responsible for providing a great grant application document
that has the highest likelihood of garnering a grant. The Grant Plant meets
these requirements.
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