Now is the Time to Use a Grant Writing Consultant

By Kirby Rooks

If you want to save money, get money and beat the recession then you might consider using a grant writing consultant.

In this article we will discuss what a grant writing consultant is by definition, what they do, how they do it and why you should consider using one.

Definition of a grant writing consultant.

We define a consultant as an expert who gives advise. A grant is a vehicle for nonprofit organizations and individuals to request support for their cause. A grant writing consultant is an expert in writing proposals and letters. The nonprofit describes the why and how they operate to help secure grants from foundations and governments that the consultants picks by doing research.

Why use a grant writing consultant?

How about saving money for starters. The economy is in a recession and as a consequence it does not look good for hiring staff along with the extra financial expenses. The grant writing consultant is almost always a better choice financially.

If the problem is short term in nature then it’’s a no brainer, hire the consultant. Why try and learn something that you need right now. Nothing is worse then trying to learn something under pressure.

The grant writing consultant has experience for winning grant funding. The grant writers of the world share their experiences and techniques among each other therefore the advise they give is valuable and useful in the pursuit of grants.

Grant writing consultants almost always know how to tell a compelling story in order to achieve the stated objective. In the writing of letters of inquiry the consultant knows that the objective is getting the program officer to approve a further look. A further look means writing a proposal that will be shown to the board of directors who make the decision of awarding the grant. Once that objective is met the purpose of the proposal is to get funding that’’s being requested via the proposal which is the main objective.

What services can a consultant perform for a nonprofit?

To start with the grant writing consultant can research potential funders. Usually a set number of foundations for a set fee. Even though anyone can do this the nonprofit staff is usually to busy writing grants or doing administrative duties. They don”t have the adequate time or expertise to pick good fit funders. The grant writing consultant can pick good fit funders that correlate well with the potential for increased funding of the nonprofit’’s mission. Grant writing consultants are trained in this area and can dramatically change the number of total grants you are awarded by picking foundations whose initiatives match your goals and objectives. This will improve your chances of being approved for funding greatly which gives the nonprofit a return on their investment (ROI) in the consultant.

Reviewing and evaluating grant proposals written by the nonprofit staff or executives for content or other reasons that keep the grant from being awarded. This is a big one that has a large return on investment. Grant consultants usually charge by the hour for this service. The rewards can be huge if you go from a 20% funding ratio to a 50% funding ratio. The amount of grant dollars can make the year a success, even in a down year. Every nonprofit should consider this option if they have a low proposal to grant ratio. It also gives a boast to fund raising events and large donors as they feel more at ease knowing that professional donors are funding the nonprofit as well.

Grant writing consultants can break down their services as we have described. They can also do the whole proposal for you soup to nuts. I should say proposals because most nonprofit’’s do 12-24 proposals a year. Doing 1-2 per month diversify’’s the portfolio and spreads the risk around to many funders. Funders like this because one funder almost never will fund your entire funding needs. Again this helps other fund raising within the organization

Conclusion

If you are like most nonprofit’’s you are probably thinking you can save money by doing it yourself. Grant writing is an art and there are best practices associated with techniques that help foundations to award funding to your organization. If you look at the amount of funding generated by using a consultant vs the amount of funding lost do to oversights in the process it might help you to make a better decision.

I hope this helps to answer your questions and best of luck in the coming new year!

About The Author

Kirby Rooks is a Grant Writing Consultant who has numerous nonprofit clients and is the author of Grant Funding Online Blog. For more information on nonprofits, volunteerism and grant writing visit his blog at Grant Funding Online Blog