- Give yourself plenty of time
From organisations to artists, applications for projects which start BEFORE the funder will have made their decision on what to fund are a real no-no. It means that your application almost certainly has to be excluded, and making it impossible for the funder to say yes. In order to avoid this, start planning up to a year in advance – some funders have deadlines only once every three months or take 12 weeks to give you a decision, so you need to work ahead. Look up funders and application deadlines months beforehand and check decision deadlines to make sure you have plenty of time to get your application in – and the funders reply WELL BEFORE you want to carry out your project, event or activity. If you get turned down at the first attempt but have left plenty of time you may well be able to re-submit a revised application before your project takes place.
- Talk to the funder about your idea if possible
Most won’t review your application in detail, however it is well worth a meeting or phone call before you apply. One reason is that final funding decisions are usually made at a meeting or panel, and having someone in the room who really understands you and your project and will support the application can sometimes be the decider between projects.
- Do a few drafts
One of the secrets of repeatedly successful grant applicants is that they don’t submit their first draft. They’ll often have worked on a couple of drafts, showed it to others, had discussions with their partners and significantly improved and strengthened their application before sending it in. They’ll also have proofread the application before sending it. I’ll never forget seeing an application where the writer had spelt their own name wrong. It didn’t get ruled out, but it didn’t leave a great impression!
- Make sure your budget ‘breaks even’
For the majority of grant funders, unlike most budgets you DON’T WANT TO HAVE MONEY LEFT OVER! You need to make sure that whatever income you are planning to generate from your activity plus the grant income will ALL be spent by the end. You can often pay yourself a fee from the grant income, but you can’t make a profit.
- Think about your marketing plan
Make your marketing plan as specific as possible. It should make it clear who your audience is and how you will reach them. Go beyond just saying you’ll ‘do social media’ or send out a newsletter, show you know who your audience is and either have them on your channels in substantial numbers or have a clear plan for reaching them – you can work with partners to fill your event, workshop or get people engaged in your project as well.