Grant Writing - Myths
Myth
1 – Government cuts mean there are no grant opportunities available
Plain
wrong – yes Government cuts have been savage recently at both the State and
Federal Government levels and yes loads of organisations have had their
recurrent funding cut and yes some funding programs have been cancelled or
disbanded but there still are Government funding opportunities at a Local,
State or Federal level, there still are opportunities through commercial
entities and there certainly are opportunities available through Trusts and
Foundations.
Myth
2 – Competition is too fierce for the available funding so why bother
Wrong
again – competition is fierce BUT if you develop great projects that attract
the attention of funders then funding is very achievable.
Myth
3 – Only large non profits are successful in winning grant funding
Large
non profits generally are likely to have more success with larger funding
amounts but this is purely because generally they have more larger projects
which need funding. Small non profits should certainly consider small, medium
and large funding opportunities – any opportunities at all. If your
organisation and project tick ALL the boxes as outlined in the grant guidelines
then an application should certainly be considered.
Myth
4 – no programs fund wages or cover operational costs
The
number of funding programs that fund wages or ongoing is certainly not
extensive but there are opportunities to include “administration” costs in some
grant opportunities and this is where you can include wages/operational costs.
Myth
5 – Winning grant funding will ensure our organisation will survive
This
is clearly the thought process of some organisations. Grant funding is
generally tied to a project and must be spent on that project and nothing else.
So normally winning funding wontbe the panacea for a struggling organisation.
Myth
6 – grant writing is too hard
Grant
writing is not easy but it isn’t rocket science either. There are courses
available that can assist to train the inexperienced but the one real secret of
grant writing is read the guidelines, read the guidelines and then read the
guidelines.
Myth
7 – we never know when grants are closing
This
is very easy to debunk. An hour of research will identify a heap of potential
funding opportunities you can access and if you plot these on a calendar giving
you a month’s notice before closing date – problem solved. Also there are lots
of grant databases out there you can sign up to which have information about
all sorts of grants. This can be a very cost effective way of finding out about
what grants are available and when the grant programs close.
Myth
8 – you need to know someone in the know to win grants
While
this is a myth – it obviously can help your case if you do know someone with
influence. But thousands of organisations every month with grant funding across
Australia and have no inside help.
Myth
9 – once you receive grant funding you can spend the money on something else if
you want
WRONG!
If you receive grant funding it MUST be spent exactly as you outlined in your
grant application. If you identify that you need to change and purchase
something different you must identify this in writing to the relevant funding
program and get approval back in writing BEFORE you spend money on the new
item.
Myth
10 – grant writers are too expensive
Wrong
– quality grant writers can give a great return on investment. Our grant writer
Brisbane is highly skilled and we can develop a cost structure to meet the
budget of any organisation no matter how small they are.
Contact
us at Red Tape Busters - http://www.redtapebusters.com/
should you require more information about this article or if you require specialist
grant or tender writing experience to help your organisation or business win
grant funding or achieve successes with tenders.
We
are specialists in providing the following services:-
·
Lobbying;
·
Tender Writing;
·
Grant Writing;
·
Resumes/Job Applications;
·
Organisational/Business Development.
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