Winning Grants and influencing people

Winning grants are those that answer all questions clearly and make it easy for the grant evaluator or reviewers to find the information they require.

When organising the grant proposal, the Grant Writer NT will usually answer the questions or criterion in the order they are asked. This makes the document structure more readily perused by the potential reviewer and increases potential for the grant proposal to be viewed positively and ultimately successfully.

The Grant Writer Sydney knows how important it is to follow the specifications for word or page limits; the type, format and number of attachments permissible; and how the grant funder wants to receive the proposal. This attention to detail in formatting and ability to follow directions means the proposal will be accepted by the funder and the rest of their grant application is aimed at selling the proposal.

Grant Writer will also look at the eligibility requirements of the grant to ensure their client organisation falls clearly within the parameters- it is absolutely no use writing the perfect grant proposal if the project or program isn’t compatible with the funding requirements.

Grant Writer focus on detailing how the grant funding will help their client organisation to accomplish their goal or mission. They ensure there is a strong focus on the competence and achievability in the application as they know grant funders or providers will select funding proposals that stand the best chance of success and will have the greatest impact on the target group.

In order to impart large amounts of information Grant Writer will use lists and bullet points in an organised and easy to read format that doesn’t overwhelm or confuse the evaluation team.

The Grant Writer use their expertise and experience to provide a summary of their client organisation - their goals, mission, philosophy, successes and commitment to their stakeholders and core beneficiaries that enables the evaluation team to have a great background knowledge of the applicant organisation. Also part of the summary; the Grant Writer introduces the main organisation people involved and give a brief description of their qualities and experience.

To round out the application the Grant Writer outlines the project or program they are seeking funding for by answering the questions:

Why is the project or program needed?
What is the goal or outcome of the project or program and how is this measurable?
Who will benefit from it?
What will the project or program entail? Providing a detailed action plan and strategies to achieve the goal.
The expected timeline for implementing the project or program.
The staffing required to complete the planned program and what qualifications, knowledge or skills they require.

When it comes to the budget; the funder will want to know about the existing financial situation of the applicant organisation as well as expecting a specific and detailed budget breakdown for the funds that are being applied for under the grant. It needs to be easy to understand as well as detailed and the Grant Writer will use an organised and structured format to impart this information successfully to the funding evaluation team.

There are a lot of important components to a grant application and producing a winning application requires attention to detail, good writing skills and the ability to read and understand the requirements of the funding body.

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