How to get your share of Goverment $ Part 3

If you miss any of the previous part

PART 1

PART 2

Review, review, and review again.
CONGRATULATIONS! You may receive a letter or phone indicating that you are one of the finalists. They may be looking for more details to differentiate you from the herd, and they may also want to know what kind of a deal you are willing to make. Be prepared to negotiate or lose the contract. You may need to decide where you can cut costs in your proposal. If you did not present your lowest, best bid in the proposal, what are you waiting for, now is the time.

OK, so you didn't win the proposal, is all lost?
Not winning the proposal can be a key learning experience. Call the agency contact and ask where and what your RFP lacked. Under the Freedom of Information Act, FOIA, you are entitled to ask to see a copy of the winning proposal. Remember, practice makes perfect even though it is a difficult lesson to learn.

So, How do you write a winning Grant Proposal?
Most grant proposals don't have to be the size of a large coffee table book. In fact, the average length of a winning proposal is just ten pages. Nevertheless they must contain the "right stuff" as explain above and on the previous post.

The best grant proposals begin with a professional Cover Letter. The Cover Letter must be straightforward, to the point, and be written in an upbeat and exciting format. Explain to the funder your project, in a paragraph or two at the most. This letter must trigger your reader's enthusiasm. Make them want to open the proposal and continue reading, just as I have done to you, for you to read this post.

Next is the Cover Sheet. This must be written as a concise statement covering the basic points of the proposal. The Cover Sheet states the name, address and phone number of the person or organization making the request, the organizational structure, and the name of the contact person. It also includes the amount of the request and description of the project. An important note here is not to ever exceed the amount requested with the amount the funder is offering for a project. If so make sure that you have other sources to apply for and make it clear that you do.

The Narrative section of the proposal includes the Needs Assessments, Goals and Objectives, Program Description, Evaluation Process and a discussion of Future Funding.

TO BE CONTINUE...

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