How to Be More Accessible to Prospective and First-Time Grantees
8/30/2023
By Rashanda Freeman and Danielle LaJoie
An artist’s rendering of a community event. Photo courtesy of Tommy Caison.
On Monday July 31, members of the Trust-Based Philanthropy Project peer exchange gathered to explore how funders could be more accessible to first-time and prospective grantees. This conversation was inspired by feedback we received around challenges nonprofits continue to face when they are either in the early stages or don’t have existing relationships with funders. This is especially true for BIPOC-led nonprofits who experience disproportionate resource gaps that can hinder their growth and ability to flourish.
Below are the key takeaways from our conversation on how funders can step up and be more accessible to prospective and first-time grantees:
Be Aware of the Power Imbalance
In order to create an inviting space for first-time and prospective grantees, it is important to acknowledge the inherent power imbalances – especially for organizations that perhaps have had limited interactions with foundations in the past. This means affirming the lived experiences of nonprofit leaders, being intentional about the space we take up, and being aware of the stress and anxiety that many potential grantees feel around the funding process. To alleviate power imbalances, consider creating space for feedback from first-time grantees on how your process can be improved to be more accessible and inviting for future applicants.
“We need to be okay with honest feedback from first-time grantees. It can be an intimidating process for them, it’s our job to listen and approach with genuine care and consideration for the human being you’re interacting with.” - Joanne Crawford, United Way of Olmsted County
Be Clear & Consistent In Your Communication
Consistent communication with first-time and prospective grantees is crucial. in setting clear expectations and avoiding guesswork from prospective grantees. As a first-time or prospective grantee, trying to decipher grant language can prove challenging and create barriers for them to access funding. Being intentional and transparent about your grant process allows for realistic timelines and proper planning, and can help save grantseekers precious time.
Create Informal Opportunities for Connection
Many prospective and first-time grantees may be working on raising their visibility amongst funders. This can be an uphill battle and can take years of “proving yourself” to gain any recognition, let alone funding. To better show up and create a more inviting space, consider setting up informal opportunities throughout the year to get to know potential and first-time grantees. There are proactive ways to do this, such as setting up virtual “office hours” via Zoom or Google Chat; or attending conferences and events to meet prospective grantees and share about your work. Some other ways to be more accessible include listing your staff emails on your foundation’s website and/or having a brief web-based intake form for prospective grantees to make their work known to you.
“We make our grant criteria and priorities very clear upfront and are sure to offer information sessions for prospective grantee partners. We use paper applications and also Youtube as a way for people to submit their applications. This way if you don’t feel comfortable with a written submission you can record yourself, and hopefully this makes the process feel less overwhelming. We don’t want to miss out on a potential partnership because of the application process. They could also submit a previously written report if it answers our questions.” - Rachel Allen, Sheng-Yen Lu Foundation
“We started something called Let's Chat last year which is a direct link to the Google Calendar of our Program Managers so they can easily schedule a 30-minute virtual meeting. Our website has always encouraged people to call us to discuss questions or concerns. This feature has been very popular and has helped get a record number of new applicants in recent cycles.” - Katy Keller, Marillac Mission Foundation
Introduce Existing Grantees to Other Funders
If you have existing grantees that are having a hard time accessing institutional funding, be proactive about introducing them to other funders in your peer community. Part of being a trust-based funder includes providing support beyond the check, which can simply be about making connections, leveraging your networks, and amplifying the work of your partners. Making peer-to-peer connections, and inviting them into spaces with aligned funders can go a long way for nonprofit leaders new to navigating funder relationships. These efforts on our part can lead to larger visibility and partnership for first-time and prospective grantees.
Offer Get-To-Know-You Grants for New Grantees
As a way to reduce barriers to funding, especially amongst BIPOC-led and/or emerging nonprofits, consider implementing “get to know you” grants to provide prospective multi-year grantees with one year of unrestricted support to help you get to know their work and build a relationship. Consider recruiting prospective grantees by asking current grantees and peers for their recommendations, while being clear with existing grantees that their suggestions are totally optional and will not affect their funding status.
“Our grantmaking is general operating, multi-year which made this process easier for us to do. Before we switched to multi-year funding I was nervous to ask community partners for nominations for prospective grantees. Now that we are multi-year the conversation feels more inviting and community partners don’t feel like their funding is at risk.” - Rachel Allen, Sheng-Yen Lu Foundation
Provide Non-Monetary Support for Declined Applicants
Oftentimes, nonprofits go through lengthy application processes and long waiting periods only to find out that they didn’t receive a grant. Most of these declinations are given with little to no information about why, further exacerbating the power imbalance between funders and nonprofits. If you have the time and capacity, consider providing feedback for organizations that didn’t make the cut; you can do this via email or by offering a brief phone call. If their application could be improved for next time, consider offering optional mentorship or coaching as a way to strengthen their submission for next time. And if they aren’t quite a fit for your funding area but could be a good candidate for other peer funders, use your connections to tell other funders about their work.
“Missouri Foundation for Health (MFH) has a program, Missouri Capture (MoCAP), which offers technical support and consulting services, mostly grant writing, free of charge to organizations pursuing federal or national funding. MFH pays for the consultant upon request. An organization’s current or prior status as an MFH grantee has no impact on using MoCAP services. This program has helped us engage with orgs that may not have approached us as a funder before.” - Deena Scotti, Missouri Foundation for Health
When considering ways to be more accessible to prospective and first-time grantees there is no one size fits all approach. This journey requires us to be flexible as we work to better understand how to best show-up and provide support for both groups. Overall, we hope this conversation sparks transformation in the way we work alongside prospective and first-time grantee partners.
Looking to join the conversation? Sign-up for our Trust-Based Peer Exchange a listserv for grantmakers who want to connect with other funders on the trust-based journey and share ideas, questions, lessons, and insights.
Danielle LaJoie is the Senior Manager of Partnerships & Programming at the Trust-Based Philanthropy Project.
Rashanda Freeman is the Director of Audience Engagement at the Trust-Based Philanthropy Project.