Grants. In short, grants are a non-repayable source of funding provided for a specific project or purpose that are available to business owners, non-for profits and charities. Grants are also non-dilutive funding, which means you don’t trade ownership stake in your business in exchange for the grant funds.
The Accelerator has written many grant applications over the past 12 years ranging from several thousand dollars to multi-million dollar grants. We’ve taken that experience and condensed it down to help you with 5 tips to help navigate the grant writing process.
- Understand the grant requirements: We can’t stress this one enough. Read and understand the guidelines and requirements of the grant application thoroughly before writing. This helps you to identify what the grant provider is looking for, ensures you’re applying for the right grant or grants, and allows you to plan the details of your project accordingly.
- Tailor your application to the grant provider: Customize your application to the grant provider's mission, goals, and objectives. This shows that you have done your research and are genuinely interested in their work and that your project has the potential to create the impact the grant provider is looking for.
- Focus on your impact: Highlight the positive impact your organization will make and how it aligns with the grant provider's mission. Use data and statistics to support your claims.
- Use clear and concise language: Use clear and concise language to communicate your ideas effectively. Avoid technical jargon and acronyms that may not be familiar to the grant provider.
- Edit and proofread: Edit and proofread your application multiple times to ensure it is free of errors and is well-organized. Consider having someone else review your application as well to provide feedback. Don’t rely on spell-check alone!
Bonus tip: attend any info sessions hosted by the grant provider or schedule a one-on-one session with their advisors. During these sessions, the granting organizations tend to provide additional information about specifics the grant reviewers may be looking for in an application.
Keep in mind that there’s no exact science for grant writing and the more grants you write, the better you’ll get. Writing is not everyone’s strength and it doesn’t have to be. The Accelerator can connect you to professional grant writers to help tell your story.
Having trouble finding grants? Accelerator partner Pocketed can help with that. Accelerator clients receive a referral code that provides additional benefits within the Pocketed grant matching platform.
For additional support with grants, connect with us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..