Non Profit Grant Blog

My girlfriend is looking to open up a small business in designing floral arrangements. She is looking to ask the government for money but needs a sample of a proposal to ask for federal money. Can anyone one out there assist us?

It is hard to find grants to start a business. Unlike the myths that some perpetuate, federal government and even private foundations hardly give grant money for a for-profit business.

And yes, grants mean PAPERWORK – lots and lots of it, that is why a cottage industry of grant writers was born. Instead of exerting futile effort in finding for grants and grant writers, I suggest you direct your activities to raising funds from friends, families or bank loans.

Nonetheless, you can go to the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) http://www.cfda.gov and Grants.gov http://www.grants.gov – these are two sites created by the federal government to provide transparency and information on grants. Browse through the listings and see if you can find any grant that would support a for-profit venture.

Even if you buy books on "how to get grants" or list that supposedly has information on grants — all of them are mere rehash of what CFDA has, albeit packaged differently. But still the info is the same – hardly any grants for starting a for profit business.

Even SBA does NOT give out grants. From the SBA website http://www.sba.gov/expanding/grants.html…

"The U.S. Small Business Administration does not offer grants to start or expand small businesses, although it does offer a wide variety of loan programs. (See http://www.sba.gov/financing for more information) While SBA does offer some grant programs, these are generally designed to expand and enhance organizations that provide small business management, technical, or financial assistance. These grants generally support non-profit organizations, intermediary lending institutions, and state and local governments."

Most of the federal grants are given to specific target groups with specific requirements (e.g. minority business owners involved in transportation related contracts emanating from DOT – Grant#20.905 Disadvantaged Business Enterprises Short Term Lending Program

Grants are also often given to non profit groups or organizations involved in training or other similar activities (grant 59.043 Women's Business Ownership Assistance that are given to those who will create women's business center that will train women entrepreneurs

For private grants, you may want to check the Foundation Center's Foundation Grants for Individuals Online. It's a subscription based website ($9.95 per month) but their opening blurb only says that the database is ideal for "students, artists, academic researchers, libraries and financial aid offices." Entrepreneurs are apparently not one of them, so I take it they also don't have listings of private foundations who give grants to would-be entrepreneurs.

http://www.cfda.gov

http://www.grants.gov

http://gtionline.fdncenter.org

http://www.powerhomebiz.com/vol66/grants.htm

http://www.sba.gov/expanding/grants.html

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I've heard about it and there are always a million listings on CraigsList for grant writers and proposal writers, but what is one and how do you train for it? I have seen grants and proposals come through occasionally at my job and they seem like long applications asking for project funding – nothing too special, just a lot of detail. It seems like if you follow the instructions, you can fill out the paperwork. Based on the job listings for grant writers, it does not seem that the writer has to know the field they are writing a grant for. Clarification anyone? Is it like doing taxes where just "filling out the paperwork" isn't enough?

Grant writing is more than filing the blanks and requires a LOT MORE thoughht than filing in taxes. There's no special education or certification required to be a grant writer, but you need to have:

Excellent writing skills. You need not only know how to write, but you need to write extremely well. Your client's success in obtaining the grant hinges in large part on the quality of your written proposal. Whether you are writing for a request of $1,000 for a community activity or a $5 million research project, you must be able to clearly communicate how the funds will be effectively used to reach a worthwhile goal. Write, write and write constantly to practice and improve your writing skills.

Clear understanding of the project process. Your role as a grant writer is to convert your clients' ideas and concepts into a workable and concrete program. You will serve as the bridge between the grant applicant and the grant provider, where your role is to put into writing the clients' concepts and transform it into a project that the funding institution will support. Your document must assure the funding institutions that their funds will be put to the best possible uses. You must have also loads of imagination. Part of your work will be to visualize how a $75,000 project, for example, is going to play out over three-year project duration.

Strong research skills. More than just providing a well-written document, you need to possess strong research skills. Part of the work of the grant writer is the identification and selection of appropriate potential donors. You will research grant-making organizations and analyze them to identify likely funding sources for specific projects and programs. A philanthropic organization focusing on children's education is not likely to approve an application for a tree-planting project. Or an organization that funds medical research projects may not support a diversity project. You will increase the chances of getting the funds if you submit the proposal to the right institution.

Discipline and organization. A grant writer must be able to keep track of grant application deadlines and follow-up on submitted applications. It is also essential to keep track of trends in the field and be aware of changes in the priorities of funding institutions, as well as new funding sources.

Here are some resources on how to be a grantwriter

Teaching Yourself to be a Grantwriter http://www.grantproposal.com/starting_inner.html
Minnesota Council on Foundations Writing a Successful Grant Proposal http://www.mcf.org/mcf/grant/writing.htm
American Association of Grant Professionals http://www.grantprofessionals.org
Non profit Guides http://www.npguides.org/
GrantExperts.com http://www.grantexperts.com
Association of Fund Raising Professionals http://www.afpnet.org/
Foundation Center http://foundationcenter.org/getstarted/learnabout/proposalwriting.html

You may also want to check out the following books

Demystifying Grant Seeking: What You REALLY Need to Do to Get Grants
I'll Grant You That: A Step-by-Step Guide to Finding Funds, Designing Winning Projects, and Writing Powerful Grant Proposals
Winning Grants: Step by Step, 2nd Edition
Grant Winner's Toolkit : Project Management and Evaluation
Grant Writing For Dummies®

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http://government-grants.tv/blog/the-development-of-a-proposal-for-grant/14/

These are guides on how to write grant proposal that works.

Duration : 0:2:15

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Technorati Tags: writing a grant proposal, writing grant proposal, writing grant proposals

Is it better to ask for the maximum amount or the minimum amount?

In my opinion, I believe you should ask for a range so you can negotiate accordingly.

For example, if you wish to ask for a grant of $60,000.00 you can ask for a range of $50,000.00 to $60,000.00. The minimum and maximum values are inclusive in your range.

This will give the non-profit organization officials more to work with.

Hope this helps.

God Bless….

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sample grant proposals for a beauty salon

Here are some resounrces on grant writing with samples of grant proposals

Teaching Yourself to be a Grantwriter http://www.grantproposal.com/starting_inner.html
Minnesota Council on Foundations Writing a Successful Grant Proposal http://www.mcf.org/mcf/grant/writing.htm
American Association of Grant Professionals http://www.grantprofessionals.org
Non profit Guides http://www.npguides.org/
GrantExperts.com http://www.grantexperts.com
Association of Fund Raising Professionals http://www.afpnet.org/

However, I suggest that you focus your energy in looking for other sources of funds. It is hard to find grants to start a business — especially starting a beauty salon.

Unlike the myths that some perpetuate, federal government and even private foundations hardly give grant money for a for-profit business. And yes, grants mean PAPERWORK – lots and lots of it, that is why a cottage industry of grant writers was born.

Nonetheless, you can go to the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) http://www.cfda.gov and Grants.gov http://www.grants.gov – these are two sites created by the federal government to provide transparency and information on grants. Browse through the listings and see if you can find any grant that would support a for-profit venture.

Even if you buy books on "how to get grants" or list that supposedly has information on grants — all of them are mere rehash of what CFDA has, albeit packaged differently. But still the info is the same – hardly any grants for starting a for profit business.

Even SBA does NOT give out grants. From the SBA website http://www.sba.gov/expanding/grants.html…

"The U.S. Small Business Administration does not offer grants to start or expand small businesses, although it does offer a wide variety of loan programs. (See http://www.sba.gov/financing for more information) While SBA does offer some grant programs, these are generally designed to expand and enhance organizations that provide small business management, technical, or financial assistance. These grants generally support non-profit organizations, intermediary lending institutions, and state and local governments."

Here is a listing of federal grants for small businesses. See if there is any available for individuals for starting a business — THERE'S NONE.

http://12.46.245.173/pls/portal30/CATALOG.BROWSE_BENEF_RPT.show

Most of the federal grants are given to specific target groups with specific requirements (e.g. minority business owners involved in transportation related contracts emanating from DOT – Grant#20.905 Disadvantaged Business Enterprises Short Term Lending Program

Grants are also often given to non profit groups or organizations involved in training or other similar activities (grant 59.043 Women's Business Ownership Assistance that are given to those who will create women's business center that will train women entrepreneurs

For private grants, you may want to check the Foundation Center's Foundation Grants for Individuals Online. It's a subscription based website ($9.95 per month) but their opening blurb only says that the database is ideal for "students, artists, academic researchers, libraries and financial aid offices." Entrepreneurs are apparently not one of them, so I take it they also don't have listings of private foundations who give grants to would-be entrepreneurs.

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