Five Common Grant Proposal Mistakes
by Ashley High

When attempting to write a grant proposal, Marvin Teitel’s book, Thank You for Submitting Your Proposal: A Foundation Director Reveals What Happens Next (Emerson and Church, 2006), is a very useful resource to have. In this book, Teitel lists five common mistakes that grant proposal writers make:

Talking more about problems than solutions.

A proposal’s purpose is not to inform or encourage the public to become involved in the nonprofit. While the proposal shows that the charity is familiar with the issues it handles, the proposal’s main focus is on how the nonprofit will address the problem.

Addressing specific problems with general solutions.

The best proposals clearly detail how the organization will address the problems at hand. Provide specific details about the actions the organization will take. Often, lack of detail in proposals happens when the grant writer is either not completely informed about what is happening in the organization, or the nonprofit needs to revisit their strategic planning sessions before they begin fundraising.

Use buzzwords and jargon.

Teitel says some proposal writers confuse length with clarity. Use simple language that “tells a story or paints a picture.” Do not use vague statements, trendy language or obscure terms – it will not impress the funder and it may actually be harmful to the proposal’s acceptance.

Budgets that do not make sense.

Many proposals have math errors that damage the organization’s credibility. Teitel writes, “[…] the budget should not only add up, it also has to support the logic of the proposal’s narrative.”

Repeating exact phrases from the funder’s guidelines.

Do not paste phrases from the funder’s guidelines directly into the proposal – all this shows is that the nonprofit read the funder’s website. While every good proposal should fit the funder’s guidelines, the proposal should explain exactly how and why the nonprofit fits those guidelines.

Information taken from: Joanne Fritz. “5 Common Grant Proposal Mistakes You Want to Avoid.” http://nonprofit.about.com/.

Back