Better Grant Research in Five Moves
Our top five tips for grantmaker research that actually works.
If you want to find more good-fit grants (not just more grants to stress about not having time to apply for and get sad about when you don’t win), your research process matters.
We’ve never met a nonprofit that’s swimming in extra time and capacity! In our experience, there’s always so much to do and too little time to do it. So when it comes to searching for grants, we’re ruthless about evidence and strategy.
A thoughtful approach about the grantmakers and grants that are worthy of your attention will save you time and dramatically increase your odds of success. Here are five tips we swear by.
Step 1: Get clear on your grant-appropriate funding needs.
Not everything is a good fit for grant funding. Before you start searching, ask:
What projects, programs, or capacity needs are truly grant-appropriate?
Are you looking for restricted program support, general operating, capital, planning, or something else?
Is this something foundations and other grant-makers typically fund?
Grants are best for defined projects, strategic growth (i.e. a project you piloted on a shoestring that’s ready for increased investment to scale), or aligned general operating support.
They are rarely a quick fix for structural deficits, and even general operating support is hard to get from grantmakers that don’t already know and trust you.
Ensure you’re looking for funding for things that grantmakers will fund, and the clearer you are about what you’re seeking, the better your research will be.
Step 2: Start with who is already funding in your issue area or geography (ideally both).
The most efficient place to begin? Follow the money.
Look at:
Who is funding organizations doing similar work?
Who is investing in your geographic area?
Where do those two overlap?
Funders tend to think in “buckets”. Either they fund a specific set of issues/topics/types of programs or they fund specific geographic areas, and more often than not, they have preferences on both.
So, if they are funding your issue and your region, that’s a strong signal of potential fit. You are looking for alignment patterns and signs that your work fits in with their priorities, not just big, recognizable names.
Step 3: Use publicly available data and your human network.
There is more information available than ever. You can review:
Foundation websites and IRS Form 990s
Peer organizations’ 990s, annual reports, and funder lists
Platforms like Candid and Instrumentl
And yes, more tools are popping up every day.
But don’t overlook your best source: people. Talk to peer organizations. Ask your local community foundation. Tap nonprofit capacity-building networks (most states have them).
Funders tend to be great sources of information about their peers, as it’s part of a program officer’s job to understand who else is funding in their subject area or geographic location. If you have good relationships with your point of contact at foundations who already fund you, we love encouraging our clients to start there.
Fundraising is relational. Often, a 20-minute conversation will tell you more than hours of online searching.
Step 4: Create a ranked, vetted list that is actually useful.
The goal is not a giant spreadsheet. In fact, our biggest pet peeve is a giant, unwieldy, disorganized, unvetted list of hundreds of theoretical funders. That’s sometimes even more overwhelming than having nothing at all!
Better to have a list of 10 solid, well-vetted prospects that:
Fund your type of organization
Support your type of work and programs
Invest in your geography
Are open to new grantees
…than an AI-generated list of 200 names (no shade to AI) that doesn’t get you any closer to strategic action.
Rank your prospects.
Note why they’re a fit.
Identify next steps (beginning with looking for warm connections or open applications).
A tight, strategic list beats volume every time.
Step 5: Do the work, consistently.
This is the most important step.
Research does not raise money. Outreach and applications do.
We would rather see steady, consistent action over the course of a year than bursts of energy followed by long silences. Grant fundraising works best when:
It is project-managed
It lives on someone’s plate/ it is someone’s job
It happens every day, week, or month
Consistency beats intensity! It has never been about writing one perfect application. It’s about understanding who might fund you, getting in front of those people, and making the case for alignment and investment.
If you need help, get in touch.
This is what we do!
We give you an evidence-based, data driven, strategic boost and show you what your real funding landscape looks like, so you can take what we build and run with it for years.
We’re all about capacity bumps rooted in good data and strong strategy.
Because good research isn’t about more names and endless lists! It’s about better bets, and the discipline to pursue them.