1. Developing and Writing Winning Individual, Corporate and Foundation Proposals Robin Heller, Director, Corporate and Foundation Philanthropy, BBBSA Robert Osborne, Jr., The Osborne Group

2. Welcome and Introductions Who we are Who YOU are

3. Today we’ll cover: –Increasing your fundraising skills –Capacity building vs. programmatic grants –Drawing on powerful BBBS narratives –Distinguishing your proposal from the competition’s

4. The Major Gift Donor Cycle Identify the critical few: those with the greatest capacity to give Discovery: Learn about them; share the story Developing a relationship Engaging and InvolvingAsking for a specific amount Saying thank you Providing stewardship and accountability Preparing to ask

5. It’s Whom You Know! Get in front of the decision makers Screening Lists Partnerships Volunteers Guidelines can mean everything or nothing

6. Decision Makers The case must be tailored to philanthropic decision makers!

7. Persuasion YOU are the experts in your field Funders can be made to see your point of view But first you have to get in front of them!

8. The Elements of a Case for Support Why BBBS? Shared values The wisdom, integrity and vision of your leadership and plan The “benefits” of the giving purpose or partnership opportunity The reason for urgency – why now. An invitation to learn more

9. Case for Support Tips Clarity about mission and core values Use key themes and messages Stories, statistics and third party endorsements Bigger than agency Know your audience Create buzz

10. Going to Scale or The Tipping Point! What impact will this have in your community, state or region?

11. To Tailor Your Case You must know your prospective donors’ and partners’: –Interests –Values –Motivations –Expectations

12. “Selling” Themselves Social scientists tell us that people remember more of what they say (70%) than what we say (34%) So we need our prospective partners to share the case with us!

13. Persuasive Proposals Include… Cover letter Executive summary Who you are – your credentials and track record Context – the need Your response – your bold ideas Connections to the funder’s mission Partnerships and relationships – increasingly they want to know how you’re partnering with others.

14. More Proposal Components Project specifics Potential impact Benefits How you will measure success How you will fund the project beyond the requested grant Costs, budget and timeline Conclusion

15. Keep In Mind… The bulk of the proposal is about the project specifics –What will you do? –Who will do it? –When? –How much will it cost? –What is the expected impact?

16. Length of Proposal Executive Summary – one page Entire proposal – as long as you need to say what you need to say Six pages or less! Foundation Center recommends no more than 10 pages

17. Proposal Maxim A great proposal won’t get you funded if no one reads it!

18. Building in Recognition and Accountability What difference will this project make? How would you publicize and recognize an investment? How will you keep the donor connected to the impact and outcomes? If involvement matters to the donor, how could a donor become involved directly with the area of interest?

19. Capacity Building Grants Funds everything that we are talking about at the conference!

20. Capacity Building Proposals: Leadership development Strategic planning Funds development Marketing Staff training Technology Other examples?

21. Capacity Building grants fund the “Big Picture”

22. Excellence in Capacity Building Proposals: The focus is on.... Leadership Proof-positive results Past performance and future excellence Community and societal impact

23. Programmatic Proposals Staff Program direction Volunteer recruitment

24. An invitation to invest in children

25. Excellence in Programmatic Proposals: The proposal focuses on.... Relevance Results Growth Children, family, and community Excellence in BBBS staff Evoking emotion

26. Outlining Helps organize your thoughts A tool for getting internal buy-in and comments A tool for getting external buy-in and comments

27. Outlines… Include all elements of the proposal –What is the need? –What is the solution? –How is BBBS uniquely qualified to tackle the problem? –What will be different after the grant is received?

28. Stewardship Spending the donor’s money as agreed. Managing philanthropic funds prudently. Thanking the donor immediately and well. Recognizing donor gifts appropriately. Demonstrating in a visceral way the significance and impact of the donor’s gift. Sharing the joy of the gift. Continuing to demonstrate impact creatively, over time.

29. What matters to funders... Communication Profile Publicity Leverage Meaningful involvement Acknowledgement Impact!

30. Broadening the relationship Recruiting volunteers from the corporation Streaming potential board members Sharing organizational resources Events leadership Involvement in activities Expertise in children’s issues

31. Thank you!