Storytelling for Grantseekers: A Guide to Creative Nonprofit Fundraising

WHY THE SUMMARY IS LIKE A BOOK JACKET

There are several similarities between the bookstore scenario and what happens inside foundation, corporate, and government offices all across the country when proposals are being reviewed. Think of grant proposals as the array of available books. In many ways, a program officer or other proposal reviewer is a lot like we are when we visit a bookstore. For practical reasons, we often can buy only one, two, or maybe a handful of books at any one time. Likewise, the great majority of potential grantmakers can fund just a fraction of the many proposals they receive.

You’ll recall that, on average, the ratio of proposals submitted to those funded is about ten or twelve to one. And the number of submissions ...