Seven ways to turn around your trusts & foundations fundraising

Here’s a secret that not every fundraiser will admit: we all go through periods where things aren’t going to plan and we’re not quite sure how to change it. Periods when it feels like the money is drying up, you’re hearing no more often than yes, and you’re struggling to inject that fresh sparkle into your work.

With Covid-19 piling yet more pressure and competition on trusts and foundations, there’s arguably never been a tougher time to fundraise. For many organisations, emergency funding will tide them over until the end of the financial year, but the pressure to find that next big grant win is never far away.

If you're going through a lean patch and feel like you've tried everything, here's out checklist of things to try:

Even the best fundraisers experience a dry patch, but there are various ways to turn things around

1. Beef up your evidence of need

Funders generally only care about what you do and how you do it if you first convince them why your work is so vital. This is one of the best ways to make sure your application truly stands out.

If you haven’t taken the time recently to refresh your evidence base, this is a great way to strengthen your case for support. For example:

• Has another organisation or your local authority published up-to-date research that independently verifies the need for your services?
• Have any recent events exacerbated the challenges faced by the people you support, and could you explain this more clearly?
• Could any recent news stories or high-profile events act as a ‘hook’ for funders?

2. Bring things to life with case studies, images and videos

If your core narrative is already strong, then turning your attention to the supporting elements is a great way to enhance your applications:

• Can you collect a new case study or testimonial to perfectly illustrate the power of your work?
• Can you source some fresh images or create an engaging video?
• Is there a more visually appealing way to present key information – for example, converting statistics into an infographic?

Too many people think of trusts and foundations as faceless institutions only looking for cold hard facts and statistics. But great applications appeal to hearts as well as minds. Even the larger, professionally-run funders like human detail, personal stories and visual content - so this is often an area to make quick improvements.

3. Squeeze every drop of feedback from funders

​Trusts and foundations often feel they lack the time and resources to provide feedback (particularly at the moment) or worry it might be contentious and generate unwanted debate. But if you're persistent and diligent about seeking and responding to feedback, it's a great way of turning around a run of rejections.

Getting meaningful feedback after a rejected application can often feel like trying to get blood from a stone

Even if a funder doesn’t automatically provide feedback, it’s sometimes possible to get it by asking politely, explaining why it would be so helpful and being clear and specific about what you want.

Try calling rather than emailing for feedback - in my experience, funders are often willing to give more detailed and honest feedback over the phone, as it can be more nuanced and ‘off the record’. If you’ve managed to build a rapport with a Grants Officer before submitting an application, they’re much more likely to be helpful afterwards too.

4. Revisit your project - is there another way to deliver it?

In the current climate, many funders will be more risk-averse - with more applicants, and potentially less money to give away, they'll be keen to avoid projects that don't deliver results.

This could pose a problem if you’re trying to deliver an experimental or long-term project, or reliant on grants from several funders to go ahead. With Covid-19, many organisations can demonstrate an urgent need for support and show how grants will have an instant impact. In a crisis-driven landscape, the last thing funders want is the possibility that your grant might lie dormant for a few months before it can be spent.

So now is a good time to step back and consider whether there’s a different way of delivering your project:

• Could you design a smaller pilot to start ASAP, then scale it up once more funding is secured?
  
• Could your capital project (which are particularly tricky at the moment) be split into several shorter, independent phases?
  
• Could you trim any non-essential budget lines to reduce your shortfall and seem like a lower-risk proposition?

5. Anticipate and address any ‘red flags’

​There are common reasons why funders might be concerned about your organisation – if your reserves seem too high or too low (sometimes you can’t win!), if your work sounds unusually expensive to deliver, or perhaps if it sounds like a service that they expect another organisation (or the local authority) to be delivering instead.

If you’re experiencing a run of funding rejections, spend some time anticipating what your ‘red flags’ might be, and proactively address them in your applications. If you can’t get feedback from funders to help with this, try going through your applications with a mentor, friend or fundraiser from another charity to get some independent advice and a new perspective.

6. Do some fresh prospect research

​Trusts and foundations frequently change their priorities and new programmes spring up all the time, particularly as funders scramble to respond to changing needs arising from Covid-19. While you'll inevitably stumble across some opportunities by chance or word-of-mouth, doing some proactive research will help you to unearth better prospects, and is a great way out of a rut.

It helps to think creatively about the impact of your projects, particularly if they're a bit niche. For example, with a few tweaks to your case for support, your community gardening project might appeal to funders that are focused on improving mental health or reducing social isolation for older people, but weren't previously on your radar.

We recommend using a funding database like Funds Online or Funding Central, or the excellent free database by Charity Excellence Framework. You should also check whether you can sign up for regular funding alerts with your local authority or Community Voluntary Service (CVS).

7. Review the balance between quality and quantity

​When a couple of key funding decisions go against you, it’s easy to hit the panic button and start churning out as many applications as possible. While this might temporarily ease the pressure, it rarely produces better results. Actually, you probably need to spend more rather than less time getting applications spot on, in the ways that we’ve described above.
 
If you’re on an unlucky run, take a step back and make sure you’re focusing on quality rather than quantity - even if that involves pushing back on pressure and targets from anxious colleagues. Use previous successes to remind yourself that you are good at your job, and that by following some of the steps above, you’ll turn around results in no time.

​Good luck!