Behind the Grantmaker's Curtain

Instrumentl

Go behind the grantmaker's curtain to learn from the perspective of foundations. Listen to this mini-series to learn how to craft an effective grant proposal that wins funding. We'll explore topics such as: - What are common mistakes grant seekers make? - What do grantmakers want to see more of? - How can grant-seekers better prepare their 501c3s for the proposals of the grantmakers? This podcast is brought to you by Instrumentl, the institutional fundraising platform. Start saving three hours a week and increase your grant application output by 78% by creating a free 14-day account at www.instrumentl.com. Save $50 off your first month with the code FOUNDATION50.

Episodes

  1. 06/08/2022

    The Golden Rule for Grant Applications: Waccamaw Community Foundation (Ep. 6)

    Podcast Information ​Want to win more grants for your nonprofit? Struggling to figure out how to position your nonprofit in the best light possible for grantmakers? ​If you're trying to take a deep dive and learn what grantmakers are looking for in their applicants, this podcast interview episode is for you. ​By the end of this 35-minute episode with Kristen Bitzegaio, you’ll learn:  Common red flags in grant applications that every grantseeker needs to avoidThe #1 piece of advice for grantseekersHow grantmakers evaluate grant proposalsAbout Us Instrumentl brings grant discovery, research, and tracking to one place. With Instrumentl, development staff are more effective and efficient at finding the right grants for their nonprofits. Instrumentl helps save 3 hours a week on average and increases grant application output by 78% within a year. Kristen Bitzegaio is passionate about making my community a better place to live and work. She has worked in the nonprofit sector for nearly 20 years in various capacities, including as a marketing director, a community engagement coordinator, a program manager, and an executive director. She loves to learn and grow and thinks one of the best ways to do that is through strong relationships. Additional Resources Get personalized grant recommendations for your nonprofit today. Save $50 off your first month of Instrumentl with the code, FOUNDATION50.Download the Ultimate Grant Writing Resources Collection

    35 min
  2. 05/30/2022

    The Key to Writing Grants that Win More Funding: Santa Barbara Community Foundation (Ep. 5)

    Podcast Information ​Want to win more grants for your nonprofit? Struggling to figure out how to position your nonprofit in the best light possible for grantmakers? ​If you're trying to take a deep dive and learn what grantmakers are looking for in their applicants, this podcast interview episode is for you. ​By the end of this 35-minute episode with Pedro Paz, you’ll learn:  The #1 reason why your grant essay is getting rejected time and time againThe importance of grant reports and how you can use them to your advantageHow to write budgets that impress grantmakersAbout Us Instrumentl brings grant discovery, research, and tracking to one place. With Instrumentl, development staff are more effective and efficient at finding the right grants for their nonprofits. Instrumentl helps save 3 hours a week on average and increases grant application output by 78% within a year. Pedro Paz is the Director of Policy and External Affairs for the Santa Barbara foundation with over 20 years of non-profit, philanthropic, and government experience, including agency administration, budget oversight, and program development. He has demonstrated leadership in the field of grantmaking, community relations and donor management. He is recognized as an evaluator with comprehensive experience in non-profit program evaluation. He has vast knowledge in identifying, designing, and implementing programs and policies to address identified needs. He also has extensive experience training and presenting to groups on evaluation and program development and implementation. Additional Resources Get personalized grant recommendations for your nonprofit today. Save $50 off your first month of Instrumentl with the code, FOUNDATION50.Download the Ultimate Grant Writing Resources Collection

    33 min
  3. 05/22/2022

    How to Master the Art of Nonprofit Grant Storytelling: North Valley Community Foundation (Ep. 4)

    Podcast Information ​Want to win more grants for your nonprofit? Struggling to figure out how to position your nonprofit in the best light possible for grantmakers? ​If you're trying to take a deep dive and learn what grantmakers are looking for in their applicants, this podcast interview episode is for you. ​By the end of this 35-minute episode with Alexa Benson-Valavanis, you’ll learn:  How to craft a brilliant grant essay that will impress grantmakersThe importance of grant reportingHow to build a nonprofit narrative that will improve your chances of getting repeat grantsAbout Us Instrumentl brings grant discovery, research, and tracking to one place. With Instrumentl, development staff are more effective and efficient at finding the right grants for their nonprofits. Instrumentl helps save 3 hours a week on average and increases grant application output by 78% within a year. Alexa has served as president and CEO since July 2005. She was recruited to play basketball at Chico State University and graduated with a degree in journalism, then worked in business development in Shanghai, China, before starting an organization supporting nonprofit development in Guatemala. Alexa was hired to rebuild NVCF in 2005, and engineered a new business model mobilizing social entrepreneurs and philanthropists locally and around the globe. Under Alexa's leadership the foundation has grown from serving a dozen clients to more than 500 clients, engaging tens of thousands of donors, generating revenue of more than $152 million, while reinvesting nearly $100 million to causes in Northern California, the United States and throughout the world.  On Nov. 8, 2018, Alexa transformed NVCF into the lead philanthropic organization in the Camp Fire relief and recovery effort and has since built a COVID-19 response arm in efforts to help slow the pandemic and provide relief to at-risk populations. To date, NVCF has granted more than $53 million for wildfire recovery and has mobilized more than $3 million for COVID-19 response. Additional Resources Get personalized grant recommendations for your nonprofit today. Save $50 off your first month of Instrumentl with the code, FOUNDATION50.Download the Ultimate Grant Writing Resources Collection

    44 min
  4. 05/15/2022

    The #1 Reason Why Your Grant Application Gets Rejected: Montana Community Foundation (Ep. 3)

    Podcast Information ​Want to win more grants for your nonprofit? Struggling to figure out how to position your nonprofit in the best light possible for grantmakers? ​If you're trying to take a deep dive and learn what grantmakers are looking for in their applicants, this podcast interview episode is for you. ​By the end of this 35-minute episode with Elisa Fiaschetti, you’ll gain:  The secret "sauce" that the Montana Community Foundation uses to evaluate grant applicationsThe #1 reason why your grant application gets rejected​The step-by-step breakdown of what the best grant applicants are doing and what you should do to replicate themAbout Us Instrumentl brings grant discovery, research, and tracking to one place. With Instrumentl, development staff are more effective and efficient at finding the right grants for their nonprofits. Instrumentl helps save 3 hours a week on average and increases grant application output by 78% within a year. Elisa Fiaschetti is the grants program officer for the Montana Community Foundation. In the past, she was the rural community development manager for the Montana Governor's Office of Economic Development where she worked to assist rural and tribal communities with various community development projects, helped identify and address roadblocks to success, and supported community efforts to increase community and economic opportunities in rural communities.  She also developed and managed the Main Street Montana Rural Partners Initiative, an initiative focusing on empowering small towns in Montana. Additional Resources Get personalized grant recommendations for your nonprofit today. Save $50 off your first month of Instrumentl with the code, FOUNDATION50.Download the Ultimate Grant Writing Resources Collection

    37 min
  5. 05/08/2022

    How to Make Your Grant Applications Shine: Columbus Foundation (Ep. 2)

    ​Want to win more grants for your nonprofit? Struggling to figure out how to position your nonprofit in the best light possible for grantmakers? ​If you're trying to take a deep dive and learn what grantmakers are looking for in their applicants, this podcast interview episode is for you. ​By the end of this 35-minute episode with Danielle Tong, you’ll learn:  The most memorable applications she has read & how you can replicate them step-by-stepThe best grant writing tips that make your organization stand out in the large pool of applicantsHow grassroots and established nonprofit organizations can meaningfully build relationships with grantmakersAbout Us Instrumentl brings grant discovery, research, and tracking to one place. With Instrumentl, development staff are more effective and efficient at finding the right grants for their nonprofits. Instrumentl helps save 3 hours a week on average and increases grant application output by 78% within a year. Danielle Tong is the director at the Columbus Foundation, where she provides leadership to capacity building programs and grantmaking. Prior to that, she used Lean Six Sigma as a consultant in my own firm that focused on building capacity and streamlining processes for nonprofits across the state. She also applied it in the fight against infant mortality, in her work with the Ohio Department of Medicaid, as a Lean Six Sigma project manager and coach for managed care plans. Additional Resources: Get personalized grant recommendations for your nonprofit today. Save $50 off your first month of Instrumentl with the code, FOUNDATION50.Download the Ultimate Grant Writing Resources Collection

    34 min
  6. 05/02/2022

    How to Optimize Your Grant Application and Win More Funding: Cobb Community Foundation (Ep. 1)

    Podcast Information ​Want to win more grants for your nonprofit? Struggling to figure out how to position your nonprofit in the best light possible for grantmakers? ​If you're trying to take a deep dive and learn what grantmakers are looking for in their applicants, this podcast interview episode is for you. ​By the end of this 40-minute episode with Shari Martin, you’ll learn:  How community-based foundations can improve their applications by talking about their immediate impact and how they connect with their local communities​What differentiates the effective grant-winning budgets from ineffective budgets​How your grant application can stand out in the hundreds of other grant applicationsAbout Us Instrumentl brings grant discovery, research, and tracking to one place. With Instrumentl, development staff are more effective and efficient at finding the right grants for their nonprofits. Instrumentl helps save 3 hours a week on average and increases grant application output by 78% within a year. Shari Martin from Cobb Community Foundation and Will Yang will teach you the best nonprofit grants and how you can optimize your grants for nonprofit organizations because grant writing correct is very difficult if you are a nonprofit organization. Not only that, you need to know how to find grants, and how to write a grant proposal so that you can stand out among a pool of applicants. Grant proposals are key to nonprofit growth and that is why some people ask how to find grants and that answer is simple. It all comes down to how to write grant essays because grant essays will make or break your applications. Additionally, you need to know how to find the best grants because making sure your organization matches with the grant giver is critical. Additional Resources Get personalized grant recommendations for your nonprofit today. Save $50 off your first month of Instrumentl with the code, FOUNDATION50.Download the Ultimate Grant Writing Resources Collection

    41 min

About

Go behind the grantmaker's curtain to learn from the perspective of foundations. Listen to this mini-series to learn how to craft an effective grant proposal that wins funding. We'll explore topics such as: - What are common mistakes grant seekers make? - What do grantmakers want to see more of? - How can grant-seekers better prepare their 501c3s for the proposals of the grantmakers? This podcast is brought to you by Instrumentl, the institutional fundraising platform. Start saving three hours a week and increase your grant application output by 78% by creating a free 14-day account at www.instrumentl.com. Save $50 off your first month with the code FOUNDATION50.