How to Get a Business Grant
Starting a brand-new business from scratch can be a challenge, but it's worth it down the road when you begin achieving your goals. Fortunately there is a lot of help available in terms of small business grants and low-interest loans to help you get going financially. As for the hard work, drive, and determination, you'll have to supply that yourself. But with the right combination of all the elements there's no reason why your business can't succeed.
If you're just getting started with things you need to know that proper funding is absolutely necessary to achieve business success. If you've ever heard the phrase "you have to spend money to make money," that's certainly true when starting a new business. Your sources of funding can include bank loans, private equity investments, contributions from friends and family members, and grants. Of all of these sources, grants are the most difficult to procure because the process is something most of us aren't used to doing.
Step 1 - Finding Available Grants
Perhaps the hardest part about procuring grant money is finding small business grants that you qualify for. Right off the top you need to understand that the federal government does not provide small business grants for any reason. Don't waste your money on books and videos that promise you tons of "free" money the government is trying to give away. It's not true. That said, there are plenty of non-profits, businesses, and corporate entities with grant money to invest in your business.
Even though the federal government does not provide small business grants, The Small Business Administration (SBA) and Grants.gov websites both have searchable databases with information about the private entities that do. Both websites would be a good place to start looking for available grant money. The Small Business Administration is probably the better of the two choices because their website also includes a significant amount of helpful information about starting a business.
Finally, you can contact your local chamber of commerce and any trade organizations that might be pertinent to your business. They often have grant information available; sometimes they even provide small business grants themselves. With all the information you glean from the various sources your next task is to contact the various grant making organizations for instructions regarding how to apply.
Step 2 - Applying for Your Grants
Once you have a good handle on what grants are available to you, you'll need to begin the application process. This process involves several things including:
- writing your grant proposal
- gathering supporting material
- submission and follow-up
When writing your proposal you'll be following either the guidelines given to you by the grant making organization or a general model of a grant proposal you can find at a library, online, or from other sources. While all grant proposals are unique to one extent or another, they all contain common elements such as:
- the type of business you were starting
- your mission statement and goals
- both short and long-term plans put in place to achieve those goals
Be sure to include all of the elements specified by the grant making organization as well as anything else you feel is pertinent.
When you're writing your grant proposal you may need to submit supporting documents if requested by the grant making organization. For example, if you are planning to build a golf course you might be asked to submit pictures or a topical map of the land to support the notion that it's a good area for a golf course. Just remember that grant making organizations look at a lot of proposals. Keep yours as concise and short as possible without leaving anything out. An unnecessarily long grant proposal is unlikely to be read in its entirety, and more likely to be put at the bottom of the stack.
Once your grant proposal is complete, and any necessary supporting materials have been collected, you then submit your grant proposal to the organization. Ask them approximately how long it will take for your proposal to be reviewed then send a follow-up letter a week to 10 days after the estimated date. Your letter should be a simple note of thanks for taking the time to read your proposal as well as letting the organization know you're looking forward to hearing from them. Be polite, concise, and brief.
Step 3 - Keep Busy While You're Waiting
In most cases you will have to wait at least some amount of time before you hear back regarding your grant proposal. During that time you should keep busy attempting to secure other funding. It's important to realize that you will probably not get all of your funding from one or two sources; you may need half-a-dozen or a dozen. You can submit multiple grant proposals to different organizations as well as seek low-interest loans from the government, venture capital funding, and other sources of revenue.
The more active you are in seeking financing the more likely it is you'll secure what you need. But if you simply submit one or two grant proposals and then sit on your hands waiting for a response, your business may never get off the ground. It's also important to understand that very few grant seekers get a positive response on every proposal they write. You may write four or five proposals and only receive one or two grants. Don't get discouraged if you receive some negative responses in the beginning. Keep looking for new grants and keep writing your proposals until you have the funding you need.
Learning How to Write a Grant Proposal
Writing grant proposals is not especially complicated, but it is something that requires a certain amount of understanding and persuasiveness. You can learn to write grant proposals from a number of sources including online courses, grant writing videos and textbooks, and even night classes at your local continuing education department. Grant writing courses are generally inexpensive and go a long way in helping new business owners through the process.
If you find the process of grant writing terrifying, you do have the option of hiring a professional grant writer to help you. Typically professionals work through employment agencies for business groups, charging a fee based on a percentage of the amount of the grant you're seeking. Using a professional grant writing service obviously eats into your funding, but it might be worth it if you don't have the skills or knowledge to do it yourself.