Free Money to Grow Your Startup? Apply for Grant Funding
At Tortoise Labs, we've gained a lot of experience seeking grant funding for our internal projects and advising the founders of the businesses we help start and grow. Over the last two years, we've received hundreds of thousands of dollars in grant funds for ourselves and others. However, before 2019, we had never considered grants viable funding opportunities for product studios like us or for the startups in Maine that we help to start and grow.
Fortunately, we were wrong, as grants not only provide valuable (undiluted) capital to cash-strapped startups, but we have learned that the grant writing process has been essential to improving the foundation of our business and the businesses we work with moving forward.
In this article, we will cover the important things you need to know before you start applying for grants and what grant officers are looking for when you apply. We'll also discuss ways to strengthen your application by answering critical questions that funders will expect you to read in your application.
Startup progress will strengthen your grant application
Before you begin to think about applying for any type of funding (whether it be grant funding or otherwise), you want to make as much progress on your startup as you can. When you’re first building your startup prototype and evaluating customer demand, it’s likely that what you create will differ (sometimes significantly) from your initial idea.
It’s certainly true that it’s possible to raise money or receive grant funding from an idea. However, because grant funding is focused on completing a specific project in order to meet specific goals within a specific budget, the clarity gained by your initial startup experimentation and evaluation will make for a focused application. More importantly, because you have clear objectives, meeting or exceeding them will allow you, in some cases, to immediately apply for another grant.
Ideally, when you’re applying for a grant, your startup at least has a prototype and your first customers in place. While different funders accept applications of all types (including applications from founders who want to evaluate their idea), having proof of customer demand will make your application significantly stronger, increase the likelihood that you’ll receive funding, and increase the number of funders that will be available for funding. Progress will demonstrate to grant officers that you've already evaluated your idea, which will give your application a competitive advantage.
The more startup progress that you’ve made, the more specific your grant application can be
Many funders require that you write your application about a specific “project” with a clear scope of work and budget. When presenting your project, try to be as focused and specific as possible. For example, your project might include the following pieces you want to complete in a specified time period:
Design and develop an iOS prototype
Create a customer feedback system
Earn your first $5,000 in revenue
Successful grants are outcome-based, meaning that you need to define your desired results very clearly and how you're going to get there, along with a detailed budget. You will need to think through your ideas and how you can turn them into straightforward content that anyone can understand.
The grant writing process forces you to evaluate your startup’s weaknesses
Whenever we have written or contributed to an application, the grant writing process has always pushed us to focus on the essence of our business and only focus on what was necessary for us to be successful. Over time we've learned that the application can be distilled into three main questions that you need to answer:
Why should you be awarded this grant, and what are the intended outcomes?
To achieve the intended result, what will you need to do?
What things do you need to do to reach your outcome, and how much will it cost to get you there?
There are resources in Maine available that can help you with your application.
We're here to help you build your prototype and get your first customers.
SCORE provides free mentoring and low-cost webinars to small businesses and can help with grant writing and financial modeling.
There are also mentors available through SCORE and the CEI Women's Business Center.
We also recommend Pen Name, a Maine-based PR and grant-writing firm, to work with for paid help. Elaine has been a valuable resource whenever we have required grant-writing assistance.
The Guide to Resources for Maine Entrepreneurs lists grant funders (as well as other helpful resources for Maine-based startups).
Elaine, who has written grants in excess of $750,000 in awards, advocates for grant candidates to deeply understand who will be reading their application.
“Above all, know your funder. What are their giving priorities? What language do they use when describing their mission? Make sure that your proposal is well-aligned with the type of proposal they want to fund. If there isn’t strong alignment, don’t change your project to fit the funder - that won’t help you achieve your goal, and it won’t make for a compelling proposal. Instead, find the funder whose goals match yours.”
Make sure that you get feedback from your grant officer as they are there to help you and want to see you succeed. Remember that, like all good things, grant funding can take time to materialize. Still, the effort is worth the payoff, especially when it comes to undiluted capital.
An example of how the grant writing process starts
Based on our experience writing and submitting grant applications, we thought that we’d share our experience of what the getting started process has looked like for one particular funder, the Maine Technology Institute (MTI).
Complete the pre-application on MTI's website. This process asks some basic questions about your business in order to determine whether your business is a fit for funding. While it might take you some time to read through the materials about the funder, the pre-application form should only take 10 minutes to complete.
Should your business pass the initial pre-application screen, you will be invited to set up a call with a grant officer to review your business' VIRAL assessment. A VIRAL assessment is a company self-assessment that MTI uses to understand your business. Make sure you've checked your assessment and prepare notes ahead of the meeting so that you can focus your conversation on you and your business's specific needs.
Start work on your application. After your call with the grant advisor, you'll be invited to work on your application if you're a good fit.
Grant writing is a process that highlights the main areas of weakness of your business, which allows you to make specific requests in order to improve and grow your business. With a willingness to work through the grant writing process and by taking advantage of the resources we've highlighted, you can secure funding for your startup and start growing revenue quicker.
Ready to use grants to grow your startup or small business?
I’d love to help you get started.