Grant Writing Can Be Daunting And Time-Consuming
Don’t get sidetracked in the details. Most nonprofit leaders are not short of good work to fund. They are short of the many hours it takes to write a strong proposal. So, the deadline arrives, last year’s language gets reused, and the application goes in describing activity rather than impact.
Grant writing is a specialized skill. We take the guesswork out of research, writing, and material development. We help you understand which grants are worth your time. We develop targeted approaches and proposals to help your organization get, and stay, funded.
Contact us today for a free initial consultation.
Talk to a grant writer
What Our Grant Writing Services Include
Deep partnership and full-service support, or everything you need to get set up to win grants on your own.
Grant writing and management
We provide full service, customized grant writing. We create plans and tools to ensure grant fundraising is easy and smooth. We also help set up tools for reporting.
Grant prospecting and research
We provide in-depth research and analysis to help you locate appropriate funders and grants. You get a ranked, targeted list with deadlines and notes on funding likelihood.
State and local government
State and local funding can appear on tight or irregular timelines, so we watch closely for those windows. We build applications tailored to each agency’s specific priorities and budget requirements.
Corporate and foundation grants
Private foundation, family foundation, and corporate giving programs, including the relationship building that can be key to grant success.
Grant program management
We build the systems and strategy that keep your grant portfolio running. This includes a plan for which funders to grow with, a calendar for renewals, and tools to keep everything on track.
Teaching your team to write grants
We love to teach about grant writing. Some clients want that capability in house eventually. We’re happy to help you develop the skills you need to win grants on your own.
Our Grant Writing Process
Each project is slightly different, but we have a well-developed and time-tested process to ensure success.
- 01Audit what you have
We start by interviewing you and your team, reading past applications, reviewing data and your attachments, and understanding where you’ve seen success before. By understanding the current state, we identify gaps and learn your story.
- 02Find the right funders
We conduct in-depth research and analysis to find appropriate funders. Then we develop a strong database and prioritized calendar. We want to focus your work on grants you’ll actually win.
- 03Write to the impact
Using the most current information about your organization and our knowledge of sector trends, we build a content bank that becomes the foundation for targeted, funder-specific requests. We can also help develop program budgets and attachments.
- 04Submit it
We take on the heavy work of applying, portals included, so you can focus on running the organization. Nothing goes in without your review and your sign off.
- 05Report and manage
We create plans and tools for grant management, so reporting deadlines, spend down, and renewal dates are on a calendar rather than in somebody’s head.
From Denied, To A 20X Increase In Grant Revenue
Alex was a new Executive Director. He was skilled at asking for money and oversaw an award-winning program. So he couldn’t understand why his organization kept getting denied for grants.
PAC provided an audit of past grants and current processes, then helped find grants that were better aligned with Alex’s work. We improved his grant language to focus on the program’s impact and took on the heavy lifting of applying so Alex could focus on running the organization.
Within one year, his organization increased its grant revenue from $10,000 to over $200,000.
How We Price Our Work
We believe in transparency, so we want you to understand how we work before our initial call. Clients can choose from a variety of packages or a customized approach, built from years of observing what’s most cost-effective and useful for our clients.
A one-time engagement to build your foundation: funder research, a grant calendar, a reusable grant and LOI template, and more. Best if you want your team to write grants and need a solid place to start, or if you are newer to grant fundraising and need the systems in place before you start applying.
Like having an in-house grant writer, this ongoing partnership covers a set number of grants each year, plus calendar management, monthly strategy calls, and end-to-end writing and submission support. Best if you want a trusted partner handling the work.
For particular grants, editing work your team has drafted, or coaching staff. Best if your needs don’t fit neatly into a package.
Grant Writing For Colorado Nonprofits And Beyond
We are based in Denver and much of our work is Colorado work. Our team brings deep knowledge of the Colorado grant landscape: who is funding what this year, which state and county programs are open, and which foundations say yes to a first-time applicant.
We also bring deep experience working in other states and communities. Our approach translates well beyond Colorado. We’ve supported organizations navigating funding landscapes across the country, and we know how to quickly get up to speed on a region’s funders, priorities, and application norms. Wherever you’re located, we bring the same rigor and relationship-driven research to your grant strategy.
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What Our Clients Say
Kerri has been instrumental in helping me lead my non-profit organization from board leadership to fundraising to program design. Kerri is knowledgeable, reliable, and creative and I’d highly recommend Kerri to anyone looking to hire a consultant. In addition to all the coaching and support she has provided me, she is a highly effective grant writer. She took us from $5,000 to over $180,000 annually. She is also happy to teach and help my staff learn about grant writing.
Kerri’s professional, high-level support has allowed me to dedicate time, energy, and resources to creating a strong foundation for DAVA. From fine-tuning fundraising and events planning to board training, we have used this time to strengthen our internal systems and build the overall capacity of our organization. The improvements I have seen in our org leadership in just one year are impressive.
Grant Writing, Answered
Do you write government grants as well as foundation grants?
Both. Our team works across the entire grant lifecycle: state and local government, corporate, and private foundation proposals. Government applications need someone who has worked to an agency’s priorities and budget requirements before, and ours have.
We have never been awarded a grant before. Is it worth talking to you?
Yes, and that is a good moment to start. The most common reason a strong organization keeps getting declined is not the quality of the work, it is fit and language. Both are fixable, and an audit of what you have already sent usually shows where the problems are.
Do you work with nonprofits outside Colorado?
We do. We are Denver based and much of our client list is Colorado, but we have written for organizations from New York to California and internationally. Grant work is remote work.
Can you just review something we have already drafted?
Yes. Plenty of clients want an edit, a second pair of eyes on a budget, or prospect research only.
Will you teach our staff to do this in house?
Happily. We teach and help client staff learn grant writing alongside the work, and some clients use us to build their internal capacity and knowledge.
Do you work on commission?
No. Most professional grant writers don’t work on commission, because tying pay to whether a grant is funded can encourage inflated or misleading claims. The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Code of Ethics explicitly discourages percentage-based or commission-based compensation for this reason.
How long does a typical application take?
It varies by funder and complexity, but a typical grant application takes about 3 to 4 weeks from kickoff to submission for a standard proposal. This includes time for research, drafting, revisions, and final review. Simple LOIs or renewals can be faster; larger or more complex applications can take 6 to 12 weeks. We work closely with you and your other organizational deadlines to make sure grants are submitted well in advance.
What else do you do besides grant writing?
Grant writing sits inside a wider practice: strategic planning, facilitation and training, and program development. Funders notice when a proposal comes from an organization that knows where it is going.
Explore Our Other Services
Strategic Planning
Realistic, adaptive plans you’ll actually use. Learn, grow, and have fun doing it!
Learn more →Facilitation & Training
Retreats, community meetings, and training on nonprofit management topics.
Learn more →Program Development
Strengthen what works or create new programs.
Learn more →Meet the Team
The grant writers, facilitators, and strategists behind the work.
Learn more →