Which came first..?
Which came first, the chicken or the egg? The project or the funding?
Here’s the problem. You need to be more than just a good egg with a good project idea to make a funder part with their money.
But you can’t afford to invest in getting a project started without the funding being guaranteed...
So what’s the solution?
Like the chicken and egg question, there’s no straight answer. But here are some top tips to help you manage the balance:
Focus more time on building relationships with funders and demonstrating the credibility of your organisation. Unrestricted funding is the golden ticket, but it doesn’t come without the groundwork. This is not a fundraising quick fix, but building trust is the best way to increase your chances of a funder granting you unrestricted funding.
Ask yourself the question, “What would we do if funding wasn’t an issue?” Design and develop projects with this in mind.
Be rigorous in your needs assessments, monitoring and reporting. Don’t rely on empty claims – back up your project ideas with data.
Aim for a balance. Look for funders who desire to invest in new and innovative concepts, but also build a pipeline of potential investors that would carry a project forward beyond its initial stages.
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