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 Volume
III • June 2005
Small Grants, Large Impacts
Dear Philanthropy Professional,
Many of us have witnessed the enduring impact that major philanthropic gifts can have in promoting social change. But in today’s world of diminished resources and more narrowly focused program goals, many funders are faced with the challenge of making smaller gifts work harder.
If you want to make large impacts with small gifts, where do you begin? First, you need to do your homework, and become fully informed about the “who, what and where” of the gift you are considering. To arrive at the right answers, ask the right questions:
• Who are the leading experts in the field that your gift will benefit?
• What are the most promising organizations doing work in this field?
• Where can you focus your giving so it will have the most impact?
In this third IdeaMail from Putnam Community Investment Consulting, you’ll learn about the “12 Strategies for Making Large Impacts with Small Grants”. We share with you a dozen gems of time-tested wisdom that can help you to give smarter, even when you can’t give much. Our hope? That even the smallest gift can create ripple effects that extend far beyond the initial impact to sustain positive change.
12 Strategies for Making Large Impacts with Small Grants
1. Educate Yourself
Be fully informed about your issue. Know who else is funding it, what the current needs are, and how to create the most impact. Devote a day to researching your topic. Conduct a search on Google and review everything you find. As you read, identify key experts and foundation program officers most closely aligned with this issue. Call or email these people to schedule informational interviews. Ask them to share their best knowledge about the field, and to offer opinions on how your funding can make a difference.
2. Invest in a Great Leader
Identify a leader you believe in, find out what they need to become more effective, then provide that support. Perhaps they could use executive coaching or management training to build a more effective team. They may want to participate in a leadership development program or take a sabbatical to reflect on options and opportunities. Explore the Leadership Learning Community to learn about nonprofit leadership development.
3. Invest in a Great Organization
Identify a nonprofit that is creating social change and contribute to its long-term sustainability by funding organizational capacity building. Earmark your funds for general operating support, strategic planning, a feasibility study, improved fiscal management, fund development, or management information systems. Visit Grantmakers for Effective Organizations for more resources on how to fund nonprofit capacity building.
4. Focus Your Giving
The more focused your giving, the greater your impact. Focus on a single issue, a specific strategy, a targeted region, or an affected population. You might also identify several organizations with proven track records in your chosen area and direct your giving to their most promising programs or projects.
5. Provide Multi-Year Funding
When you support an organization over two or more successive years, you help it to free up more resources that can be directed toward program goals rather than fundraising. Your gift will also tell other potential funders that this issue or organization is worthy of a serious commitment.
6. Leverage Your Resources
Partner with other donors and foundations to pool resources, leverage knowledge and extend impact. Private donors can make smaller grants to leverage larger public funding. You might also join existing funding collaboratives, giving circles, donor networks or community foundations. Explore your local regional association of grantmakers or the Women’s Funding Network, or identify local community foundations.
7. Convene Grassroots Organizers and Nonprofit Leaders
You can play a critical role by simply bringing people together to learn from one other. You might convene organizations focused on similar issues in your city, state, or country. Provide a conference room, reimburse meal or travel expenses or help to plan the meeting agenda. Another way to leverage support is to cover meeting and conference costs for nonprofit staff who could not otherwise afford to attend.
8. Fund an Evaluation
Anytime an organization can prove their effectiveness, they are more likely to secure future funding. Even a modest grant can allow organizations to determine their impact by conducting surveys, interviews or focus groups. Contact Grantmakers for Effective Organizations to find out how you can support nonprofit evaluation.
9. Fund Policy Change
Local, state and national policies can have far-reaching impact on people and communities. Support policy change by funding research and dissemination of findings on critical issues. Fund media advocacy, policy advocacy organizations and policy advocacy training for grassroots leaders. Discover how philanthropy can support policy change with the Public Policy Grantmaking Toolkit.
10. Provide Program-Related Investments
Extend your resources by providing Program-Related Investments (PRIs). Make a below-market or no-interest loan, or pledge your credit as security for an organization’s bank loan. For more information on PRIs, visit Foundation in a Box.
11. Fund Globally
Small grants go far when you send them across the world. To learn more about how to make international donations and grants, contact the Global Fund for Women or the international funder affinity groups of the Council on Foundations.
12. Offer Challenge Grants
Jump-start an organization’s development efforts by offering a matching grant. For example, promise to donate $10,000 if they can secure three more gifts of $10,000 each. Your gift will inspire both the grantee and other donors.
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