Funder Prospecting Research Template
TLDR
Most grant writing time gets wasted on funders who would never have funded the proposal. This research template forces a fit decision before the proposal starts: alignment with funder priorities, giving size and pattern, geographic match, application requirements, and competitive context. Use it to filter prospects so the writing time goes to opportunities with real probability.
Why Prospect Research Saves More Time Than Writing Faster
The most expensive grant writing is the proposal that never had a chance. Every grant writer can name a 40-hour proposal that was rejected because the funder does not actually support that type of program, that geography, or organizations of that size. The information was findable in 30 minutes before the writing started.
The skill that distinguishes mature grants programs is not faster writing. It is faster filtering. They run prospects through a structured screen before drafting. Prospects that fail the screen do not get a proposal, even if a board member is excited or the program officer was friendly at a conference. The discipline is hard, but it concentrates writing time on opportunities where the probability of funding is real.
This template provides the screening structure. It works for private foundations, federal programs, state programs, and corporate funders. The fields are slightly different for each funder type, but the logic is the same: fit, capacity, requirements, competition, and pipeline scoring.
For broader context on the grant lifecycle, see the grant lifecycle guide.
Stage 1: Initial Screen (15–20 minutes)
The initial screen kills most prospects fast. Five questions:
- Mission alignment. Is your program in the funder’s stated priority areas?
- Geographic fit. Does the funder give in your geography?
- Organization type. Does the funder fund organizations of your type and size?
- Giving size. Are typical grant sizes meaningful for your needs?
- Application status. Are they currently accepting applications?
If any answer is “no” or “unclear after 10 minutes of looking,” the prospect fails the screen. Move on.
Where to look in 15 minutes
- Funder website: priorities, geography, grant types, grant ranges, how to apply
- Most recent annual report: tone, recent grantees
- Most recent 990 (Schedule I): list of grants made
Foundation 990s are public. Pull them from Candid or ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. Schedule I shows every grant of $5,000 or more with recipient name, amount, and purpose. This is the most reliable source of funder behavior data — far more accurate than the website.
Funder Prospecting Research Template
A structured research template for evaluating private foundations, federal programs, and corporate funders before investing time in a proposal. Delivered by email.
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