In every funding program some proposals are funded and many more proposals are not.  The proposals not selected for funding do not always contain bad ideas, but sometimes ideas that are not well presented.

Why Proposals Fail

People who are asked to review proposals submitted to funding organizations have a difficult and thankless job.  In one or two days they have to read dozens of proposals, each of which may be 100 or more pages, for little or no pay.  Certainly, the reading is neither exciting nor entertaining.  Reviewing proposals is academic work, probably at its dullest and driest.

Even though reviewing proposals is very important work that needs to be done with great care, reviewers often tend to be overly hasty in forming judgments and become easily irritated by dull or poorly worded proposals. Proposal reviewers commonly look for excuses to discard a proposal and move on to the next.  Reviewers commonly look for the following mistakes.

Guidelines not followed.  It is surprising, but nonetheless true, that a large percentage of proposals representing hundreds of hours of work fail to comply with the explicit guidelines published by the funding organization.

Not a priority.  Most funding organizations carefully define the kinds of projects they will support.  Many funding organizations further delimit the scope of possible projects they will consider by publishing a list of priority areas.  Nonetheless, many people believe they have an idea that the funding organization will like, even though the focus of their project lies outside of the priorities listed.

Not clear.  Some proposals are very hard to understand.  Many proposal writers unknowingly make it difficult for the reviewer to understand what will be done and how the money will be spent.

Not specific.  Many proposals fail to include specific information about the activities or tasks to be performed in a proposed project, how they will be accomplished, and the particular responsibilities people will have.  The incompleteness or obvious gaps in the content of some proposals cause reviewers to suspect that the proposal author(s) were not sufficiently knowledgeable or conscientious to develop the necessary details of their proposed project.

Old idea.  Some proposed projects are not new.  Funding organizations often do not want to put money into projects that have already been done somewhere else.

Weak idea.  The proposed project is not feasible, either financially or technically.

Idea not developed.  The proposal provides only a superficial analysis of the problem to be resolved.  Hasty preparation may be evident.

Technical weaknesses.  The proposed project may be a good idea, but there may be technical flaws or problems not realized by the proposal writer.

Faulty reasoning.  Reviewers often react negatively to faulty or incorrect reasoning expressed in a proposal.  Ideas should be expressed logically, concisely, and cogently.  The hypothesis needs to be viable.  The writing should discriminate between the consequential and the inconsequential.

Poor scholarship.  Many proposals fail because they do not address important or relevant issues in the discipline.

Poor organization.  Sometimes good ideas and good writing lose their persuasiveness because the proposal is not organized in such as way as to present the ideas in the order of their importance and relevance.

Written for wrong audience.  Often proposals fail to effectively communicate because the proposal is written for the wrong audience.

Why Is It Hard to Write a Proposal

Many people find writing a grant proposal to be difficult.  It is not that the writing itself is difficult, however.  Instead, the biggest reason that proposals seem difficult to write is that most proposal writers do not carefully develop and decide upon the many details of the project before they start writing.  Writing a proposal and making detailed decisions at the same time is indeed a very difficult task.  If project details have been fully developed, however, the proposal writing becomes easier.

It is true that some people find a grant or contract proposal nearly impossible to write.  This is due, in large part, to the fact that a proposal can be a long, complex, and complicated document.  A good proposal contains several sections written to support the great idea or theme on which the project is based.  The major theme is the great idea itself and its importance to a field or project.  Sections of the proposal written to support the great idea or theme may include descriptions of the operational plans for the proposed project, the expertise of the personnel involved, the expected outcomes of the proposed project, and, of course, the budget for proposed activities.  All of these involve many details that should be addressed in most proposals.

Proposals are made more complex, lengthy, and difficult to write when the proposal writer has not carefully thought through the proposed project.  In these cases, the writer often has only a vague concept of what is to be written. The unprepared proposal writer must not only write, but develop at the same time the great idea for the project and the conceptual and functional details and plans needed to carry it out.  Under these conditions, it is indeed very difficult to write a good proposal.

How to Develop a Project

Developing the operational details of a proposed project is a major task.  This work should be completed before any attempt is made to write a proposal document.

Start with a good idea.  The best place to start is with a good idea.  Discuss your idea with other people who are knowledgeable about the theme or general area of your proposed project.  Use their information and advice to evaluate and improve your idea.

Don’t start looking for money first.  Looking for money first is a common mistake.  People ask, “Where is the money?” or “Who has some money?”  This causes people to propose projects simply because money is available without regard for their own professional expertise or interests.

Proposal writers should start by developing their project ideas based upon their own professional experience and expertise.  Then they will be ready to look for funding organizations with a mission that supports that kind of activity.

Think before you write.  Think through the details before you begin to write.  Develop evidence that supports your ideas.  Decide upon the working details of how the project will be conducted.  Know what you want to do and what you want to write before you start writing.

Develop a long-term plan.  A proposal is usually stronger when it is a part of a long-range plan or strategy.  This is true of many kinds of projects, including research, creative projects, community enhancement, professional development, equipment acquisition, and student services.  By developing a project idea within a long-range plan, the proposal writer may discover other opportunities and possibly develop new approaches to conducting the project and developing funding support for it.

Create an outline.  As your project idea develops, begin an outline that can grow into a proposal.  Identify general categories of topics you want to cover, and place specific facts and ideas into the appropriate category.  Be realistic.  Always keep in mind what is feasible and possible.  It is a waste of time and energy to propose a project that ultimately cannot be accomplished.  Ideas at first glance may be exciting, but upon closer examination may be seen to be the product of enthusiasm rather than realistic, knowledgeable thinking.

Be specific.  When you develop your ideas, push yourself to be as specific and detailed as possible.  Ideas in general form can sound good, but may prove to be failures when their specifics are developed.  Good ideas are successful only if the details work.

Work with others.  Work with people who are experienced and knowledgeable in the field.  These individuals can provide opportunities to evaluate the strength and feasibility of your project ideas.  Sometimes they will help you develop your ideas as well.

Review other proposals.  Examine other proposals that have proposed projects similar to your own.  Read how these project ideas were developed.  Examine how the project ideas were defended.

Review similar projects.  Regardless of the uniqueness of your project, there will always be other projects that are similar or have important parallels to your own.  Learn from these projects.  Borrow their good ideas and learn from their mistakes.  Find out how successful these projects are or were.  Identify why or in what ways they failed.  Understand their problems.

Know the agency.  Look for funding organizations that share your mission.  Learn about these funding organizations.  Talk to their program directors.  Discuss their organization’s priorities and how they approach projects.  Determine which agency’s interests best match your own interests.  Then, and only then, consider how you might modify your project idea to enhance its appeal to the funding organization.