5 Important Steps For Securing Grants

Getting grants is a great way to get extra capital into your business so you can keep it open or even scale it. The wonderful thing about grants is that you don’t need to repay the money. 

We met up with Jeri Toliver, the CEO of Flyy Credit and creator of Flyy Credit University to discuss steps to securing grants for your small business. This is going to help you all take your businesses to the next level. Even if your goal right now is to build up your credit, grants can be another source of funding to use while you access lines of credit, loans, and other sources. 

Here’s what you need to know about securing grants. 

1. Get Connected 

You have to be connected. That means expanding your network. Too many times solopreneurs do everything solo. Or even if we’re not solopreneurs, we’re so deep in our business that we don’t look up to make time to connect with other like-minded goal-centric people.

Leveraging your network is so important because it can expose you to so many opportunities. For example, connecting with other entrepreneurs and subscribing to email lists can give you information about grants. 

You can also ask your network for referrals and in turn, refer them to people as well.

Of course, you’ll have to do your due diligence to figure out which people are worth connecting with. We recommend starting within your circle and branching out. 

Once you find trustworthy and like-minded people, the next step is to take advantage of the opportunities you’re exposed to. 

Remember your network is your net worth. 

2. Pay Attention to the Deadlines

If you’re going to pursue a grant opportunity, remember there is a certain period of time that you have to apply for that opportunity. In a certain amount of time, you have to see that process through from beginning to end. And at any point you fail in that process you can lose out on a grant opportunity.

For example, many grants are open right now and the deadline is by the end of the month. Let’s say there’s a grant that you want but you are procrastinating. On the deadline day, you go to submit but you didn’t notice that 6 p.m. central time was the cut-off, and so you missed the deadline.

While it may seem silly, taking the time to properly plan your application and not waiting on the last minute can make a huge difference. 

3. Follow the Instructions

One of the main reasons people miss out on grants is that they don’t follow instructions. 

The first thing to check is eligibility. Every grant will tell you what makes a person eligible and being eligible does not guarantee you will get the grant it just means you are eligible to apply.

Next, you should thoroughly read the grant application instructions. Make sure you don’t miss anything.

We see how awesome businesses miss out on grants all the time because they didn’t follow instructions. For example, if you’re supposed to send a 2-minute video for a grant, if you send a 3 or 4-minute video, you’ll be automatically disqualified. People who award grants care if you follow instructions. In addition to that, there are usually so many applications so grant committees look for ways to eliminate people right off the bat. 

4. Check Your Emails

First of all, when you’re submitting your grant application make sure you use an email address you check regularly.

Many business owners forfeit grants they’ve applied for because they did not check their emails. Usually, if you were selected, you’ll have up to a specific date to respond to the email to claim your prize. 

The bottom line is, if you know you applied for a grant, regularly check your inbox and spam. 

5. Meet Your Obligations 

Even after you win a grant, they can take it away.

There are sometimes requirements after you win your grant.

For example, there may be character requirements. 

Sometimes those people that receive grants lost them for the simple fact that how they showed up on social media or online was totally different than how they showed up in their application.

You can lose grants for tons of other reasons too. You can lose a grant that you’ve already been given deposited in your account. As a matter of fact, you may have to pay it back because you either misrepresented your company or had someone else misrepresent your company.

You can lose a grant if you fail to follow through on activities that were required as part of your acceptance of the grant.

Unfortunately, people mistake free to mean free of obligations. 

Resources 

For more grant tips, check out the following resources:

• First Steps to Securing Grants for even more tips
• 5 Essential Tips For Winning Grants For Your Small Business
• Grant Application Training: Step-By-Step Process to Winning Your Free Money
• Grant Tracker 
• Win Grants With Ease Masterclass Bundle
• The Winning Grant Application Cheat Sheet & Checklist