Find aligned funders quickly and build a targeted pipeline

Purpose

This section helps you identify funders who match your geography, mission, and scope of work, and teaches you how to evaluate opportunities so you can focus your limited time where it matters most.

Not every funder is a fit — alignment is everything.

What You’ll Learn

• How to use major research databases
• Free research tools for Southern organizations
• How to assess geographic and issue alignment
• How to compare and prioritize funders
• How to build a manageable prospect pipeline
• How to avoid wasting time on poor-fit funders

Comprehensive Databases

These platforms offer the deepest information on funders, grants, and giving trends.

1. Candid (GuideStar)
   Funders, 990s, nonprofit data
   Free + Paid
   https://candid.org
2. Foundation Directory Online (FDO)
   Most comprehensive searchable database of U.S. foundation giving
   Paid; free at many public libraries
   https://fconline.foundationcenter.org
3. Instrumental
   Matches active grant opportunities to your organization
   Paid
   https://instrumentl.com

Free & Low-Cost Research Tools

Ideal starting points if you have limited budget:

1. Funding for Good – Free Tools
   https://fundingforgood.org/free-grant-research-tools
2. Nonprofit.ist Free Grant Tools
   https://nonprofit.ist/resources/9-free-grant-research-tools-for-nonprofits
3. State Community Foundation Directories
   Search “[Your State] Community Foundation” to find local grantmakers
4. Grants.gov (Federal)
   https://grants.gov
5. GrantStation Newsletter
   https://grantstation.com

How to Research Funders Strategically

A smart research process includes:

• Start with geography
  Funders who have given in your state or region are your best initial targets.
• Check issue alignment
  Do they fund your focus area (education, equity, housing, youth, etc.)?
• Look at grant size
  Does their range match your needs?
• Check who they have funded recently
  IRS 990s reveal real patterns behind public language.
• Prioritize funders who:

• Give to BIPOC-led organizations
• Offer multi-year funding
• Provide general operating support
• Support grassroots or movement-building work

• Avoid funders who:

• Have no history of giving in your geography
• Only fund very large organizations
• Only offer restricted program support
• Do not align with your values

Prospecting Worksheets & Tools

Tips to Save Time

Start with community foundations; they understand local needs.

• Don’t chase every RFP — chase alignment.
• Build a pipeline you can realistically manage (10–25 prospects).
• Track declines — they matter for future opportunities.
• Look for funders who give multi-year general operating support.
• Keep all data in one place (Google Sheet, Airtable, or CRM).

Plan, write, and submit strong proposals anchored in community need

Purpose

Grantwriting is more than filling out forms. It’s the practice of clearly explaining your work, your community, and your impact so funders can understand why you matter. This section helps you strengthen your writing, prepare common attachments, and build a sustainable approach to institutional fundraising.

Before You Start: What Funders Want to Know

Every proposal—regardless of funder, format, or issue—centers on these questions:

1. What problem or need are you addressing?
2. Who is most affected, and why does this matter?
3. What is your approach, and why does it work?
4. What will change if you receive funding?
5. Why is your organization positioned to lead?
6. How will you use the grant funds?
7. How will you track progress?
8. What is your long-term vision?

Everything in this section prepares you to answer these clearly and confidently.

Core Elements of a Proposal

Problem Statement / Need

• Describe the issue using local data and lived experience.

• Avoid broad national statistics unless directly relevant.

Community Context & Root Causes

• Explain underlying factors: structural inequity, policy issues, historical context.

Program or Approach

• Be specific: activities, who you serve, frequency/dosage, partners, expected outputs

Objectives & Outcomes

• Objectives = what you will do.
• Outcomes = what will change.

Organizational Capacity

• Include: leadership experience, community trust, staff/volunteer strengths, track record

Budget & Budget Narrative

• Ensure numbers match the narrative and the request.

Evaluation / Learning

• Keep it simple: what will you track, how, and how often?

Sustainability

• Explain how the work will continue after the grant.

Attachment Checklist

Most funders ask for some or all:

• 501(c)(3) letter (if applicable)
• Board list with affiliations
• Organizational budget
• Program budget
• Recent Form 990 or audit
• Key staff bios
• Annual report or organizational overview
• Fiscal sponsor letter (if applicable)
• List of major funders (optional)
• DEI or values statement (optional)

Tip: Create a “Grant Attachments” folder with updated versions to avoid scrambling.

Proposal Templates & Sample Documents (External Links)

The best templates already exist publicly. These are vetted, funder-approved models:

1. Sample Foundation Proposal (Candid)
   https://learning.candid.org/resources/sample-documents/sample-proposal/
2. Case for Support Example
   https://learning.candid.org/resources/sample-documents/case-statement/
3. Project Budget Template
   https://learning.candid.org/resources/sample-documents/project-budget/
4. Organizational Budget Template
   https://learning.candid.org/resources/sample-documents/organizational-operating-budget/
5. Logic Model Template
   https://learning.candid.org/resources/sample-documents/logic-model/

Writing Guidelines

• Use plain, direct language
• Keep sentences short
• Avoid jargon unless defined
• Be specific about who benefits
• Use realistic goals
• Ground everything in community context
• Avoid inflated impact claims
• Show community accountability

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Mismatched narrative and budget numbers
• Overuse of jargon
• Being vague about who you serve
• Submitting proposals without eligibility review
• Waiting too long to begin
• Overly broad problem statements
• No clear outcomes

Building a Grant Strategy

Successful fundraising is about consistency.

Steps include:

1. Identify aligned funders
2. Build a pipeline
3. Prioritize funders with your geography + issue
4. Track outreach and deadlines
5. Start writing early
6. Follow up after decisions
7. Steward relationships consistently

Purpose
Fundraising is relationship-building. Especially in the South, trust and connection drive giving more than transactions or tactics. This section provides tools to deepen donor relationships, plan outreach, and steward supporters with clarity and respect.

What This Section Covers

1. Mapping your donor network
2. Planning cultivation outreach
3. Structuring relationship steps (“moves management”)
4. Preparing for donor meetings
5. Stewarding gifts and communicating impact
6. Maintaining values and boundaries in donor relationships

Donor Mapping
Identify who is already in your orbit:

• existing donors
• volunteers
• community partners
• alumni/participants
• board members
• local champions
• people who consistently show up

A donor map helps you see who is closest to you — and who might be open to deeper partnership.

Cultivation Planning
Strong cultivation includes:

• clear goals
• scheduled touchpoints
• personalized outreach
• consistent follow-through
• aligned messaging

Use a simple cycle:

Identify → Cultivate → Ask → Steward → Repeat

Conversation Starters for Donor Meetings
Questions that deepen connection and reveal alignment:

• “What community issues matter most to you right now?”
• “How did you first get involved in giving?”
• “What would meaningful impact look like for you?”
• “Is there a story that shaped how you think about this work?”

These help you learn about donors while sharing your work with clarity and confidence.

Stewardship Essentials
Stewardship is how you keep supporters engaged after the gift. Strong stewardship includes:

• thanking donors quickly
• sharing impact regularly
• being transparent about challenges
• connecting stories to outcomes
• personalizing communication
• inviting engagement beyond money
• closing the loop on what you promised

Donors stay when they feel trusted, valued, and connected to your mission.
Ethics & Power in Donor Relations

• Maintain alignment with your mission and values
• Do not contort your programs to fit a donor’s agenda
• Practice boundaries and clarity
• Keep community accountability at the center
• Avoid donor-centrism that erases or flattens community agency
• Healthy relationships are rooted in dignity, not deference

Tools & Templates for Donor Cultivation and Stewardship

Putting It Into Practice
A simple monthly practice for small teams:
Monthly (1–2 hours)

• Review your donor map
• Identify 5–10 people for outreach
• Send gratitude notes
• Schedule one donor conversation

Quarterly

• Share a short impact update
• Refresh your donor map
• Evaluate your cultivation cycle
• Celebrate wins and steward consistently

Annually

• Host 1–2 small salons or gatherings
• Thank your full donor base
• Review your stewardship practices

Consistent, respectful, values-aligned relationship-building is the heart of sustainable fundraising.

This section helps you:

• develop individual donor programs
• design giving campaigns
• use storytelling effectively
• launch grassroots or peer-to-peer fundraising
• build year-end or seasonal campaigns

Individual giving is powerful because it builds long-term, community-rooted financial resilience.
Starting an Individual Giving Program
A strong program includes segmentation, consistent communication, and clear invitations to give.
Donor Segmentation
Some helpful donor segmentations include:

• interest area
• gift size
• giving frequency
• engagement level
• geography

Segmentation keeps communication relevant and personal — and ensures people receive messages that match how they already show up for your work.
Annual Fund Planning
A simple year-round rhythm helps you stay consistent:

January: gratitude outreach
Spring: cultivation calls, updates, light engagement
Summer: storytelling, community updates
Fall: donor meetings and touches
Winter: year-end giving campaign

Consistency builds trust and long-term support — especially in the South, where relationships drive giving.
Peer-to-Peer & Grassroots Giving
Peer campaigns mobilize supporters to fundraise on your behalf. These campaigns work well for:

• younger donors
• community-driven networks
• small organizations
• membership-based groups
• time-sensitive needs

Steps to launch a peer campaign:

1. Identify ambassadors
2. Create simple, consistent messaging
3. Provide shareable content (graphics, sample posts)
4. Set a clear, achievable goal
5. Offer encouragement + public updates

Strong platforms for peer-to-peer fundraising:
Givebutter — https://spread.givebutter.com/
GoFundMe — https://www.gofundme.com/
Facebook Fundraisers — https://www.facebook.com/fundraisers
Network for Good / Bonterra — https://www.bonterratech.com/

These platforms make it easy for supporters to create their own fundraising pages.
Storytelling for Giving
Storytelling should honor dignity, not sensationalize harm or trauma.
Strong storytelling includes:

• a real person or community voice (with consent)
• a clear tension or need
• what your organization does to address it
• what changes because of your work
• a specific, clear invitation to give

Storytelling should reinforce community leadership, agency, and strength — not extractive narratives.

For additional structure, see the Storytelling Worksheet in the Worksheets section.
Year-End Giving Toolkit Components
Year-end giving is when most nonprofits raise 25–40% of their annual revenue. A simple toolkit helps you stay organized, consistent, and compelling.
Your year-end campaign toolkit should include:

• sample fundraising emails
• social media scripts
• donor segment targets
• a campaign timeline
• an ambassador/volunteer guide
• a landing page or link for giving
• gratitude messages and follow-up templates

Effective year-end campaigns start early (October–November), use multiple messages, center storytelling, and keep calls to action simple.
Recommended Tools for Year-End Campaigns

1. Network for Good Year-End Toolkit:
   https://www.networkforgood.com/resource/year-end-fundraising-toolkit/
2. Classy Ambassador Guide:
   https://www.classy.org/blog/peer-to-peer-fundraising-toolkit/
3. Donorbox Email Templates:
   https://donorbox.org/nonprofit-blog/fundraising-email-templates

Additional Templates to Support This Section
Including these in the Resource Library strengthens the page and aligns it with the others:

Purpose

Events and campaigns can be powerful tools when they focus on connection, clarity, and storytelling — not production value. This section provides practical tools for planning donor gatherings, salons, community events, and fundraising campaigns.
Event Planning Tools
Below are the best publicly available templates for event design, budgeting, staffing, and hosting small donor salons.

Sponsorship Tools
These templates help you structure sponsor tiers, benefits, pricing, and outreach language.

Campaign Planning Tools
Running a campaign requires more than just a goal — it needs a story, a plan, and consistent outreach. These resources help you create campaigns that mobilize your supporters.
Key components of a strong fundraising campaign:

• A clear, specific goal
• A compelling story and message
• A realistic timeline
• Consistent outreach and follow-up
• Mobilized ambassadors or champions
• Simple, accessible giving pathways

Campaign Toolkit
These are the best available templates for planning and executing a nonprofit campaign.

Why It Matters
Southern communities face long-standing inequities in philanthropy. Many organizations have been underfunded or misrepresented, while being asked to perform emotional labor to “fit” donor expectations. 
Equity Principles to Guide Fundraising

• Center lived experience and narrative authority
• Honor community voice without sensationalizing harm
• Challenge donor-centrism when it undermines values
• Practice transparency with supporters
• Build relationships based on mutual respect
• Ensure storytelling practices obtain consent and maintain dignity
• Avoid overstating “impact” in ways that erase community agency

Equity-centered fundraising ensures communities retain agency and narrative authority and challenges extractive philanthropic norms.

Frameworks & Guides

Practical Guides & Articles

• “The Problem with Donor-Centrism and What to Do Instead” – CCF
• “10 Ways to Practice Trust-Based Fundraising” – TBP Project
• “How Nonprofits Can Challenge Philanthropic Power Dynamics” – NPQ
• “Principles for Ethical Storytelling” – Various movement orgs

Internal Reflection Tools 

A curated directory of Southern funders and networks

Purpose
The South is historically underfunded. A strong understanding of the regional philanthropic ecosystem helps organizations identify aligned partners and build realistic prospect pipelines.

This directory includes:

• regional philanthropy networks
• state-by-state funder lists
• community foundations
• justice-focused funders
• rural and grassroots funding sources

Regional Networks (Quick Reference)

1. Grantmakers for Southern Progress (GSP)
   https://g4sp.org
2. Philanthropy Southeast
   https://philanthropysoutheast.org
3. Southern Partners Fund
   https://southernpartnersfund.org
4. Women’s Foundation of the South
   https://womensfoundationsouth.org
5. Community Foundation Networks
   Search “[Your State] Community Foundation”

State-by-State Funders List
This resource is provided in spreadsheet format and linked on your website. It includes:

• funder names
• geographic focus
• description
• alignment notes
• grant cycle information
• past grantees (when known)
• website links

Alliance members can contribute additional funders to keep the directory dynamic and community-driven.

Regional Philanthropy Networks
These organizations, networks, and funds either focus their work in the Southern U.S. or have a strong presence in the region. They are useful to watch, understand, and potentially explore as partners or funders.

State by State Directory – LINKED HERE

Tips for Using This Section

• Watch leadership & announcements from these networks — they often release trend reports, data, RFPs, or convenings relevant to Southern funders.
• Map alignment — use these networks to locate local or regional funders with thematic alignment to your work (race, environment, rural justice).
• Engage opportunistically — some of these networks host member events or offer small capacity-building grants; they may be a lower barrier path into regional funder networks.
• Contribute to the list — as bootcamp participants and Alliance members surface local family foundations, city-based funders, or philanthropic actors in their states, we can crowdsource additions to this folder.

Materials from EPU’s Fundraising Bootcamps

Purpose

This section houses all materials from the Unum Alliance Fundraising Bootcamp — a four-week live virtual series for Alliance members. Use these materials to revisit what you learned, continue your practice, and go deeper at your own pace. Session recordings are added here after each session.

Before the Bootcamp: December 2025 Landscape Presentation

In December 2025, we hosted a 60-minute presentation for Alliance members covering the current philanthropic landscape for Southern organizations — what’s changed since 2020, the impact of the DEI pledge pullback, shifts in federal funding, and what this means for how small organizations approach fundraising in 2026. If you missed it or want to revisit it, the slide deck and recording are available here.

• Fundraising with Power – December 4, 2025 

• Fundraising with Power – Session Recording

About the Bootcamp

The Unum Alliance Fundraising Bootcamp is a practical, applied series designed for small teams doing big work. Each session combines a short teaching segment, a hands-on exercise, and peer exchange. By the end of the series, participants build four core tools:

1. A Funding Source Audit
2. A One-Page Fundraising Plan
3. A Funder Pipeline
4. A Practiced Ask

Session 1: Fundraising, Minus the Mystique A practical 101 for small teams doing big work. How money actually moves to small organizations, common misconceptions cleared, and fundraising reframed as a relationship-driven practice.

• Fundraising, Minus the Mystique
• Session Recording
• Funding Source Audit

Session 2: The Fundraising Plan You’ll Actually Use How to raise money without burning out or overbuilding. Building a simple, capacity-aligned plan with three strategies, realistic revenue goals, and a clear list of what to stop.

• [Slide Deck]
• [Session Recording] – will be available on 3/26 after session
• [Worksheet: One-Page Fundraising Plan]

Session 3: Finding Funders Without Chasing Them Relationships, alignment, and smarter cultivation. Identifying aligned funders through warm pathways, assessing alignment before investing time, and simple tracking that works for small teams.

• [Slide Deck]
• [Session Recording] – will be available on 4/2 after session
• [Worksheet: Funder Warm Pathway Map]

Session 4: The Ask Is Not the Scary Part Asking, stewardship, and building long-term support. Reframing the ask as an invitation, practicing clear values-aligned asks, and building stewardship approaches that generate repeat support.

• [Slide Deck]
• [Session Recording] – will be available on 4/9 after session
• [Worksheet: Ask + Stewardship Plan]

Purpose
These worksheets help organizations apply what they learn and strengthen real-world fundraising systems.

Worksheets are printable and fillable. Each worksheet mirrors the tools used in the bootcamps.

Purpose
This section will grow over time as Alliance members progress through bootcamps and request practical tools.

These templates save time and support consistency.