Case Study: Confessions of a Foundation Junkie
by Bess Metcalf

I am a convert to the foundation visit. Once a procrastinator who would do anything to avoid actually meeting or even speaking to a funder, these days I feel remiss if I don't make personal contact with a program officer before or after submitting a proposal.

But you don't have to take my word on this. Let the facts speak for themselves. In my position of executive director of the Rio Grande/Rio Bravo Basin Coalition, I have made four fundraising trips—probably a total of 16 meetings—in the past several years. Each trip has yielded at least one grant, ranging in size from $3,000 to $100,000. These are grants that I am convinced we would not have received if I had not made the effort to sell our work to the foundation in person. There is nothing like success to make you a believer.

The aversion to foundation visits is quite similar to the aversion to major donor fundraising, and in my experience, the only way to overcome it is to just do it. Remembering a few strategies and truisms helps me get started when I find myself shuffling papers and going to get coffee instead of sitting down to make those calls:

1. Unlike donors, it is a foundation's job to give away money, so don't worry about asking for a meeting. If they are too busy, or if it is their policy not to meet with potential grantees, they will let you know. Just ask and let them answer.
2. Once I decide to make a fundraising trip, I make a list of likely and longer shot prospect foundations. My list is big enough so that the odds favor my getting a full slate of meetings. To keep the list from becoming too intimidating, I give myself the task of calling three prospects each day, with enough lead time to make all of the calls well in advance of the scheduled trip. Once the three calls are made, I know I am done for the day. This strategy makes it easier to begin.
3. You may need to lower your standard for success—you won't walk out of every office with the promise of funding or an invitation to submit a proposal. In my four fundraising trips, I found that only one, or perhaps two out of four the meetings actually yielded a bonifide "request for proposal." But in this business, a 25% success rate is not to be sneezed at!
4. You can always sell your organization more forcefully in person, no matter how good a proposal writer you are. Proposals are usually, by necessity, succinct. A visit allows you to fill in the color and passion of your work.
5. Having to sell your organization helps you clarify your own thinking about what you do and why. You might stumble through your first couple of meetings until you get your "rap" down. But, the more you meet with funders, the better you will be prepared to answer their questions. As a result of a lengthy conversation with program officers at the Hewlett Foundation, I was finally able to put together a clear and succinct description of my organization's goals.
6. Look at the foundation meeting as an opportunity to educate the funder on issues you are working on. While their funding interests might lie elsewhere this year, foundations are always reevaluating their priorities. Even if your visit doesn't yield immediate funding, you could be planting the seeds for a future grant.

Bess Metcalf is the former executive director of the Rio Grande/Rio Bravo Basin Coalition, located in El Paso, Texas.