How to design grantmaking that works for everyone

We’ve been working with some amazing grantmaking organisations for several years now, creating both brands and websites to help funders and grant partners meet where the need is greatest. During that time we’ve delved deep into both the nuts and bolts of funding programmes and the experience of people searching out and applying for them. As such, we’ve gained an understanding of individual pain points, restrictions, frustrations and some sector-wide challenges too.

Balancing necessarily rigorous funding criteria with ease and speed of access for the people who need it most is a tricky task to say the least. Add to that the inherent or perceived power imbalances between multi-million pound foundations and the 96% of the charity sector that have an income of less than £1m, and there’s a real opportunity to use design to increase equity, engagement and access.

I’ve broken some of the things we’ve learned down into four broad sections, each with a different set of considerations and suggestions.

1. Engagement: inclusion starts with approachability
2. Compatibility: your mission matters
3. Eligibility: be as helpful as possible
4. Flexibility: adapting to challenges as they arise

1. Engagement: inclusion starts with approachability

Over and over again, we’ve heard from grant applicants that foundations, trusts and other funding organisations are often seen as ‘cold’ or ‘aloof’ from their branding – but once they become grant partners everyone is absolutely lovely, helpful and welcoming. If branding has one function in this regard, it’s to match the culture of an organisation with its visual identity.

For example cold colours, severe typography, staid stock imagery and dated Wordpress websites can all give the impression of a dusty and locked-down organisation with a culture of privilege. The knock-on effects of this are that people and organisations who might benefit most often don’t apply in the first place.

It’s important then that your visual identity:

• embodies the values and culture of your organisation
• encourages and welcomes a diverse range of people to engage with you
• enables the team to create accessible and inviting communications

2. Compatibility: your mission matters

Once potential applicants feel able to approach you, they then need to know if you’re working towards the same goal.

During our audience research, we’ve found that cultural fit and shared values often rank highly in organisations’ decisions in whether or not to apply for funding. And just as often, the cultural fit is (or would be) great but it’s let down by a brand or website that doesn’t communicate funding goals or objectives.

This relates to the previous point about the approachability of your brand, but focuses more on accessible language, clear messaging and transparent objectives. Being up-front about your mission not only helps people find you in the first place, but over time helps convert curiosity into genuine partnerships.

This could look like:

• updating or summarising your strategy into key points
• exploring name options for your funding programmes – or even your organisation
• creating a new messaging strategy for your brand

3. Eligibility: be as helpful as possible

We understand that grantmaking can be complex. Often there’s multiple funds, programmes and grants. These funds can then be in various stages of accepting applications, paused, completed or suspended. On top of this, each one may have specific criteria that may or may not be open to negotiation or interpretation. For programme and grants managers it’s tricky to manage, complex to communicate and costly in time and resources to wade through applications that were never eligible in the first place.

On the other side, many people applying for grants are doing so as a small part of their role. It might be in addition to marketing or fundraising or managing volunteers. Grant applicants are often time-poor, and non-expert in the overwhelming range of terminology and jargon that typically makes up eligibility criteria.

For both grant managers and applicants, a user-testing quote that has repeatedly proven true is, ‘A quick “no” is every bit as good as a slow “yes”’. Prioritising eligibility questions into an order that filters people quickly and helpfully will save time for grant managers and applicants alike.

In practical terms this means:

• where possible rewriting terms or renaming funds to match the language applicants are already using
• giving people key information to rule themselves in or out as early in the process as possible
• mapping the overlaps and distinctions between multiple grants to enable clear signposting
• highlighting any help that’s on offer – whether phone calls, email, sample application forms or access support bursaries

4. Flexibility: adapting to new challenges as they arise

Throughout our time working with grantmaking organisations, there have been several major political crises, funding cuts and urgent challenges to marginalised communities. In response, funders have strived to work in an agile way and provide funding or support to the people who need it most, when they need it most.

Whether it’s being able to quickly spin up short-term funding support or rework the long term strategy of your grantmaking, both require flexibility and futureproofing to allow users to understand and access the support that’s available. Your website and funding platform are crucial in providing the tools and capability for marketing, funding and strategic teams to launch new programmes as quickly and easily as possible.

It’s important to consider:

• how quickly could your team launch a new fund without external agency help
• whether your website flexible enough to enable strategic funding shifts
• whether you have a digital toolkit that you can build and expand on over time

What to do next?

There’s lots of progress to be made without needing to engage an agency. Our clients listed above often had already started talking to grant partners and inviting them to be part of creating application processes or working with other funders to create standards. Opening up the process and meeting audiences in the middle is a great first step.

If you’d like to discuss ways to use design to make your grantmaking process more equitable – whether through brand or digital – please get in touch. We’d love to help.