Letter of inquiry

Esena i scopurile
The name of this approach, letter of inquiry, should give you a clue
about its urpose.
You are inquiring whether the funder has an interest in your project
and, in fact, sufcient interest to invite a full proposal. A letter of
inquiry demonstrates that you are serious about your request.
Funding sources request letters of inquiry for two reasons.
1)They want to know if your organization has taken the time to think
through the project;
2) It is a good t with the funders mission;

Avantajele
For the grantee (beneficiar), the development of
a good letter of inquiry generates condence and
enthusiasm.
When you have clearly dened and articulated
your project, you are well equipped to make your
rst approach. The requirements of an inquiry
letter force you to think ahead and realistically
assess your organizations capabilities and plans.
The letter also forces you to link the funders
interests with your own. If you are having
difficulty linking the two (even if they seemed to
link when you conducted your research), perhaps
the foundation is not a good t. Thus, the letter of
inquiry reinforces the case for support.

Avantajele
For the grantor, the letter of inquiry helps signicantly in selecting
prospective partners.
Many organizations requesting support will not continue to pursue a
grant if required to submit a letter of inquiry. They may not have
taken the time to carefully think through the proposed project. Thus,
those that do apply are generally serious applicants.
A letter of inquiry is much shorter than a proposal, and easier to
read, and this saves a foundation time. With these summaries in
hand, staff are able to determine quickly if a project is well suited to
the

funders

purpose.

Large

funders

often

make

use

of

administrative or program assistants to do the rst selection

process, weeding out inappropriate submissions. Thus, it becomes
even more important that you understand the funder well.

Neajunsurile
There are some drawbacks mainly from a grantseekers
perspective.

Letters of inquiry can often take as much time to

write as a proposal!!!
They are shorter than a traditional proposal, but you must still
go through extensive preparation. If you are proposing a
partnership with one or more organizations, these details need
to be worked out before approaching the funder.
Staffing and other resources need to be discussed within your
organization.
In other words, writing an effective letter of inquiry requires
signicant project planning.

Sample Letter of Inquiry Guidelines from

Carnegie Corporation of New York

A letter of inquiry clearly and concisely describes the project, its

aims, its signicance, its duration, and the amount of funds
required. The document should not exceed ve pages. Please
address the following points in a letter of inquiry:

Sample Letter of Inquiry Guidelines from

Carnegie Corporation of New York contd
What problem does your project address?
Why is this issue signicant?
What is the relationship of the problem/issue to the
corporations current program interests as noted in its
Information Pamphlet and web site?
What strengths and skills does your organization and
personnel bring to this project?
What makes your organization the right one to conduct
this project?
Who will lead the project? Identify key personnel and
attach rsums.

Sample Letter of Inquiry Guidelines from

Carnegie Corporation of New York contd
What do you intend to demonstrate or prove? What means will
you use? If the project is already under way, what have you
accomplished so far?
If you are requesting funding from Carnegie Corporation for a
component(s) of a larger project, specify which activities you
are requesting the corporation to fund and how they relate to
the larger project.
What outcomes do you expect, both immediate and long
term? If you have requested funds from other sources (or plan
to), please list those sources and note the status of your
request.
What plans do you have to disseminate information to the
public about your project?

Stilul scrisorii

A letter of inquiry is not considered a full

proposal, yet it contains much of the same
information. It provides an overview of the
proposed project and contains abbreviated
versions of some of the main components of a
proposal. The letter of inquiry is typically one
to three pages long and is written in a
business letter format. Read the funders
guidelines to conrm required components,
any page limits, or font restrictions.

Stilul scrisorii - sfaturi utile

The letter should be written on your agencys
letterhead, and the pages should be clean and
neat.
Use white space and headings to add visual interest
and to avoid tiring the reader.
Check the spelling of contact names as well as
words. Read the document for meaning after it is
complete in case you have omitted or used
incorrect words.
Ask another person to read your letter and provide
feedback on its content and accuracy.

Nivelul detalizrii
Resist the temptation to tell the funder every detail of
your proposed project!!!

Once you have done the work necessary to dene

your project in preparation for the writing of the letter,
you will likely have eshed out many of the program
components.
You may want to share all of this information in an
attempt to present your case thoroughly. However this
defeats the purpose of the letter of inquiry and may
even work to your detriment.
The funder has requested (and thus expects) a brief
overview. You will want to save the more detailed
descriptions for your full proposal. At the same time,
however, you want to provide as complete a picture

Stilul
The style of a letter of inquiry is very important as it sets the
tone for your request as well as for future interactions with the
funder. Your use of sentence structure, vocabulary, and format
are all elements of style to consider.
In order to determine what approach to use, you must take into
account the characteristics of your own organization and those
of the funder.
Even though it is not an official proposal, the letter of inquiry will
leave a clear rst impression and, thus, should accurately reect
your organizations culture and values.
There are no hard-and-fast rules here. Whether it is the words
themselves or the way they are structured, your unique
strengths should be prominently displayed.

Stilul n dependen de tipul de finanator

Corporations
Corporations generally prefer a straightforward, no-nonsense
style of communication.
They want to be able to quickly assess the proposed project
and how it will benet them. Never leave corporations guessing
about what you will do and how you propose to reach the
desired outcomes. Through effective writing skills, do the work
for them and use concrete, measurable outcomes.

Foundations
Each foundation has its own unique culture and style. The
foundation may be very art based, very community oriented, or
strictly policy focused. Write to them in their own language. If
you are a generalist and this is out of your comfort realm, use
the experts in your organization to provide the right words and
style. Each eld has common phrases or buzzwords; use these
words to convey that you are knowledgeable about the eld.

Componentele scrisorii
You should always review the funders guidelines or
contact the funder to make sure you are including all
the required components of a letter of inquiry,
including attachments. However,
the most common elements of letters of inquiry are as
follows:
Opening paragraph
Statement of need/rationale (one to two
paragraphs)
Organizational description/expertise (one to two
paragraphs)
Description of the project (up to one page, including
timeline and outcomes)
Budget request and information (one to two
paragraphs)

Paragraful de introducere

Much like a proposals introduction, the

letters opening paragraph summarizes the
document and addresses your request. The
introduction should include these things:
What you are proposing to do.
How
much
you
are
requesting
(total/partial/amount), over what time
period, and from whom.
The program duration.

Statement of need

This section describes the problem you seek to

address and why it is important. Be sure to include
any pertinent statistics, research, or national trends.
Make sure you have a good understanding of the
issue. If you dont, nd someone who can help you
articulate it. Whenever possible, humanize the
problem by providing concrete examples of its
impact. Let the foundation know what overall
outcomes you hope to achieve.
Do your homework to better understand the funders
interests and perspective. It will help you craft a
compelling case for support.

Organizational description
history
mission
qualications
Funders want to know that they are dealing with a
stable and well-regarded organization that manages
money wisely. Mention prior successes with projects
similar to the one you are proposing and staff that
have expertise related to the project.
Make sure the length of your organizational
description is proportional to the rest of your letter of
inquiry. The bulk of the letter should describe the
project. A description of your agencys expertise sets
the stage for the project and contributes to the
rationale.

Budget Request and Information

It is not necessary to include detailed nancial information in a
letter of inquiry. Estimate the projects total cost over a certain
time period. Indicate how much of that you will be requesting
from the foundation. Follow with a narrative explanation (text
versus mere numbers in a chart) of the major budget
categories.
Budgets can include personnel (salary and fringe benets),
equipment (such as computers), materials, ofce supplies,
travel, and overhead. Mention the budget categories included
in the total, but do not list each breakdown. Not all funders will
support each budget category; it is important to let them know
in the budget section that you are aware of their policies.

Closing
End the letter of inquiry by reiterating the projects purpose,
potential impact, and alignment with the funders interests.
Suggest an appropriate follow-up method within a certain period
of time.
Here is an example:
We are condent that the Kangaroo Afterschool project will
increase reading
achievement in elementary school children within three years,
contributing to
the future academic success of young people in our community.
We applaud
the XYZ Foundations focus on literacy issues and look forward
to talking with
you further about this mutual interest.
I will call you within the next two weeks to follow up.
Close the letter by thanking the funder for their attention to your