Welcome to Alberta Business Grants!
Shark Tank and Grant Agencies both bite: one leaves a bite mark. The other doesn’t.
- Prepare for your grant meeting and get funded
- Secret stories about getting “eaten alive” in the grant tank
- Gift for you to win grants
The show Shark Tank is a huge American hit. A fun fact is that the show started in Canada known as “Dragon’s Den.” http://www.cbc.ca/dragonsden/. That doesn’t happen very often.
Two of Shark Tanks’s stars, Mr. Wonderful and Robert Herjavec, have Canadian roots.
As fans of the show know well, entrepreneurs go to the “Tank” and pitch to the “sharks.”
The presentations are usually well done.
Download Now! Five Grant Gotchas
There is grant money waiting for YOU! BUT if you step in a “grant trap,” your application is a NO! Learn the FIVE most common errors to AVOID in government grants! Get the 5 Grant Gotchas now to save you countless hours.
The entrepreneurs prepare for the meetings and it shows.
Some business owners really pay attention to the details. They take time to prepare their story for a specific shark. If their product is for TV, they target one shark. If they have a clothing line, they target another.
The entrepreneur really thinks through the “pitch.”
PREPARE
Now what if I told you there was another “tank,” BUT THIS TANK GAVE AWAY MONEY AND DIDN’T TAKE ANY EQUITY IN YOUR BUSINESS?
I’ll say that again.
LITERALLY, GOVERNMENT GRANT AGENCY STAFF ARE JUST LIKE THE SHARKS ON SHARK TANK, EXCEPT THEY GIVE YOU MONEY AND TAKE NO PIECE OF YOUR BUSINESS.
Isn’t that fun?
But there are some major differences, and you need to know them if you’re going to start winning grants.
ENTREPRENEUR VS. BUREAUCRATS
Sharks: They’re business owners. They embrace risk. They have likely lost a fortune at times in their lives, and they have enjoyed the opposite side.
Bureaucrats: When they landed a job in government, many of them thought they made it. They receive benefits and pensions.
THE DETAILS
Sharks: They are thinking about how they can get a return on their investment in your business.
Bureaucrats: the money they are awarding you IS NOT THEIR MONEY. They are taxpayer dollars, so they need to focus on “whether your project meets the grant eligibility.”
SECRET STORIES FROM THE GOVERNMENT TANK
I’m going to take you inside the grant business and share three stories with you: two entrepreneurs got eaten alive and one won big.
Attack #1
In this story, the entrepreneur found a grant that looked like a good fit (e.g. Step One – Find Grant).
When it came time to meet the grant agency (Step Two), he “winged it.”
Oh no.
The email from the grant agency is just sad. They literally highlight grant guide sections and say it’s likely your project does not fit.
Call the doctor because you need stitches from that bite.
Had the business owner invested the time up front, the return could have been the best investment in his life.
Attack #2
The next entrepreneur bite happened in a different way. He has one of the coolest businesses in Alberta. Literally. He’s brilliant and has an excellent product.
He followed our system and crushed his grant meeting. It was so good in fact, he decided to fill out the small application himself – which I advised him to do.
He submitted the application at only a fraction for what he could have won. Lesson learned for me: help client all the way through the grant process even when they use the “do it yourself model.”
Download Now! Five Grant Gotchas
There is grant money waiting for YOU! BUT if you step in a “grant trap,” your application is a NO! Learn the FIVE most common errors to AVOID in government grants! Get the 5 Grant Gotchas now to save you countless hours.
Escaped #3
And then there was the little technology company that could.
Now this guy gets it.
He found his grant, and then he prepared with us. He worked hard. He read the grant guide and application. His questions were all written out in advance.
He reached out to the grant agency with an open mind, looking to build a long-term relationship.
The outcome WAS DRASTICALLY DIFFERENT.
They loved him. He is going to meet them in person soon. And then he received the “GRANT GIFT.”
The grant agency said, “we have other “programs” (that means grants) for your business. I’m going to make some introductions to you!”
Ladies and gentlemen, that is what we shall call a grant grand slam. He is set. His business is about to take off like a rocket ship.
GIFT
Here is a major learning from my time in being a business owner.
Sometimes you can do things yourself, and sometimes you need to hire a professional.
I hire an accountant for my taxes. By the way, he is the best accountant in the province and really understands business. If you’re a business owner, give him a call: jonathan@galloandco.ca or 780.417.7530.
Some entrepreneurs invest in experts and some don’t. It’s fascinating.
I admit there are times I wish I took this advice.
To win grant meetings has taken us years to perfect, and we have developed a proprietary 15 Step Process to winning a grant meeting.
I’m going to share the overview with you. Follow it and you’ll start to win big.
Here are the key points:
It’s all about relationships. You need to focus on “partnerships.” You can win these grants year after year.
The grant agencies must give this money away, so they need you. Your responsibility is to make it easy for them to give the money away.
Also, reach out to them by email at first, then schedule a call. Before you speak to them on the phone, you need to have your “product on a page.” This document should answer who, what, when, where, why, and how much.
Also include a question and answer document about your business. Think through every single question you are going to be asked or what they want to know. Provide those questions in advance.
That’s how you hit a grant grand slam.
Have a great week!
Download Now! Five Grant Gotchas
There is grant money waiting for YOU! BUT if you step in a “grant trap,” your application is a NO! Learn the FIVE most common errors to AVOID in government grants! Get the 5 Grant Gotchas now to save you countless hours.
