Letter of Inquiry and First Contact Builder.

Make real, non-asking contact with a funder before your proposal, done the way each funder wants to be approached, so your proposal is not a cold call.

The second step of building relationships, for each focus funder.

Part A. Know how they want to be approached

For each focus funder, mark: open to contact, letter of inquiry invited, introduction preferred, or application-only (no contact). Follow it exactly, because ignoring a stated preference is its own rejection.

Part B. The letter of inquiry, where one is invited

Keep it to a page: who you are, the need, your approach, the rough amount, and why you fit their priorities. Ask for a conversation, not yet for the grant.

Part C. First contact for the others

For funders open to it: an introduction through a board connection, a question about their priorities, or an invitation to see the work. Record the approach and the response. For application-only funders, note it and let the proposal carry the relationship.

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