How to Use the Proposal Strength Score to Improve Your Grant
Learn how GrantCraft's Proposal Strength Score evaluates your grant proposal and provides actionable feedback to improve weak sections before submission.
What Is the Proposal Strength Score?
The Proposal Strength Score is a feature within the GrantCraft Proposal Builder that evaluates the completeness and quality of your grant proposal as you build it. Rather than waiting until you finish writing to discover weaknesses, the strength score gives you real-time feedback on each section, highlighting areas that need improvement and confirming areas where your content meets professional standards.
Think of the strength score as a built-in grant reviewer. It evaluates your proposal against the criteria that real funders use: clarity of need, specificity of objectives, alignment between budget and narrative, strength of evaluation plan, and demonstration of organizational capacity. While it cannot replace the nuanced judgment of a human reviewer, it catches the most common weaknesses that cause proposals to score poorly in competitive reviews.
How the Strength Score Works
As you complete each step of the Proposal Builder, the strength score evaluates the content you have entered. It looks for key elements that professional grant reviewers expect to see in each section. For example, in the need statement section, it checks whether you have included data to support the need, whether you have described the affected population, and whether the problem is clearly defined.
The score is displayed as a visual indicator that updates as you add and refine content. A low score in a particular section does not necessarily mean the content is bad. It may mean the section is incomplete, lacks specific details, or is missing a key element. The feedback accompanying the score tells you specifically what is missing or needs strengthening.
Interpreting Feedback for Each Section
Organization Information
The strength score checks that all required fields are completed and that your mission statement is clear and specific. If your mission statement is vague or generic, the score will suggest adding more detail about what your organization does, whom it serves, and what outcomes it seeks.
Need Statement
This is one of the most heavily weighted sections in the strength score because it is one of the most critical sections in the proposal. The score evaluates whether you have included supporting data, identified the affected population, described the severity and urgency of the problem, and connected the need to potential solutions.
Common feedback includes suggestions to add more specific data points, to include local-level evidence alongside national statistics, and to clearly articulate why the problem requires intervention now. For detailed guidance on strengthening your need statement, see our resource on defining the grant problem and need statement.
Goals and Objectives
The score evaluates whether your objectives are truly SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. The most common feedback is that objectives lack measurable targets or specific timelines. "Improve reading skills" will score lower than "Increase reading proficiency by one grade level for 80 percent of participants within 12 months."
Project Design
The strength score checks that your activities are described in sufficient detail, that they logically connect to your objectives, and that you have included a realistic timeline. Feedback often suggests adding more detail about staffing, explaining the evidence base for your approach, or clarifying how activities lead to the outcomes described in your objectives.
Budget
The budget section is evaluated for completeness and alignment with the narrative. The score checks that standard categories are represented, that costs are justified, and that the total is reasonable for the proposed activities. Common feedback includes requests to add budget justifications, to include fringe benefit calculations, and to ensure that every activity in the narrative has corresponding budget support.
Evaluation Plan
The score evaluates whether your evaluation plan includes measurable indicators, data collection methods, a timeline for evaluation activities, and a description of how data will be analyzed and used. Weak evaluation plans often describe what will be measured without explaining how, and the strength score flags this gap.
Organizational Capacity
The final content section is evaluated for evidence of staff qualifications, organizational track record, and partnership descriptions. The score provides feedback if this section is thin, prompting you to add details about key personnel, relevant experience, and any collaborative relationships that strengthen your proposal.
Using the Score Strategically
The most effective way to use the strength score is iteratively. Complete each section to the best of your ability, check the score and read the feedback, then revise based on the suggestions. Do not aim for a perfect score on the first pass. Instead, use the feedback to guide targeted improvements.
The strength score is also useful for prioritizing your revision efforts. If you have limited time before a deadline, focus on the sections with the lowest scores, as these represent the areas where improvement will have the greatest impact on your proposal's competitiveness.
Combining the Strength Score with Other Tools
The strength score works best when combined with other GrantCraft tools. Use the Tips section to get specific advice on how to address the weaknesses the score identifies. Use the Templates to see examples of how strong proposals handle the sections where your score is low. And use the Readiness Checklist to ensure that your organizational capacity section accurately reflects your organization's actual readiness.
Remember that the strength score is a tool, not a guarantee. A high score indicates that your proposal is complete and addresses the key elements reviewers look for, but it does not evaluate the creativity of your program design, the depth of your funder relationship, or the uniqueness of your approach. For insights on how reviewers actually evaluate proposals, see our guide on narrative strategy and reviewer psychology.
Maximizing Your Proposal Strength Score
- Complete each section fully before checking the score for meaningful feedback.
- Read all feedback carefully and address specific suggestions rather than adding content randomly.
- Prioritize improving sections with the lowest scores for maximum impact.
- Use the score iteratively: write, check, revise, and check again.
- Combine the score with Tips and Templates for comprehensive improvement.
- Treat the score as one input among many, supplementing it with human review before submission.
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