Tips & Tricks

Ways to get more out of GrantLoop that you might not discover on your own.

Think of It as a Really Smart Intern

The AI agent isn't a search box — it's more like a capable, knowledgeable team member. You can have real conversations with it: explain context, ask for opinions, give feedback, and build on previous responses.

Don't just give orders — collaborate:

  • Instead of: "Find me foundations"
  • Try: "I run a youth mentorship program in Portland. We're looking for our first round of foundation funding. What prospecting strategy would you recommend? Let's talk through it before we start."

The agent will often come back with angles you hadn't considered, and it's worth arguing with them before you commit to a direction.

Have Meta-Conversations

One of the most underused capabilities is talking about the work rather than just doing the work. You can plan, strategize, and get advice.

Planning a search:

"Before we start prospecting, let me tell you about our organization. We do ocean safety education and surf instruction for underserved youth. What kinds of foundations should we be looking at? What search strategies would you suggest?"

Evaluating a fit:

"Look at the Smith Foundation's giving history. Do you think we're a good fit? What angle would you take if we applied?"

Teach It Continuously

Every time you correct the agent or ask it to redo something, that's an opportunity to teach it permanently:

  • If you find yourself saying "add more statistics" every time, tell it: "Remember — always include specific statistics in grant narratives going forward."
  • If the tone is always off, tell it: "Our voice is warm and community-focused, not academic. Remember that."
  • If it keeps using outdated info, tell it: "Our data from 2023 still applies — just say 'annually' instead of 'in 2023.' Remember this."

Find Personal Connections

Before reaching out to a foundation cold, ask the agent to find a way in:

"Can you find someone on the board or staff at the Smith Foundation who might have a connection to youth athletics or community sports? I'd like to reach out to someone with a personal interest in our work."

Then follow up:

"Great — now create a column called 'Best Contact' and add this person's info. Then make another column called 'Reason for Connection' explaining why you chose them."

Use Autofill Creatively

Autofill isn't just for basic data. If you could work it out about a funder by hand, you can usually ask for it as a field:

  • "Have they ever funded an organization with our budget size?"
  • "Draft a short, personalized LinkedIn message we could send to this foundation's program officer"

Work Across Documents

Your chat isn't locked to the file you're viewing — the agent can read, create, and work across all your projects in a single conversation. This is one of the most powerful things about GrantLoop.

Turn prospects into applications:

"Look at my 'Fall 2025 Prospects' sheet. Find the foundations with the closest deadlines that are rated High fit. Then create a new grant writing doc for the top one and start drafting an LOI."

The agent reads your prospecting sheet, picks the best opportunity, creates a new document, and starts writing — all in one conversation.

Organize across sheets:

"Copy all the 'High' fit foundations from my 'Education Funders' sheet into my 'Priority Pipeline' sheet."

Research from one project, write in another:

"Read the Meyer Memorial Trust entry on my prospecting sheet — what do we know about their application process? Now open my 'Meyer LOI Draft' doc and start drafting based on that."

Create budgets from prospect data:

"Look at the Ford Foundation on my prospects sheet. What's their typical grant size? Now make me a budget spreadsheet for that amount."

The key idea: you don't need to switch between files and start new chats. Just tell the agent what you need and reference your projects by name.

Start Fresh Chats Often

When you switch to an unrelated task, start a new chat instead of continuing the same one. The longer a conversation gets, the more context the agent has to process with every message — which uses more credits on your account.

Good rule of thumb: one chat per topic. If you've been prospecting and now want to work on a grant draft for a different foundation, open a new chat. You won't lose anything — the agent can always read your existing projects and memories.

Combine Features

The most powerful workflows tie multiple features together:

  • Memory + Integrations: "Whenever an application asks for common file attachments like our board list or financials, search our SharePoint 'Grant Attachments' folder for the most recent versions."
  • Prospecting + Grant Writing: "Look at the top foundation on my prospecting list that has a deadline in the next 60 days. Create a new grant writing project for it and start drafting."
  • Voice + Memory: Hold spacebar and talk naturally — "Hey, just so you know, we're not looking to expand right now. We want to sustain our current programs. So don't use any expansion or growth language in applications. Remember that."
  • Browsing + Grant Writing: "We finished the draft. Go to the foundation's portal, pre-fill the application, and give me the link to review before submitting."