Let’s dig into how you can cut down the time it takes to build a business case for a new program, while bringing insights most of the sector is just starting to leverage.
An important part of any project proposal is to demonstrate – with data – that there is evidence for a gap in the current supply mix in your community.
The big idea behind Karto, HelpSeeker’s latest product launch, is that better data can support better decisions on funding and service design.
By creating transparency in the social sector about potential supply gaps, we can inform service providers about how to design funding pitches that strengthen the anecdotal evidence and organizational data that most funding proposals already come with, adding quantifiable evidence about the social sector ecosystem.
- A great place to start is in the Karto Service Supply Mix feature. Here, we can select a city and highlight the most relevant service and need theme. This shows you listings that offer various types of support, how many there are, and where they’re located.
- You can browse more deeply by selecting a further breakdown based on what you’re proposing to your funder – and home in on the types of organizations, and how frequently they offer this service, thereby strengthening your case for more capacity being needed.
- You can go even deeper by looking at the Population Distribution based on the kind of focus you’re proposing for your new program. This lets you see where you may have additional evidence for gaps, too, comparing the focus of existing programs by the populations they report working with. This can further support the need for your proposed new approach.
- Another powerful tool is showcasing the unique combination you want to offer in comparison to other services. Funders are often looking to understand why they should fund “another mental health program.” Using the Service & Needs Connection tab, you can make the case that, compared to the needs you’re seeing, there is very little supply matching what you propose. This shows, for instance, that while there are many counselling services, there are very few that target families and parenting.
- You can dig more deeply into demand data, which comes live from the Helpseeker.org app, showing what kinds of help people in your community are looking for. Combined with program waitlists, client stories, and demographic trends from Karto, this adds more power to your case for support as well. Clearly, people are actively looking for the kinds of help you’re proposing to add to the supply mix.
There is much more we can add to your proposal with Karto, because getting this far only took us about 10 minutes to click, cut and paste and format into the proposal, giving plenty of time to crush your next presentation or report, impressing your colleagues and boss!
Want to use data in Karto for your next proposal or grant application? Get started today!
