The Grant-Winning Case Study: 3 Data Points Funders Must See

Every nonprofit has success stories. You tell them on your website, share them on social media, and use them to inspire donors. They are the heart of your mission.

But when a grant deadline hits, do you find your team scrambling to translate those beautiful stories into the dry, data-driven language a funder needs? That emotional impact suddenly doesn’t fit neatly into the “Past Performance” section of the application.

The solution isn’t to write a new narrative; it’s to start seeing your case studies not just as marketing tools, but as Grant-Evidence Assets.

Here is how you structure a simple, powerful case study that makes your next grant application write itself.

The Shift: From “A Great Story” to “Irrefutable Evidence”

A great story is anecdotal; irrefutable evidence is an anecdote anchored by verifiable metrics.

Funders aren’t just looking for impact; they’re looking for predictability and a strong return on investment (ROI). They need to know that if they give you money, you can reliably replicate past success.

To make the case study a grant-winning tool, you must standardize your narrative around three key data points. These points provide the structure and the numbers needed for instant insertion into any proposal.

The 3 Data Points Every Funder Needs

When crafting a case study, make sure these three pieces of information are easily isolated and quantified.

1. Baseline Data: Where the Client Started

Your story must begin with a measurable starting point. This establishes the need and gives context to the eventual change.

• For an individual: What was the initial challenge? (e.g., “Ms. Lee was $15,000 in high-interest debt,” or “The student was reading at a 1st-grade level.”)
• For a community/project: What was the initial gap or problem? (e.g., “The community garden had a 10% harvest yield due to soil depletion.”)

Funder Value: This proves you understand the scope of the problem and that you are selecting clients with clear, quantifiable needs.

2. Intervention & Cost: What You Did (and for How Much)

This is the central part of the case study, but it needs to be concise and focused on the service delivered. Most importantly, you need to tie it to a cost.

• The Intervention: A clear, concise description of your role (e.g., “Ms. Lee participated in our 8-week financial literacy workshop and received 10 hours of 1:1 counseling.”)
• The Unit Cost: Calculate the average cost to deliver that outcome to one person or project (e.g., “The comprehensive 8-week program costs us approximately $750 per client to deliver.”)

Funder Value: This shows you are efficient and helps the funder model their investment. When you ask for $50,000, they can see exactly how many people (or “units”) that money will serve.

3. The Measurable Outcome: The Quantifiable Change

This is the payoff—the irrefutable evidence that your program works. The outcome must directly address and contrast with the Baseline Data (Point 1).

• The Change: (e.g., “After completing the program, Ms. Lee reduced her debt by 80% and established a 3-month emergency fund,” or “The student’s reading level increased to 3rd grade, exceeding our goal by 6 months.”)

Funder Value: This is the evidence they’re looking for. It proves your methodology works, and that you have the internal systems to track and verify successful results.

Systematizing the Creation Process

You shouldn’t have to overhaul your system for every grant. Build a quick workflow that makes these Grant-Evidence Assets repeatable:

1. Design Backwards: When you design your program intake forms, include fields specifically for your Baseline Data (Point 1).
2. Train Program Staff: Train your staff to consistently record their activities (Point 2) and to capture the final results (Point 3) as a mandatory part of client/project closeout.
3. Template Your Case Study: Create a single, repeatable template that includes a dedicated “Grant-Ready Metrics Box.” This box should simply contain the three data points above, ready to copy and paste.

Your marketing isn’t separate from your grants; it feeds them. The stronger your case studies are, the less time you spend justifying your existence and the more time you spend growing your impact.

Ready to stop rewriting your success stories for every grant? Let’s audit your current marketing content and turn your compelling stories into your most powerful, grant-winning evidence.