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Author Ellen Urbani was at a dinner party one night in Port St. Lucie, Florida, seated next to Doug G., the husband of Ann G., who had read and loved Urbani’s memoir When I Was Elena. Urbani had just decided to quit her day job to work on a novel with no clear plan for how she would earn money while writing full-time and raising two children as a divorced mom.

“My wife loves your book and I hear you’re working on a novel,” said Mr. G. before taking a puff on his cigar. Urbani had become so accustomed to talking about the novel and her plans that when Mr. G. asked ​about her new project, she knew exactly what to say. “Yes, I am. It’s called Rose by Another Name, and it’s about two families sent reeling in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and how a tragic accident reveals a deep family secret that first shatters and then reunites these mother–daughter pairs.” She then elaborated on her ideas for marketing the book.

Urbani didn’t know that she was pitching the book project to a potential donor. Yet by the end of the dinner, Mr. G. said he thought his wife might be interested in supporting work on the new novel. A few days later, Mrs. G. wrote Urbani a check for $25,000. Through their attorneys, Urbani and her patrons hammered out an agreement to make the funds a loan to be repaid from proceeds from the novel, if Urbani sells it. If she doesn’t, the money will be considered a grant.

One of the reasons for Urbani’s success (besides the fact that she was lucky enough to find herself sitting next to a philanthropist) was that she had a crisp, compelling “elevator speech” rehearsed and prepared. So when she and Doug G. struck up a conversation she knew exactly what to say.

Even if you don’t regularly mingle with wealthy patrons, you’ll need your own elevator speech to use for both impromptu meetings ​and for when you call the funding organization about your current project. The idea of memorizing a prepared speech may put you off; nobody wants to sound like an automaton. But it’s impossible for even the most gregarious wordsmith to be eloquent every time she opens her mouth. Most humans can be forgetful or tongue-tied, especially when they’re caught off-guard or feel under pressure.

The Importance of Having an Elevator Speech

An elevator speech is the few sentences that roll off your tongue at a moment’s notice that describe you and your work. You’ll use this speech when you’re introducing yourself to a potential funder or audience member because you never know who you’ll be standing next to in an elevator or at the checkout line at the grocery store. A polished elevator speech is what you say before the elevator door opens and this potential contact disappears forever. When that person turns out to be the head of a local foundation, or someone you could invite to a fundraiser or your next event, you’ll be glad you know how to introduce yourself and your work.

You’ll also need an elevator speech when you call the funder. Remember that list of questions you made while reading through the grant application guidelines? If some of them are still nagging at you, you’ll call the funder for some answers. But there’s another major reason to call the funder: This is your opportunity for personal contact. It’s much easier for a funder to reject an applicant he has never met. The tricky part is that you want to meet them but also have to have a good reason to call. After you introduce yourself using your polished elevator speech, you need to ask a smart question.

When calling a funder to ask a question, I might say, “Hi, I’m Gigi Rosenberg. I write creative nonfiction, and I’m applying for a fellowship to support finishing my memoir, The Stone Road Home: 150 Nights in Siena. I thought this might appeal to your organization because of your interest in …” (Note: To finish this sentence, I need to finish my research: Why will this project appeal to this funder?) Then I’ll end my ​speech with the reason for my call: “I’m calling to ask a question: …” I’ve made sure that my question is a good one—not something I could have answered myself by reading the mission statement or information clearly presented on their website.

To finesse your speech, imagine you’re talking to a potential funder. Remember they’re looking for artists to fund. They want to know about what you do and why your project might be a good match for their organization. When you present all that information clearly and succinctly, you make their job easier.

The elevator speech for your project includes the following:

You can’t say it all, so keep in mind why the funder might be interested in your project. Reread the “Play the Matchmaking Game” section in chapter 1 (this page) to remind yourself how important it is to match your project with the funder. Think about the funder for a minute and ask yourself, What matters to them? What kinds of projects are they interested in funding? What have they funded in the past that is similar to my project? What’s their mission? How does my project relate to their mission? Why might my project be a perfect match? After you’ve contemplated your project from their point of view, you’ll know what else to add to your elevator speech to introduce your project.

How to Write an Elevator Speech

When I lived in France, it was considered rude to ask someone you’d just met, “What do you do?” But in America, near-strangers ask this of each other every day. This means you’ll have many chances—even ​several times a week—to tell people what you’re raising money for. This is a good thing. Because you never know when you’ll be chatting with a potential donor.

To prepare a great elevator speech, you need two things: the right words and enough practice. In just a few sentences, describe what you do; why, how, and where you do it; and when you’ll be presenting it next. It can take many tries to get it right. If you are stumped, ask a colleague to describe what you do and the project you want to fund, because she might use words that you wouldn’t have thought of to describe your work.

After you’ve finessed the words, practice this speech at every possible chance. If you meet regularly with a group of colleagues, rehearse your elevator speech at the beginning of every meeting. You may feel ridiculous at first, but the more you say the words to people you know, the less awkward you’ll feel with strangers.

Sculptor James Lapp remembers the time before he had an elevator speech and how he felt when somebody asked him what he did. “I would stand there with a dumb expression on my face as I tried to sum up ten years of working on and thinking about sculpture.” Now he has a succinct answer that he knows by heart:

He then elaborates, but his short statement gets him started.

Artist Aviva Rahmani, who splits her time between Manhattan and Vinalhaven Island off the coast of Maine, has many chances to use her speech. When somebody asks her what she does, she says,

Depending on who she’s talking to, she might end her speech with an invitation to her next opening and an offer of her business card.

Artist and creative advocate Gretchin Lair really nailed her elevator speech:

Justine Avera introduces the two kinds of photography she does and ends her elevator speech with a question that begins a conversation:

Painter Christopher Mooney introduces himself this way, concluding with information about his next show:

Poet, author, and marketing specialist Sage Cohen wears many hats. Her elevator speech begins:

If Cohen were at a party, she might continue the conversation by asking the other person “what they feel is poetic about their life and work,” she said.

When you use a good elevator speech, strangers become potential audience members, donors, and referrals. They’ll attend your readings, buy your books, crowd your gallery openings, and pack your performances. Some will even write you a check. But they can only do this if they know what you do. Your elevator speech makes this possible.

Practice the Sacred Art of Follow-Up

Eventually, the envelope will land in your mailbox. It might be big and fat (often a good sign) or small and slim (sometimes a bad sign). It may begin with “Congratulations” or “We regret to inform you …”

​But what if the decision deadline comes and goes, and you haven’t heard from the granting organization? When you apply for any grant, find out the decision deadline so you know when to expect your answer. Make a note on your calendar a week after the decision deadline: “Should have heard back from Moneybags Foundation by now.”

If it’s a week past the deadline and you haven’t heard anything, contact the funder. Say (nicely) something like, “I’m calling to check up on my application. Your guidelines said decisions would be made a week ago.” At a minimum, you’ll show the funder and yourself your persistence and excellent follow-up. You’ll likely find out what the delay is and when to expect a decision. The best outcome of this inquiry could be what happened to an artist friend of mine. She contacted the funder two weeks after she was supposed to have received a decision and discovered she’d won the grant, but they had sent her award letter to the wrong address.

Whether you receive the money or not, you must follow up with the granting organization.

Don’t Take the Money and Run

If you received the money: mazel tov! Send a thank-you note to everyone involved, including the person or people who signed your award letter. Mail thank-you notes to others associated with your grant including the director of the granting organization, and the panel members who judged the grant. If you don’t know who was on the panel, contact the agency and ask if they can tell you. Hand-write your notes, and mail them with a commemorative stamp. (Don’t use e-mail unless it’s your only option.) If you’re a visual artist, write your note on a card that features your artwork, even better if the art relates to the project they just funded. Otherwise, use professional-looking stationery—fancy or plain—with your name and complete contact information.

In your note, briefly reference your project and title (if you have one); for example, “I’m looking forward to studying solo performance with Joe Goode in San Francisco this summer” or “Thank you for funding my one-woman show Waking the Sleeping Woman. I look forward ​to seeing you on opening night.” Tell them how excited you are to have their support. Be upbeat, appreciative, and brief.

Make a habit of sending notes of appreciation. After you’ve been funded, you enter into a new relationship with the funder. Funders don’t want to feel like all they do is cut a check; they want to be involved in your project as more than a benefactor. This is a relationship to nurture throughout your career. Send the funder updates on your project (like other grants you’ve won) and invitations to showings of works in progress.

After your project is completed, your funder may request a final report. This follow-up task is crucial if you ever want to receive funding again. Even if they don’t ask for a final report, send a note or letter to everyone who contributed to your project to let them know how well it all turned out.

If You Don’t Win

If your application is rejected, give yourself a day to pout, cry, and complain. But do not correspond with the granting agency when you’re feeling defensive, angry, or unloved. Save these feelings for your good friend’s or therapist’s couch. Your feelings are important, but don’t share them with the granting agency, ever.

Believe it or not, this rejection is still the beginning of a relationship. Playwright and actor Aaron Landsman benefitted from simply being a runner-up one year when he applied for the P73 Playwriting Fellowship. They had received four hundred applications for one residency, and he was the number-three choice. But his rejected application sparked a relationship that has benefited Landsman in many ways. P73 has included Landsman in its curated writer’s group, invited him to a retreat at Yale, and signed on as his fiscal sponsor for at least one grant. They’ve become an advocate, and it all began with a rejection.

Within two weeks of receiving your rejection letter, when you’re feeling more upbeat, send a thank-you note to the person who signed your rejection letter. Thank him for considering your application and tell him that you appreciate the feedback you received—or will ​receive—and look forward to writing a stronger proposal next time. Make it a real note with a stamp, just like you would send if you’d received the grant.

A thank-you note reminds the funder, the world, and yourself that you’re still in the game. Also, it’s memorable. I write thank-you notes often and several times I’ve heard that they’d never received a note from a rejected applicant ever.

Follow Up with a Phone Call

Whenever possible, follow up with the funder to find out why you were rejected. I even follow up when my application wins, because it helps reinforce what I’m doing right.

Some granting organizations have specific guidelines for how you can follow up on an application. Follow their rules. They might meet with you in person or discuss your application over the phone and request that you call within a specified time frame. Or maybe they won’t provide any feedback at all.

This follow-up meeting can provide a gold mine of information about how to improve your application next time, so even though it may be painful, don’t skip this step. You may discover you had a stellar application that would have been funded except they ran out of money, or that your application was first on the waiting list.

If someone from the granting agency agrees to speak with you, be cordial—not belligerent. To break the ice, I sometimes say, “I know this conversation is uncomfortable, but the more information you give me, the more I’ll learn about how to write a stronger proposal next time.” This conversation is not an easy one for you or for the other person on the phone. It’s bad enough having to reject ​someone but then to have to discuss the details in person is awkward for them too. Make it easy for the other person to provide as much information as possible.

Be sure to have a copy of your application in front of you during this meeting it so that you know what’s being referred to when you receive feedback. Listen and take notes. Be professional; remember that professionals know how to win and lose with grace. This is not the time to defend or explain your project. End with thank-you. This is a potential new contact.

The person providing the feedback is rarely the person who made the decision, so arguing is pointless. “You don’t need to justify why you did what you did on your application,” said Christa Blatchford, formerly of the New York Foundation for the Arts. She has heard rejected grant applicants argue with the person giving feedback. “The person giving feedback isn’t asking you why you did it; he or she is just giving you information, so just go into it listening,” she advised. Shannon Planchon, assistant director of the Oregon Arts Commission encourages all rejected applicants to follow up so she can offer constructive feedback, which sometimes means discouraging an applicant from applying if she’s not a good match.

When I make follow-up calls, I sometimes pretend (to myself!) that I’m my assistant. This helps the critique feel less personal. It puts me in the right inquisitive frame of mind: I’m just taking notes, getting the facts. Because the more information I glean, the more I’ll learn for next time.

If this feels challenging for you, rehearse the call with a friend first.

Possible questions to ask on this call include

Use whatever information you receive and apply it to the next proposal. This practice greatly increases your chances of receiving funding the next time.

Grab a timer. In thirty seconds or less, describe out loud what kind of artwork you make and what you want to accomplish with your next project. Or, create a thirty-second radio or TV ad for your project. Or, write the jacket copy for the novel or the tagline on the movie poster. What does the project boil down to? What will hook and entice your audience? Describe your next project as ad copy. Write it as a tweet. Go.