The Masterful Follow-Up: Navigating Post-LOI Communication with Grace
A field-tested guide for foundation fundraisers who want to stay on a program officer's radar without landing on their nerves.
You submitted your Letter of Inquiry. You hit send, silently prayed to the grant gods, and then... nothing. The calendar pages turn. Your executive director starts asking questions. And you’re left wondering: do I follow up, or do I wait?
Here’s the truth: the follow-up is part of the ask. Done well, it signals professionalism, genuine interest, and organizational competence.
Done badly, it signals desperation and makes program officers hide behind their out-of-office messages.
Let’s talk about how to do it right.
Hiking in the Rainforest, Bogor, Indonesia © Tonya Hennessey
First, Read the Room (and the Guidelines)
Before you do anything, go back to the funder’s website. Many private foundations spell out their LOI review timeline and whether they accept follow-up inquiries.
If the guidelines say “we will contact you,” that means you wait. Ignoring this instruction is the grant equivalent of texting someone back before they’ve had a chance to reply. Don’t be that person.
If the guidelines are silent on follow-up? You have a green light, with some ground rules.
The Two-Week Rule
Wait at least two weeks after submitting before reaching out. Foundations receive hundreds of LOIs during open cycles, and program officers are doing real work under real deadlines.
A follow-up sent two days after submission doesn’t show enthusiasm; it shows impatience.
After two weeks, a brief, professional email is entirely appropriate.
According to Candid’s LOI best practices, the goal of any follow-up should be to confirm receipt and offer to provide additional information, not to lobby for your proposal.
What to Say (and What Not to Say)
Your follow-up email should be three paragraphs, max. Open by referencing your LOI, the date you submitted, and the organization and project name. Keep it specific so the reader doesn’t have to search their inbox.
Second paragraph: briefly restate why this project aligns with the foundation’s priorities. Not a full pitch, just a thread back to what matters to them.
Third paragraph: offer to answer any questions or provide supplementary materials, and thank them for their time.
Please don’t say: “Just circling back.” “I wanted to touch base.” “Following up on my follow-up.” These phrases have become so overused that they’re practically white noise.
As Vu Le of Nonprofit AF once quipped, “the nonprofit sector runs on a special dialect of buzzword soup that exhausts everyone, including the people writing it.” Be direct. Be human. Be specific.
One Follow-Up Call, Not Many
A short phone call is also appropriate, generally once. Leave a voicemail if they don’t answer, and be sure to pace your follow-up so you’re not overwhelming.
This is not a multi-channel marketing campaign. You are not trying to convert a lead. You are building a relationship, and relationships are built on respect for boundaries.
Use the Waiting Period Productively
The weeks between your LOI and a funding decision are not dead time. This is your chance to follow the funder on social media, attend any public events they host, and track their recent grants to refine your understanding of their priorities.
By the time they reach back to you, you should know their grantmaking landscape better than you did the day you submitted your LOI.
Think of it like studying before a callback audition. You already impressed them enough to get a second look. Now show up prepared.
The Long Game
You need to understand that most LOIs don’t become full proposals on the first submission. Seasoned fundraisers know that a “not this cycle” response is often an invitation to try again.
A gracious, curious reply to a decline, asking what might make a stronger fit in the future, is one of the most underused tools in the field.
Seriously, showing that you’re not offended by being declined and following up for feedback is a great way to keep the conversation going.
The goal isn’t just one grant. It’s a funder relationship that funds your mission for years.
That’s the groove. Now go out and get it.