For small businesses aiming to secure SBIR/STTR funding, one of the most effective ways to strengthen your proposal is to study previously funded projects. These past awards offer a window into the priorities of funding agencies, providing invaluable insights into what sets a winning application apart. By approaching this research thoughtfully, you can position your own proposal for greater success.
Why Past Awards Matter
Examining past awards helps clarify what each agency values and highlights patterns in the types of innovations that gain traction. Reviewing project abstracts and summaries often reveals the recurring themes of technical rigor, clear objectives, and market relevance. These summaries can serve as a source of inspiration, showing how other small businesses framed their challenges and innovations in ways that resonated with reviewers. Beyond identifying strengths, studying past projects can also reveal areas of opportunity—gaps in research and development where your proposed solution could make an impact.
Understanding What Agencies Look For
As you review past awards, pay close attention to how projects define the problem they are solving and how they articulate the novelty of their approach. It’s not just about having an innovative idea; it’s about presenting that idea in a way that demonstrates both feasibility and a clear path to commercialization. Strong award-winning projects often weave together a compelling technical vision with a roadmap for market entry, underscoring the potential impact of their innovation. While full proposals are not publicly available, award abstracts typically offer enough detail to help you refine your approach.
Aligning Your Proposal with Agency Goals
Another key takeaway from analyzing successful projects is understanding the importance of alignment. Agencies often fund work that supports their broader mission, whether it’s advancing clean energy, improving national security, or enhancing healthcare outcomes. By identifying how your proposed solution fits within these objectives, you can craft a narrative that shows your awareness of the agency’s goals and your readiness to contribute meaningfully to their mission.
Avoiding Common Pitfalls
This process isn’t just about identifying strengths—it’s also about ensuring your proposal avoids common pitfalls. Duplication of previous work, for example, is something agencies actively seek to avoid. Studying past awards can provide evidence to confirm that your solution is sufficiently distinct and builds on, rather than replicates, previous efforts.
Incorporating Insights into Your Proposal
Once you’ve gathered these insights, the next step is integrating them into your application. Strengthen your technical narrative by clearly demonstrating how your project addresses an unmet need or offers an improvement over existing technologies. Your commercialization strategy should be specific and actionable, outlining key milestones that signal progress toward market readiness. If you notice that past projects fell short in areas such as market engagement, consider how your approach can stand out by addressing those gaps.
Turning Research into Results
Evaluating past SBIR/STTR awards is more than just an exercise in competitive research—it’s a strategic step in shaping a more compelling, well-rounded proposal. At E.B. Howard Consulting, we collaborate with small businesses to harness this type of research, providing tailored guidance that ensures your proposal not only meets program requirements but also reflects best practices. By applying lessons learned from past successes, you can present a stronger, more informed case for funding.
If you’re ready to take your proposal to the next level, reach out to us. We’re here to collaborate with you and support your journey through the SBIR/STTR process to position your innovation for success.
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We assist our clients in locating, applying for, and evaluating the outcomes of non-dilutive grant funding. We believe non-dilutive funding is a crucial tool for mitigating investment risks, and we are dedicated to guiding our clients through the entire process—from identifying the most suitable opportunities to submitting and managing grant applications.