Here's the Catch-22 on discussing your competition: If you list competing programs and/or agencies, you will have to say why they are not partners to the project. If you don't list them, the funder — particularly if it's a local foundation — will likely surmise that you are creating the project in a vacuum and deny your request.

Of course, the best-case scenario is when you have no competition. But most often that's only true if all of the competitors are part of a collaborative addressing the same issue. That leaves you with only one way to “win” this one.

Acknowledge what others in the community are doing, then describe the ways in which your organization or this particular project is different from what others are doing and/or ways in which the similar organizations remain specialized but are coordinating their efforts.

You can say: “LMNO, RST, and XYZ offer services for youth in the inner city; however, ABC is the only organization in the city to work in conjunction with the city police department and to provide police officers as mentors and coaches for youth in all of its programs.

“ABC's Camp was the first of its kind in the state to provide summer camping for low-income youth. Today, staff know of several camps providing experiences for at-risk and/or low-income children and adolescents, including GEF, LMN, and ZYX. Like the inner-city youth centers, however, ABC's camp has always been unique in that police officers participate with youth at camp as day counselors and coaches.” With that, you've set your program apart from the others.