Testimonials

We call Mary Ann our ‘arts angel’ at The Chop. She seems to have unlimited resource and care for her clients. She is also funny and down to earth. Since she’s built the Smart Grant system, we’ve saved hours of admin time when searching for applicable granting opportunities.

Why would Mary Ann offer so much effort and intelligence into making the arts world easier to navigate? Because she is as devoted to making important and useful new work as the actors on stage are. Her brilliance shows up in building the bedrock of Canadian theatre funding systems.

Smart Grant is where all the art across Canada begins. Every year I reach out in a panic, and every year she responds calmly and kindly. I couldn’t do the work I do without Mary Ann and her Smart Grant system. Thank you! 1 thousand stars!

Smart Grant has been an invaluable resource for our non-profit arts and culture organization. The platform made it easy to identify funding opportunities. I discovered several grants I wasn’t previously aware of, which directly supported our planning efforts. The clarity and organization of the information saved significant time and helped us focus on the most relevant opportunities.

I have also worked with MaryAnn, founder of Smart Grant, over the past several years for grant writing support and strategic advice. I deeply value her knowledge, insight and approach to navigating the arts and culture funding landscape. Her guidance has consistently strengthened our applications and funding strategies.

I highly recommend investing in Smart Grant for arts and culture non-profits looking to build sustainable funding, save time, and expand their reach.

Smart Grant has been a game changer for me. 

I’m a not-for-profit management consultant and do a lot of grant writing.  At first I was skeptical, but this platform is designed with a keen understanding of what grant writers need and the challenges we face.  It is saving hours searching through funder websites only to find out it they are not suitable.

Here I get everything I need in a couple of paragraphs to make an informed decision about the potential match between funder and organization.  On top of that, the immediate support is amazing.  I encountered a glitch and minutes later I was on a Zoom call, 2 hours later it was fixed.

If you’ve ever considered using a fund development platform for arts funding, use this one!

As a newcomer to Canada, I arrived with over 15 years of experience working in the arts and culture industry in my home country. However, I quickly discovered that Canada has a completely different grant system. Navigating this new landscape and figuring out which funding opportunities I was eligible for felt overwhelming. Even tools like ChatGPT couldn’t fully guide me to the right resources.

That’s why I was so grateful to discover Smart Grant. With the help of Mary Ann and her dedicated team, I learned how to identify suitable funding and stay updated with constantly changing information. I deeply appreciate the incredible amount of effort they put into maintaining and refining the system. For me, Smart Grant has been a true gateway to new opportunities, connecting me to the resources I need to continue building my artistic/community art journey in Canada.

I think of Mary Ann Anderson as a ‘Grant Goddess’ because she is the go-to person when I need support writing or vetting a grant. Whether you’re an individual artist or arts organization, if you need help envisioning your project, advice about your budget, or how to develop your multi-year proposal, her breadth of experience, insight and generosity is unmatched. Her track record is impressive, although she never talks about it, and her ability to zero in on what will make your grant application a lot more competitive, is a wonderful gift.

Now that she has launched her savvy new SmartGrant platform, the BC arts community has access to the first affordable, comprehensive, arts funding database. There’s never been anything like it! Check it out and make your grant management a whole lot easier.

I first came to know Mary Ann through her grant writing services offered to our organization. As a disabled artist and arts administrator, working with her was a dream – she was well organized, always prepared, and came with a breadth and depth of specialized knowledge (both of grants as well as of our organizational history) – simply put, Mary Ann’s expertise in grant writing and grant systems is unparalleled.

Smart Grant is a tool that brings all of this (and maybe more?!): it offers a platform that is accessible, it is intuitive to use, aids in some of the most difficult things in grant writing and creates ease in all areas of the process. This system has thought through various elements of grant writing (searching and systems of organization) in a way that considers the disabled experience and points of access in unique and exciting ways. We’re thrilled to be able to have access to a tool like Smart Grant!

As an individual artist and a grant writer, I am so excited to join the SmartGrant platform. Mary Ann Anderson’s knowledge and understanding of BC’s granting landscape is unparalleled, so I have confidence that it’s grounded in our funding realities. SmartGrant is an essential tool for making my pitches to funders strategically, so I can focus on my work rather than searching for funders.