Battle Card: Foundation Directory Online (FDO)

Overview Capabilities Comparison Sources

Overview

<aside> 💡 Key takeaway vs. FDO:

FDO, particularly their Enterprise plan, primarily focuses on breadth and depth of data, while Instrumentl excels in providing actionable insights, streamlined workflows, and personalized support. We win when we position Instrumentl as a solution that goes beyond data access and actively helps organizations achieve their fundraising goals across the grant life cycle.

FDO's strength: Offers a vast database of grant makers and grants, including historical data and 990s, making it a valuable resource for in-depth research and comprehensive landscape analysis.
Instrumentl's strength: Provides intelligent matching, intuitive workflows, personalized support, and integrations that help grant professionals efficiently find, track, and win grants faster, leading to a higher ROI. </aside>

Typical Customers:

Established nonprofits with dedicated grant teams
Experienced grant writers who value a streamlined, efficient workflow
Established nonprofits, hospitals, and academic institutions with dedicated grant teams
Smaller non-profits making use of FDO Essential’s affordable entry point

Why Instrumentl Wins:

	Instrumentl	FDO
Find the Right Grants Faster	Intelligent Matching proactively matches you with active funders tailored to your mission instantly, saving hours of manual searching (vs. FDO's manual search).	Requires manual searching and lacks proactive matching.
Work Smarter, Not Harder	Collaborative Grant Management: Fosters teamwork with automated deadline tracking, task assignments, and document sharing, increasing productivity across the whole team	Offers limited collaboration tools and manual deadline tracking. Lacks multi-user collaboration.
Faster ROI	Higher Success Rates: Instrumentl users win grants faster, thanks to active funder focus and targeted applications. (vs. FDO's broad database)	Broad database may include inactive funders, lowering overall success rates.

Objection Handling:

Objection	Response
FDO has more funders.	Instrumentl focuses on active funders with current opportunities, not outdated listings, saving you time and increasing your success rate.
Instrumentl costs more.	Instrumentl is an investment that pays for itself by saving you valuable time, increasing your efficiency, and boosting your grant win rate.
FDO has a long-standing reputation.	Instrumentl's innovative approach and proven results are making it the preferred choice for grant professionals who want to stay ahead of the curve.
I'm already familiar with FDO.	We offer a free trial and onboarding support to help you transition smoothly to Instrumentl and experience its superior features.

Key Talking Points for Sales:

Pain Point for FDO Users	How Instrumentl Solves This	Proof Point
Overwhelming volume of inactive funders	Intelligent Matching: Instrumentl's AI-powered matching focuses only on active grantmakers with current opportunities, filtering out the noise and irrelevant data that can bog down FDO users.	Eversight increased their grant success rate by 8% by focusing on high-fit opportunities identified by Instrumentl's Smart Matching.
Limited workflow and collaboration tools	Faster workflows: Instrumentl streamlines collaboration through task assignments, shared workspaces, grant ownership, and automatic deadline reminders, increasing efficiency compared to FDO's limited capabilities.

| Phoenix Children's Foundation saved 3 hours per week on grant prospecting by using Instrumentl's streamlined workflow and collaboration tools. | | Fragmented Tools for Pre- and Post-Award Management | Consolidated Platform: Instrumentl provides a single platform for the entire grant lifecycle, from finding and applying to tracking awarded grants and managing spending. This eliminates the need to switch between tools and ensures seamless transitions, unlike FDO's system which focuses on pre-award stages. | CY Hope sees 50% Increase in Grant Submissions with Instrumentl |

Pricing Overview

	Instrumentl Basic (Monthly)	Instrumentl Standard (Monthly)	Instrumentl Pro (Monthly)	Instrumentl Enterprise	FDO Essential (Monthly)	FDO Professional (Monthly)
Pricing Model	$179	$299	$499	NA	$37+ (with limitations)	$133+
Free Trial	14-day free trial	14-day free trial	14-day free trial	NA	❌	❌
Number of Funders	450,000+	450,000+	450,000+	450,000+	154,000+	302,000+
Grant Information					500,000+	28.8 million+
Recipient Profiles	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Intelligent Matching	✅	✅	✅	✅	❌	❌
Funder Insights	✅	✅	✅	✅	Basic	Keyword search 990s and 990-PFs
Deadline Tracking & Reminders	✅	✅	✅	✅	❌	❌
Task Management	✅	✅	✅	✅	❌	❌
Calendar Integration	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Grant Ownership	❌	✅	✅	✅	❌	❌
Custom Fields	❌	✅	✅	✅	❌	❌
Spend down Tracking	❌	✅	✅	✅	❌	❌
Integrations	❌	✅	✅	✅	❌	❌
Support & Training	❌	❌	✅	✅	General customer support	General customer support
Number of Projects	5	10	20	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited
Multi-User Access	❌	✅	✅	✅	❌	❌
Increased Tracker Limits	❌	❌	✅	✅	❌	❌
Dedicated Account Manager	❌	❌	❌	✅	❌	❌
Priority Support	❌	❌	❌	✅	❌	❌
Custom Integrations	❌	❌	❌	✅	❌	❌

<aside> 💡 FDO Enterprise Plan is a subscription plan offered by the Foundation Directory Online, designed specifically for larger organizations like colleges, universities, academic libraries, and multi-site or large nonprofits. It aims to provide the most economical way to give institution-wide access to the Foundation Directory.

The primary purpose of the Enterprise plan is to grant access to the entire organization, suggesting a large number of potential users.
Customization Options**:** FDO’s enterprise page suggests the Enterprise plan may offer customization to fit specific organizational needs, but details cannot be verified.
Candid, FDO’s parent company could significantly enhance the value proposition of their FDO Enterprise plan by strategically integrating their broader range of tools and resources such as GuideStar Premium, Grants to Individuals database, select eLearning courses, or a set number of proposal review consultation hours.

</aside>