Should I Build It Should I Build It
07 Sep 2025
Charity & Giving

Grant writing assistant to help nonprofits get grants. Program would ...

...help guide a grant writer through the first steps

Confidence
Engagement
Net use signal
Net buy signal

Idea type: Swamp

The market has seen several mediocre solutions that nobody loves. Unless you can offer something fundamentally different, you’ll likely struggle to stand out or make money.

Should You Build It?

Don't build it.

Your are here

You're entering a crowded space, specifically the "Swamp" category, with your grant writing assistant idea. This means there are already several solutions available, but none have truly captured the market's love. Our analysis shows that there are about 11 similar products, so competition is very high. The average engagement is low, with only 2 comments, suggesting existing solutions aren't sparking much conversation. There are no strong signals for net use or net buy, which is understandable for this type of product. This doesn't necessarily mean your idea is bad, but it does mean you'll need a truly unique approach to stand out.

Recommendations

  1. First, deeply investigate why current grant writing assistants aren't resonating. Don't just assume you know; talk to potential users and understand their pain points with existing tools. What are they missing? What frustrates them? Knowing this will give you a crucial edge.
  2. Given the crowded market, niche down. Don't try to be everything to everyone. Focus on a specific type of nonprofit or a particular grant category (e.g., environmental conservation, arts education). A narrower focus allows you to tailor your assistant and become the go-to solution for that specific need.
  3. Instead of directly competing with existing grant writing platforms, consider creating tools or plugins that enhance their functionality. For example, could you build an AI-powered grammar and style checker specifically trained for grant writing, which integrates with popular platforms?
  4. Explore adjacent problems that nonprofits face beyond grant writing. Perhaps a tool to help them manage their existing grants, track reporting deadlines, or connect with potential donors. Addressing a less saturated need might be a more promising path.
  5. Based on the discussion summaries from similar products, focus on AI-driven learning modules. GranAI users requested personalized AI learning modules. The most promising area to explore is integrations into other platforms like Xero (requested by GrantAI users). This seems like a great opportunity.
  6. The BlankPage got good traction. Look into listing the app on AI directories for increased visibility and traction. Think carefully about distribution. GrantAI also got traction and excitement from simplifying the grant writing process.

Questions

  1. What is the one thing that your grant writing assistant will do significantly better than any existing solution, and how will you prove that to potential users?
  2. Assuming you niche down, which specific nonprofit segment or grant category will you focus on initially, and what makes you believe this segment is underserved by current tools?
  3. What's your plan to acquire your first 100 paying customers, and how does that strategy align with your chosen niche?

Your are here

You're entering a crowded space, specifically the "Swamp" category, with your grant writing assistant idea. This means there are already several solutions available, but none have truly captured the market's love. Our analysis shows that there are about 11 similar products, so competition is very high. The average engagement is low, with only 2 comments, suggesting existing solutions aren't sparking much conversation. There are no strong signals for net use or net buy, which is understandable for this type of product. This doesn't necessarily mean your idea is bad, but it does mean you'll need a truly unique approach to stand out.

Recommendations

  1. First, deeply investigate why current grant writing assistants aren't resonating. Don't just assume you know; talk to potential users and understand their pain points with existing tools. What are they missing? What frustrates them? Knowing this will give you a crucial edge.
  2. Given the crowded market, niche down. Don't try to be everything to everyone. Focus on a specific type of nonprofit or a particular grant category (e.g., environmental conservation, arts education). A narrower focus allows you to tailor your assistant and become the go-to solution for that specific need.
  3. Instead of directly competing with existing grant writing platforms, consider creating tools or plugins that enhance their functionality. For example, could you build an AI-powered grammar and style checker specifically trained for grant writing, which integrates with popular platforms?
  4. Explore adjacent problems that nonprofits face beyond grant writing. Perhaps a tool to help them manage their existing grants, track reporting deadlines, or connect with potential donors. Addressing a less saturated need might be a more promising path.
  5. Based on the discussion summaries from similar products, focus on AI-driven learning modules. GranAI users requested personalized AI learning modules. The most promising area to explore is integrations into other platforms like Xero (requested by GrantAI users). This seems like a great opportunity.
  6. The BlankPage got good traction. Look into listing the app on AI directories for increased visibility and traction. Think carefully about distribution. GrantAI also got traction and excitement from simplifying the grant writing process.

Questions

  1. What is the one thing that your grant writing assistant will do significantly better than any existing solution, and how will you prove that to potential users?
  2. Assuming you niche down, which specific nonprofit segment or grant category will you focus on initially, and what makes you believe this segment is underserved by current tools?
  3. What's your plan to acquire your first 100 paying customers, and how does that strategy align with your chosen niche?

  • Confidence: High
    • Number of similar products: 11
  • Engagement: Low
    • Average number of comments: 2
  • Net use signal: 22.3%
    • Positive use signal: 22.3%
    • Negative use signal: 0.0%
  • Net buy signal: 0.0%
    • Positive buy signal: 0.0%
    • Negative buy signal: 0.0%

This chart summarizes all the similar products we found for your idea in a single plot.

The x-axis represents the overall feedback each product received. This is calculated from the net use and buy signals that were expressed in the comments. The maximum is +1, which means all comments (across all similar products) were positive, expressed a willingness to use & buy said product. The minimum is -1 and it means the exact opposite.

The y-axis captures the strength of the signal, i.e. how many people commented and how does this rank against other products in this category. The maximum is +1, which means these products were the most liked, upvoted and talked about launches recently. The minimum is 0, meaning zero engagement or feedback was received.

The sizes of the product dots are determined by the relevance to your idea, where 10 is the maximum.

Your idea is the big blueish dot, which should lie somewhere in the polygon defined by these products. It can be off-center because we use custom weighting to summarize these metrics.

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The feedback received was limited to a single user inquiry about the availability of European grants beyond Portugal.

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