Rachel Bearbower is a fundraiser, former ED, and founder. She is the host of the Sprout Podcast and spends her time building a community of small shop Executive Directors inside her membership, SproutED. Her work stems from struggling inside an underfunded, limited-resource, systemless organization despite working countless hours with the combination of never having enough time and feeling isolated as a leader of a small shop organization where burnout was inevitable. A story that’s not unique to anyone inside the nonprofit sector. Rachel believes in reclaiming your time to create better relationships with donors and raise more for the mission you love while creating a sustainable + lasting impact.  You can find her on Instagram at @smallshopstrategies, on LinkedIn, or on her website at www.smallshopstrategies.com. Key Takeaways: It’s important to balance systems implementation with human connection in nonprofit fundraising. Remember that the point of updating infrastructure is to support processes and free up time for meaningful interactions with donors. Relationship building is the most critical thing to the sustainability of your organization. Dedicate more of your time and energy to making people feel seen and heard, and a part of a loving and thriving, authentic community. Most nonprofits don’t have the capacity to follow up with every single donor. Through automated systems, you can acknowledge the gift, reach out to the donor, and nurture the relationship of each and every donor that goes through your organization’s process. You can make people feel special through automated responses, you just have to be intentional about it. Make your automated messaging sound like you. Write it like you’re talking to one person instead of a group. “Productivity really isn't the point. We set up these systems so that we can give ourselves time back in our day. Not so that we can do more, but so that we can do less.” “Get them in the front door and make sure that they are connecting using automation, and some very intentional workflows to make them feel supported in a way that feels true and authentic and genuine, to your organization and to who you are.” “You want to make sure that you're you're writing in that voice that's speaking to just one person. Just because you're automating it doesn't mean that you aren’t still writing it, it's still coming from you. ” - Rachel Bearbower Reach out to Rachel Bearbower at: Small Shop Strategies Nonprofit Automation Agency Book a demo Free eCourse: 5 ways to automate your stewardship Say hi on Instagram - @smallshopstrategies Connect with me on LinkedIn - @rachelbearbower Ask for and receive all you want, need and deserve without feeling rejected, ineffective, or pushy. Learn to manage your mindset, lead yourself and others more effectively and have the meaningful conversations that drive your most important work. Get your free starter kit today at www.theinfluentialnonprofit.com Connect with Maryanne Dersch: https://www.courageouscommunication.com/connect