If you've ever struggled to make a profit while serving nonprofits, you're going to love this conversation. Our good friend Rachel Bearbower is back to share how she went from running a membership that was literally losing money every month to commanding $30,000+ for her automation services. And yes, she's still serving the sector we all love!
Rachel opens up about the emotional journey of letting go of her Small Shop Strategies membership (it took her over a year to fully grieve it) and the scary but exhilarating process of building the Nonprofit Automation Agency through pure trial and error. In classic Rachel fashion, she doesn't hold back about the messiness - including the website crash mid-pitch webinar that accidentally led to creating a second business!
I'm still blown away by her transformation. The Rachel who once fought for every $100 membership fee now confidently tells prospective clients on sales calls: "We are very good at what we do" - and they believe her. And they should! She's gone from barely covering expenses to making more in two months than she did in all of 2023.
Highlights:
- Done-for-you is a game-changer. Rachel realized that nonprofit leaders don't want to learn automation - they just want someone to handle the "hot mess of tech" for them. And they'll pay premium prices for it!
- Real talk on following up. Rachel followed up with one prospect for 109 days before they signed. Her secret? She BCCs herself on every proposal email, then snoozes it weekly as a reminder to check in. Don't assume silence means "no"!
- Your referral network is gold. A whopping 44% of Rachel's revenue comes from referrals. She pays 10% commission to fellow consultants who send clients her way - making it a win-win for everyone.
- It's okay to not have it all figured out. Rachel built this incredibly successful business by flying the plane while building it - no grand strategy, just constant iteration based on what worked with real clients.
Resources Mentioned:
Find Us Online: https://www.confessionswithjessandcindy.com
Connect with Rachel:
Website: https://www.nonprofitautomationagency.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelbearbower
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/smallshopstrategies/
Connect with Cindy:
Cindy Wagman Coaching: cindywagman.com
Fractional Fundraising Network: fractionalfundraising.co/
LinkedIn: ca.linkedin.com/in/cindywagman
Connect with Jess:
Out In the Boons: outintheboons.me
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jesscampbelloutntiheboons/
