715. Working Session: The Email Infrastructure Every Nonprofit Needs - Katelyn Baughan

Most nonprofits treat email like a megaphone. They show up loud when they need donations and go completely quiet in between. Katelyn Baughan has worked with UNHCR, Amnesty International, the Trevor Project, and the National Breast Cancer Foundation, and she has seen this pattern cost nonprofits thousands in unrealized donations. Her fix: stop thinking about campaigns and start building infrastructure. In this Working Session, Katelyn walks Jon and Becky through the automated email system that works in the background to build donor relationships, nurture loyalty, and raise more money, even when you're not hitting send. 📧 **In this episode, you'll hear:** - The difference between email campaigns and email infrastructure, and why most nonprofits are missing the piece that actually builds long-term donor loyalty - The three foundational automations every nonprofit should have running right now: subscriber welcome, new donor onboarding, and monthly donor welcome - What deliverability actually means (it's not the same as delivery), and how to find out if your emails are landing in spam without you knowing Start building your system this week. Your donors are waiting to hear from you. 🩵 **Episode Highlights:** - Working Session Intro (0:29) - The Megaphone Problem: Rethinking How Nonprofits Use Email (2:20) - Infrastructure vs. Campaigns: The Plumbing Analogy (4:18) - Where to Start: Building Your Welcome Series (6:08) - The Three Foundational Automations Every Nonprofit Needs (7:32) - New Donor Onboarding: The Window You Can't Miss (8:23) - Deliverability vs. Delivery: What the Difference Means for Your Inbox (13:41) - Google Postmaster Tools and How to Use Them (14:35) - One Good Thing: Stop Worrying About Bothering Donors (15:49) - How to Connect with Katelyn (18:32) **Episode Show Notes:** www.weareforgood.com/episode/715 **Series Hub:** https://www.weareforgood.com/wsl#podcast // **Join the We Are For Good Community—completely free.** Join fellow changemakers, share takeaways from this working session, and keep collaborating in a space built for connection, inspiration, and real impact: www.weareforgoodcommunity.com **Say hi 👋** LinkedIn / Instagram / Facebook / YouTube / Twitter