External resources in Pear Suite help you connect members to outside organizations, services, or individuals who can support their needs, such as community partners, clinics, food programs, or housing providers. When you send a referral, you are officially directing a member to a resource with a clear description of the support offered, ensuring your team can track follow-through and outcomes.

Step 1 – Create an external resource

1. Navigate to the left-hand green sidebar and select External Resources
2. Click the + Resource button in the top-right corner to open the creation form
3. Enter the Title (organization name) and a short Category/Type descriptor
4. Provide a detailed Description of the services offered to help your team identify when this resource is appropriate
5. Input the physical Address and contact details for the organization
6. Click Save to add the organization to your directory

Step 2 – Add contacts to a resource

1. Select the organization from your External Resources list
2. Locate the Contacts section on the right side and click + Contact
3. Fill in the contact person’s name, email, and phone number
   • Note: Providing a specific contact person helps ensure referrals are directed to the right individual within a large organization
4. Add a short Description of the contact's role if needed and click Save

Step 3 – Build a referral template

1. Navigate to the Referral Templates section at the bottom of a resource's profile
2. Click + Template to create a reusable message
3. Provide a Title and Description for the template
4. Choose the Referral Type (e.g., Email or SMS)
5. Draft the Email Subject and Email Body using placeholders to automatically pull in member and organization data
   • Example: Use the "Insert Placeholder" menu to add the member's first and last name automatically
6. Select a Default Contact from your saved contacts and click Save

Step 4 – Send a referral to a member

1. Open a member’s profile and navigate to the Referrals tab
2. Click + Referral to open the creation menu
3. Select the External Resource and the specific Template you wish to use
   • Alternatively, you can manually create a "one-off" referral without a template if the need is unique
4. Review the auto-filled details and click Create to officially send the referral

Step 5 – Track referral status

1. Monitor progress from the member’s profile or the main External Resources page
2. Locate the Status column to see if the referral is "Sent," "Opened," or "Completed"
3. Update the status manually by clicking the status indicator and selecting the appropriate option from the dropdown menu
   • Options may include Accepted, Rejected, or Closed-Successful based on feedback from the partner or member