As the Product Manager for Action Network, a big focus for me is the User Experience of the toolset (aka ‘UX’). It doesn’t matter how many powerful features we’ve built if our partners don’t know where to find them or how to use them.

UX is especially crucial to us at Action Network because our mission is to build progressive power, which is only possible if our technology is accessible from the ground up. We need to build features that are easy enough for a local group to pick up and start using with little or no training yet powerful enough for larger, national organizations to raise millions of dollars. Action Network is a tool for the full progressive movement.

Action Network’s new look, featuring the ‘context aware’ Start Organizing menu.

Thankfully, our partners at the AFL-CIO share this vision. For the last year we’ve been meeting to discuss UX improvements, and a redesign of the Start Organizing menu was first on the list (but it’s just the beginning)! Stay tuned for announcements about features big and small over the next year as we start implementing the changes. (Want to receive toolset updates as we release them? Sign up here!)

The goal for this redesign is to make it easier for users to do the things we do everyday on Action Network: write and send out emails, create petitions and pull reports, and more.

So here’s what’s changing.

Outside of the pretty new design (so pretty!) we’ve changed the way we handle group management. Now, if you don’t have a default group set when you click to send an email, we will look to the group you are currently working in and assume the email should go to that group! We’re calling this a ‘context aware’ Start Organizing menu, and we think it ultimately reduces the number of clicks and makes for a more intuitive experience! In a nutshell:

  • If you have a default group set, there will be no change!
  • If you only work in one group, Action Network will be a little easier to navigate.
  • If you manage multiple groups, this is a gamechanger!

In order to take advantage of this change, make sure you don’t have a default group set. You can change or edit your default group by clicking on the account dropdown in the upper righthand corner. A default group is still a great option if you primarily work in one group. Specific instructions here.

Click the account dropdown in the upper righthand corner to change or edit your default group.

Thank you to our partners at the AFL-CIO for brainstorming these changes into reality! Like I said, this is just the beginning, so stay tuned for more changes designed to make your life easier.

You can sign up here to receive updates about the Action Network toolset.

Action Network has a fresh new look was originally published in Powering Progressive Movements on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.