Blog Title

Using Ladders to Create Timely, Relevant Engagement Journeys for Nonprofits

Gary Bunofsky — Sat, 29 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Supporters don't want to feel like just another person on your list. They want to be seen and valued.

Many organizations struggle with creating personalized experiences at scale. You know your supporters are different—some are ready to take action, others need more information, and some have already engaged deeply. Action Network's Ladders feature helps you meet each person where they are and guide them through journeys that feel thoughtful, not automated.

1. What Are Ladders and Why They Matter

Ladders are Action Network's automated engagement journeys that respond to your supporters' actions. Think of them like chapters in a book—each rung represents an entry point, and the steps guide people through a sequence that feels personal and relevant.

The concept comes from organizing work that's been happening for decades. In organizing, you take individuals through a ladder of engagement to help them see themselves in your work and feel welcomed into action. Action Network's digital ladders replicate this process automatically.

When you personalize communications based on real actions people take, you see deeper engagement and better turnout. Ladders help you build trust, free up your team's time, and show you exactly what resonates with your audience.

Key benefits:

Automatically send messages based on actions supporters actually take
Guide people through personalized journeys without manual work
Build trust by showing supporters they're seen and valued
Free up time for your organizers and volunteers

2. Understanding Rungs, Triggers, and Steps

Ladders have three core components: rungs, triggers, and steps. Understanding how they work together helps you build effective engagement journeys.

Rungs are entry points into your ladder. Like a real ladder, you can have multiple rungs. Each rung represents a different way someone might enter your engagement journey. Someone who just subscribed to your email list might enter at one rung, while someone who donated enters at another.

Triggers determine who enters the ladder and when. They're the conditions that bring someone into your ladder. Common triggers include subscribing to your email list, making a donation, clicking on a specific email, or being tagged in a certain way. When someone meets a trigger's condition, they enter the ladder at that rung.

Steps are the individual actions that happen after someone enters the ladder. These are the messages, emails, or other communications that guide people through the journey you've built. Steps happen in sequence, creating a flow that responds to where someone is in their engagement with you.

Ladders replicate the human process of building relationships—they just do it automatically, at scale.

3. How Ladders Work in Practice

When someone meets a trigger's condition, they enter the ladder at that rung and start moving through the steps you've built. The system handles the timing and sequencing automatically.

There are some important rules to understand. If someone meets a new trigger while already in a ladder, they don't start over. Instead, if they qualify for a lower rung on that ladder, they'll be pulled down to that specific new point. This prevents people from getting stuck in loops or receiving duplicate messages.

This layering approach is useful when you want to create nuanced outreach. For example, someone might take an action, then you follow up with them to donate. If they make a certain donation level, they might move to a different rung in that ladder, receiving more targeted communications.

The key is building ladders that feel natural and responsive, not robotic. Each step should build on the previous one, creating a journey that makes sense for the person moving through it.

4. Creating Effective Engagement Journeys

Effective ladders guide supporters through thoughtful sequences that feel personal and relevant. They respond to what people actually do, not just what you hope they'll do.

Start by thinking about the different entry points people might have into your work. Someone who just learned about your organization needs a different journey than someone who's been following you for months. Someone who made a small donation might be ready for a different ask than someone who's never given.

Build steps that create natural progression. Each message should build on the previous one, moving people toward deeper engagement. Use triggers strategically—not every action needs to start a new journey, but meaningful actions often do.

Consider re-engagement strategies for people who haven't responded in a while. And plan graceful exits for people who've completed a journey or who need to step back. Not every ladder needs to go on forever.

5. Best Practices for Building Ladders

The most effective ladders feel personal because they respond to real actions people take. They show supporters they're seen and valued, not just another name on a list.

Keep your journeys focused. Not every action needs its own ladder. Start with one or two key journeys that address your most important engagement goals. You can always build more as you learn what works.

Test and refine. Pay attention to what resonates with your audience. Look at which steps get responses and which don't. Use that information to improve your ladders over time.

Make sure your messages feel like they're coming from a real person, not a robot. Even though the system is automated, the communications should feel thoughtful and intentional. Use templates as starting points, but customize them to match your organization's voice and mission.

Final Thoughts

Ladders aren't just automation tools—they're a way to honor your mission and deepen connection with your supporters. When you use them thoughtfully, they become part of how you show people they matter.

Every automated message is an opportunity to build trust and drive action. Use that opportunity well, and ladders become a powerful way to scale the personal touch that makes your work meaningful.

If you're unsure where to begin with Action Network's engagement ladders, we'd be honored to help you start. We're always happy to have a quiet conversation about how automation can support your mission—no pressure, just helpful guidance.

A Practical Guide to Action Network Mobile Messaging for Nonprofits

Gary Bunofsky — Fri, 28 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMT

When your mission is urgent, your communication should be too. Action Network's mobile messaging bridges the gap between intention and action.

Many organizations struggle with reaching supporters at the right moment. Email inboxes are crowded, and important calls to action can get lost. Action Network's mobile messaging provides a way to cut through the noise and connect when it matters most. This tutorial will walk you through how to use Action Network's mobile messaging features to strengthen your digital engagement.

1. Understanding Action Network Mobile Messaging

Let's explore what Action Network's mobile messaging is. Then, we'll jump into the different numbers you can get in Action Network—short codes versus toll-free.

Action Network's mobile messaging allows you to use text to take action. Let's look at creating a mobile message in Action Network. Action Network's mobile messaging tools help organizations of all sizes access a broadcast mobile tool with integrated targeting at an affordable price.

A broadcast tool means you are one individual sending a message out to a bunch of people. This is not peer-to-peer. You aren't able to have one-on-one conversations with organizations through Action Network's broadcast messaging.

The goal is that you don't have to be a huge organization to have a robust mobile program anymore. With Action Network, you can easily target emails and mobile messages. All of the data is brought into one place. Action Network pulls whatever you need when you're targeting using a particular channel like email versus mobile.

This presents a bunch of new opportunities for testing. Action Network wanted to have this all-in-one solution since there's no point in creating a totally separate tool for email and mobile messaging. Ideally, your programs are working together and building up on one another.

Action Network partners with Twilio to bring this tool to you. Action Network manages accounts, so you don't have to worry about anything. Action Network will request some information from you.

Key considerations:

Get short codes versus toll-free numbers in Action Network.
Use Action Network's text to take action feature.

2. Choosing the Right Number Type in Action Network

Action Network has a help article on that. You can reach out to Action Network support for more on what that application process looks like.

There are two different numbers that you can get in Action Network. First, we have short codes—these are the classic numbers that you are used to. These are the short little five or six digit numbers.

Short codes in Action Network can send an unlimited number of messages a day, but these are very expensive. They start at around $1,000 a month. You can add local numbers for call campaigns.

If you expect to send more than about half a million messages a day, most organizations—and by most I mean almost all—should go with the toll-free number in Action Network. You can still send unlimited messages a day. You'll be able to still add local numbers for call campaigns.

That is useful if you are one specific organization, but you need to create different groups or maybe if you're in a network. You want to share the number between other groups in Action Network. You have an MMS or an SMS option. SMS is text only.

MMS will include photos or GIFs. Both are options for any group with a toll-free number in Action Network, but on a short code, not all groups have MMS enabled. That's something to keep in mind.

3. Creating Effective Messages in Action Network

Now, some things to be aware of when writing your message in Action Network. Clips are identical between the email and mobile list in Action Network.

Just as with email in Action Network, you can write and personalize your mobile message. You can do all those same personalizations with the mobile message. You have a 160 character limit until it splits. We'll leave that there.

We'll circle back to it when we get into writing our message, but there are some quirks to character limits that exist across the industry based on how SMS was built.

Key considerations:

Personalize your Action Network mobile messages just like you do with email.
Be mindful of the 160 character limit before messages split.

4. Managing Engagement and Replies in Action Network

You'll want to think about that. Then, of course, you can do some A/B testing in Action Network, and the targeting is identical to what you've previously seen with email.

Now, let's go into writing our message in Action Network. We'll get into these defaults later on. To start off with, I want to create a form where I can do text to take action. Let's create a new signup form for my group in Action Network.

And, since I want to show you Action Network's text to take action feature, we'll be breezing through the action creation. If you want a more in-depth look at creating actions in Action Network, explore more advanced features. Let's add our action here.

5. Setting Up Automation in Action Network

We'll add a quick description. We'll add a heading. In the Action Network form, if you are going to grow your mobile program, you should use the mobile number field that says core phone.

That's the one I'm dragging out here. You should always collect opt-ins in Action Network. Opt-in is required.

That is not required by law on the email side. It is legally required on the mobile side. You cannot legally message people who have not opted in to receive messages from you.

Be sure you're always collecting opt-ins on all Action Network forms where you collect that mobile number so that you can text those organizations later on.

Key considerations:

Always collect opt-ins on all Action Network forms where you collect mobile numbers.
Use the mobile number field that says core phone in Action Network.
Opt-in is legally required for mobile messaging.

6. Best Practices and Compliance in Action Network

We'll move on to the next step. Save and publish in Action Network.

Here is where I can do text to take action in Action Network. I can edit the keyword. I can add any keyword I like here. It is not case sensitive.

The important thing is that it must be unique to this action in Action Network. If it is being used, Action Network will link to it here. You can remove it from the old action and add it to the new one.

You can also add multiple numbers or multiple keywords to this section here in Action Network.

7. Advanced Features and Tips in Action Network

This will apply to Action Network forms like I've showed you here, petitions, so you can collect signatures and events so people can RSVP via mobile message. We'll go to that people menu in Action Network.

Go to mobile messages in Action Network. At the top where we have an administrative title. These apply to things like reports, actions, emails—they apply to everything in Action Network.

They're an internal name for something that you and other admins can use to quickly search and find something in Action Network.

Key considerations:

Use Action Network mobile messaging to collect signatures and allow people to RSVP via mobile message.
Administrative titles in Action Network help you organize and find your content quickly.

8. Getting Started with Action Network Mobile Messaging

We're going to be sending out a link to my organization's email here or my organization's fundraiser here in Action Network. We'll copy this link and let's go ahead and write our message in Action Network.

We'll use a clip like I mentioned now. These clips in Action Network are identical to what we saw with email. One thing I do want to note, let me delete this clip, is the character count.

You'll find the character count goes down pretty dramatically when you use the clip in Action Network. Then if we add our donation link—if you add our donation link, you'll see the number of characters goes down even further.

Now, when you hit send and use clips in an Action Network message, the final character count is going to be different from person to person because everyone has different information.

Final Thoughts

Every message you send through Action Network is an opportunity to deepen connection and drive action. Use it thoughtfully.

If you're planning to expand your digital engagement with Action Network's mobile messaging or wondering if it's right for your organization, Action Network support is always available to help guide you through the process.

How to Build a High-Conversion PAC Website in 2025

Gary Bunofsky — Mon, 16 Jun 2025 00:00:00 GMT

PAC websites need to do one thing well: convert. Whether that's signups, donations, or mobilization—your design and structure should make it frictionless.

Here's how to build a high-conversion PAC site for 2025:

Optimize for Mobile First

Your supporters are on their phones. Make sure:

CTAs appear within the first scroll
Navigation is clean and clear
Forms use large tap targets and auto-fill

A 2-second delay on mobile drops conversions by 30%.

Donation Flows Should Feel Easy

Your donation form should:

Offer preset amounts tied to specific outcomes (e.g. $20 = 500 texts)
Include Apple Pay, Google Pay, Venmo, and ACH
Highlight recurring giving without pushing too hard

Capture Emails Everywhere

Email is still the most effective channel. Use:

Exit-intent popups with strong value props
Forms at the top, middle, and end of key pages
Gated content like reports or endorsements

Even a 1% improvement in email capture compounds over a campaign cycle.

Reinforce Trust With Design

You're asking people to give—make sure the site:

Looks fast, clean, and credible
Shows where the money goes
Includes compliance info in the footer

Small trust cues add up. Especially for first-time givers.

Final Thoughts: Form Follows Function

PAC websites aren't about awards. They're about outcomes.

In 2025, the best sites won't be the prettiest—they'll be the ones that get the most done.