Creating, merging, rebooting a group
- How to start using Action Network as your mailing tool
- Can I migrate my email list to Action Network?
- Merging or deleting a group
- Rebooting a Local Group
How to start using Action Network as your mailing tool
Setting up your group on Action Network
First please check to see if your group is listed on the map seen here. The 'sign up for news' button on each of this map pins is what connects potential rebels to your email list.
If your group isn't listed or if you need to make any updates to your groups details (including the social media listing) then please email map@extinctionrebellion.uk.
Then contact the Action Network Data Team explaining that your group would like to use Action Network to send emails.
Once you have requested the email list - you will need to look after it by becoming an admin. You can use the rebel toolkit to teach yourself some of the things you need to know, but also you can request some training from the contact the team.
Migrating an existing list
This is a great thing to do, but you need to make sure GDPR regulations are respected. Please read can I migrate my email list to Action Network? page. Then get in touch with the Action Network Data Team to discuss.
Can I migrate my email list to Action Network?
First off, make sure the Action Network Data Team (the team responsible for administrating XR’s Action Network system) is aware that you are migrating your list. Contact the Action Network Data Team. We’d like to be involved so that we can make sure the process is done properly to keep your group, your list members, and XR as a whole safe and happy.
Secondly, ask yourself the following question: Did the rebels on my list opt-in to giving their emails to and receiving emails from Extinction Rebellion in general?
You would answer this question by thinking about how the emails were first collected. Were rebels given a form to sign up? Was their information written down by someone in your group during a rebellion? Think about what these people were told and what they could reasonably expect to receive based on the information they were given. In many cases, the rebels on independent local/affinity group lists have not opted in to giving their data to Extinction Rebellion at large.
If the answer to question is yes, then you can migrate your data directly from your own list to the Extinction Rebellion Action Network system. How to start using Action Network as your mailing tool
If your rebels have not agreed to give Extinction Rebellion as a whole their data, then you must send your subscribers to an Action Network form where they can sign up. The reason for this is that to be compliant to GDPR, a person must give their informed, affirmative consent. Part of being informed is knowing who holds your data and who they can expect to be emailed by. For many groups, they only included an opt-in to their particular group when people originally signed up, not to Extinction Rebellion in general. When set up with the proper disclaimer text, using Action Network signup forms means that we can be certain that rebels have provided the GDPR-compliant consent to be a part of the Extinction Rebellion Action Network system.
The default behaviour in Action Network when an email list is uploaded to a particular group is to subscribe the users not just to that group, but to its parent and grandparent groups as well. This is good in that it makes XR supporters available for communications from Global, XR UK and regional levels, which send information about large-scale rebellions as well as fund-raising. However, if your rebels haven’t agreed to those communications, they could object to start receiving them unexpectedly.
It is likely that some of the activists on your list are already in the XR Action Network system. How you communicate with these activists will differ depending on whether they have already opted-in to receiving emails from XR. The Data Team can cross-reference your list with emails that are already in the network. If your people are already in Action Network, they can be subscribed to your group via an upload. It’s best practice to let them know that they’ve been added to a list in a new system.
For rebels who do not already exist in Action Network, Our suggestion would be to set up a series of emails with a clear and prominent message that to continue receiving emails from your group, they must fill out a form at a link that you provide. You could set up the email series to continue targeting only the rebels who have not clicked the sign-up link in the previous email. After 3 warning emails, delete your list in your original system and begin sending emails from Action Network. Inevitably, this means losing a proportion of emails on your list, but it’s likely these were disengaged members unlikely to attend future events.
Migration Procedure flowchart
Merging or deleting a group
Reasons for this could be
- An email list was temporary (e.g. project that has finished)
- Local group isn't functioning any more
- You might want to merge two smaller local groups to form a bigger stronger one.
For any requests like this, please contact the Data Team
Please don't struggle trying to download and reupload email address. This can be done in a quicker and easier way by the Data Team. Don't be afraid to ask for help on things like this. We're here to help.
Rebooting a Local Group
Case Study (on-going) on how to reboot a 'sleeping' group with an email list.
Contact your nation/region 'Gardener' or the Data Team Reception if you are interested in using the power of Action Network to do the same or something similar as explained below.
XR Rugby current situation
Contact email > Unresponsive. So updated the map with the Midlands gardener email for now.
Action Network > Email list of 83. Last email sent Dec 2020. No response yet from trying to contact the three admins listed for the group - so reverted them to 'organisers'.
Plan so far
Create a form on the XR Rugby list to advertise a 'reboot' meeting. Used a bright graphic, a page wrapper and a custom question and remember to add the GDPR question. (Contact data team reception for help on this.
Created a ladder triggered by people subscribing to the list with two options
- For anyone subscribing to the email list via this form above (e.g. if the form advertised on social media) then nothing extra happens.
- If people join the list via the map they get an email which says welcome to XR Rugby and directs them to filling in the form.
Created an Email
Dear Rugby Rebels, Some new local rebels are keen to get XR Rugby up and running again and would love the support of all of you to get the ball rolling! If you're interested in joining us for a meeting, please respond to this one question poll...
We hope to relaunch very soon, so if you're an existing rebel and we haven't managed to locate you yet, please do reply to this email so we can get to know you.
Adding extra subscribers from UK list Obviously should probably have done this first!
Anyone with access to the email list at UK level can do a search for any subscribers with postcodes close to Rugby - decided this would be...... and using regular expression to search for these.
Target a report using postcodes CV21,CV22
And Exclude any already subscribed to XR Rugby
From this report result of 37 activists added a tag Sub_UKlist_to_Rugby and subscribed them to XR Rugby
Repeated with CV23 postcode and excluded any already joined to XR Rugby or XR Coventry. Ditto with tag and subscribe. Gained another 17.
So all these new addtions got the email triggered in the ladder.
Awaiting results of any additional interest from the new subscription.... to be continued
RESULTS so far
In the meantime finally managed to get hold of some of the existing group via Facebook and be accepted to the Facebook group and then posted an advert to this action network form on there too.
Got 16 responces from a mixture of the original email, from when added extra subsribers from the UK list and from posting on the facebook group.
All but one person has chosen either 'in person' or 'any'. So this is looking promising for now sending out an email for an in-person meeting.
Updates
30th Nov 2021
Updated the auto email that was created in a ladder for all new subscribers. Now is just a general welcome email
Then sent email to full XR Rugby list with information of reboot meeting Also created and event on XRMidlands and co-hosted the XR Rugby Facebook PAGE and asked the admin to accept the co-host. Also posted to the Facebook GROUP.
10th Dec 2021
12 attendees at Rugby meeting including Midlands Gardener and new member who was original seed for the idea of a reboot. Plans made
- organise a second meeting in January to kick off the year
- create small group chat on WhatsApp.
- Many attendee were brand new rebels so still hoping for more engagement with hibernating rebels
- Someone nominated to be interim coord and they will be given training on Action network and get invite to Comms Hub.