What’s New in 2026: Product Updates for Smarter Mobile Organizing

As we kick off the new year, we’re excited to share a roundup of the latest features and resources we’ve released at the start of 2026 🎉

SOC 2 Type II Certification

We’re proud to share that Ascend is SOC 2 Type II certified! Our certification is actively maintained through ongoing, independent audits. As security risks continue to evolve, annual SOC 2 reviews ensure our systems and processes are regularly tested to protect supporter data and maintain trust.

We’re sharing a practical SOC-2 evaluation checklist to help nonprofits, campaigns, and unions confidently assess vendors and verify that security claims are current, credible, and independently validated.

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See what SMS vendors must have to keep your data safe.

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Instagram Messaging Built for Advocacy and Organizing

‍We’ve launched a powerful new way to turn Instagram engagement into activism with Instagram Automations, built specifically for nonprofits, advocacy, political campaigns, and unions. This feature lets supporters trigger one-to-one conversations in their DMs simply by commenting on a post.

It’s a first-of-its-kind Instagram messaging tool for organizing, built to help programs build their SMS list and engage their social media followers using AI chatbots.

Learn more about the Instagram feature

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Nudges: Timely, Personalized Follow-Ups

Nudges introduce a smarter way to follow up with supporters based on what they actually do (or don’t do) during a conversation. Nudges automatically send timely reminders when someone abandons a donation form or doesn’t reply, click, or call.

Built directly into Ascend’s flow feature, nudges helps organizations scale hyper-personalized outreach without added manual work, with full control over timing, quiet hours, expirations, and testing. The result is more supporters completing actions in a foundational welcome series or rapid response moment.

Discover how to use nudges

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ROI Tracking for Donations

We’ve added built-in ROI tracking to show exactly how your broadcasts translate into donations on EveryAction and ActBlue contribution forms. This feature automatically connects clicks, gifts, and revenue back to individual broadcasts, eliminating manual reporting and guesswork.

With visual summaries and detailed metrics, like total dollars raised, conversion rates, and gift sizes, teams can quickly see what’s working, optimize future outreach, and confidently tie SMS efforts to real fundraising impact.

Learn how to track ROI in your fundraising asks

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2026 SMS Engagement Benchmarks

To help organizations plan smarter outreach, we’re releasing a white paper analyzing SMS performance across the Ascend platform. Based on aggregated, anonymized data from programs ranging from hundreds to millions of subscribers, the report highlights the strategies that consistently drive replies, clicks, donations, and calls.

Volume alone no longer wins, and we have the stats to prove it. Our results show relevance, timing and interactivity make a measurable difference in audience engagement rates. This white paper offers actionable insights for nonprofits, campaigns, unions, and advocacy organizations looking to modernize their SMS programs and increase engagement as they gear up for the 2026 and 2028 election cycles.

Download the white paper