Platform

New

• We've updated the way we handle pre-defined custom fields. Previously, admins were able to create pre-defined custom fields that were available for petition creators and event hosts to add to their petitions or events. While this is still true, we now also support adding pre-defined custom fields that are only able to be added by admins. This may make it easier for admins to quickly add custom fields to petitions or events, even if the custom field shouldn't be added by supporters. This change will also allow for easier consistency of custom field shortnames and responses. †
  
  Event host/petition creator custom fields are still visible from the host/creator's settings page. All custom fields (including the fields that can only be added by admins) are available from the Event > Admin > Settings > Attendee/Signature Form. New pre-defined custom fields can be added from Settings > Custom Fields. Responses to all custom fields, whether added by admins or supporters, will continue to be visible to event hosts and petition creators. 
  
  
• We're now supporting custom disclaimers for pre-defined custom fields. These disclaimers can be added to the pre-defined custom fields from Settings > Custom Fields. When a custom field with a disclaimer is added to an event/petition, the disclaimer will be added (below any already-present disclaimers) on the signature/attendee form. †

Updates / Bug Fixes

• We've updated our Salesforce integration to fix a bug where contacts that did not have a postcode would fail to sync.
  
  
• For Salesforce, we're also now syncing attendees of events as contacts.
  
  
• We've fixed an issue with Salesforce sync for members who have deleted all their signatures.
  
  
• We've fixed the inconsistent height of some fields on the user account signup page.
  
  
• We've added partnership IDs to the /api/v1/partnerships endpoint.
  
  
• We now allow admins to export a CSV of all of the partnerships within the platform (from the org > Partnerships page).
  
  

Petitions

Updates / Bug Fixes

• We've fixed an issue where for petitions and events whose titles contained special characters like &,%,", clicking to share by email > clicking on the "Send an email now" button (which is a mailto link) would open an email draft that would, for some email clients, show html instead of those special characters.
  
  
• We include a start a campaign ask in the footer of blast emails sent from a petition creator to their signers. The start a campaign ask generally says something like "Kristy started this petition on Your Org. If there's an issue close to your heart that you'd like to campaign on, you can [start your campaign here]." That ask didn't change if the petition creator's name had been overridden by admins, but we're now using the overridden name if present. Default templates have been updated for most organizations, but you may need to update the variable used in Settings > Content > Petitions > Start Campaign ask in blast email footers to be {{ petition.creator_display_name | sanitize_for_email }}.

   

Events

New

• We've made a number of changes to public-facing event pages to make it easer for your supporters to find the events they're interested in! These changes affect all of the main public event lookup pages: the local organizing map (/local), the public-facing all events page (/events), calendar lookup pages (/calendar/foo), and embedded maps with sidebars. We're excited to be rolling out these updates – here's what's included:
  
  • Supporters can now filter events by Event Type. Event Types are configured by organization admins from the Settings page. These event types can then be added to calendars (for supporters to choose) and/or assigned to events from the moderation queue. Supporters will see a list of event types by clicking the Show Advanced Features link on public look up pages.  †
    
    
  • Supporters can now filter events and groups by public Regions. Regions are configured by organization admins from the Settings page. By default, regions are not publicly visible when initially created. To make a region public, go to Settings > Regions > choose the appropriate region > Make Publicly Visible.  Supporters will see a list of public regions by clicking the Show Advanced Features link on public lookup pages. †
    
    
  • Supporters can now filter events and groups by public Labels. Labels are configured by organization admins from the Settings page. By default, labels are not publicly visible when initially created. To make a label public, go to Settings > Labels > choose the appropriate Label > Make Publicly Visible.  Supporters will see a list of public Labels by clicking the Show Advanced Features link on public lookup pages. †
    
    
  • Admins can now feature events. When featured, these events will be shown first on unsearched lookup pages. Once a location is entered and/or filters are added, if the event would have been in the list of results, it will be promoted to the top of the list. Admins can feature an event by going to the event > Admin > using the Featured toggle. Please note: featuring a calendar event will feature it on the calendar lookup page as well as the local organizing map (/local) and the public-facing all events page (/events). †
    
    
  • We've added an option to exclude in-person events when filtering event lists. †
    
    
  • We've updated our logic for showing results on event lookup pages. We're now showing smarter results that better balance the distance to travel to the event and how far into the future the event is happening.

Updates / Bug Fixes

• We've fixed a display issue where virtual events with audience locations weren't being tagged as "Virtual" in event lookup pages and weren't being excluded when "Include virtual events"  was unchecked.
  
  
• Hosts of shifted events can now use the Reassign Shifts feature on the Attendees tab to move attendees between shifts. †
  
  
• We've fixed a bug where the event type override option wouldn't appear in the moderation queue if the event wasn't already associated with an event type. We now allow admins to set the event type for all events. 
  
  
• We've fixed an issue where reloading a calendar page with the "Include past events" checkbox checked will now correctly show the checkbox as still checked.
  
  
• It's now possible to use a phonebank or other offline process to recruit virtual event hosts (by going to the admin homepage > Events > Recruit Hosts). Learn more. 

Nothing new in groups or VisitThem.

† This feature required new text strings. If you're using the platform in a language other than English, you may need to provide updated translations.