My Letter to New/Mode Customers

I recently shared a letter with all New/Mode customers. The letter reflects on a difficult decision that tested our values.

It also shares what's next for us at New/Mode, at this important moment.

I’m deeply grateful to our funders, our amazing team, and above all, our customers — many of whom are working on the most important issues of our time. Thank you for being part of this.

Find the full letter below. 

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Dear New/Mode Subscribers,

I'd like to share a moment when we faced a difficult decision that tested our core values.

I hope you’ll take a moment to read this personal letter I’ve written for you.

How it Started
Years ago, we were campaigners working our hearts out, using tools built for selling sneakers, not sparking change. We knew our communities deserved better.

So, we built something from scratch. Not to chase profits or scale at all costs, but to give people the tools to speak truth to power and actually be heard.

And it worked because you showed up
Not because it was perfect. Not because we were the biggest player. But because it was built with care, by campaigners who’ve been in the trenches.

Together, we’ve helped thousands of campaigners make meaningful, sometimes transformative change for our communities.

You’ve put justice back on the agenda.

You’ve helped change policies, protect land, water, and health, and win rights and respect.

You’ve made sure real people, not just lobbyists, get heard by those in office.

But we faced a hard truth

We were outgrowing our platform, and we could see that our approach wasn’t going to be financially sustainable in the long run.

We had a choice to make
Take the “safe” path. Raise prices. Cut off smaller orgs. Cater to big players.

Or take the more challenging, messier, more meaningful path: rebuild from the ground up in service of all campaigners, big or small.

We chose the challenging route.

We didn’t have private equity telling us what to do. We had our values and a network of impact funders backing us. So we went all in on New/Mode V2.

How’s it going
We poured everything into listening, building, and iterating.

There were bumps. There were long nights. There were moments we didn’t know if we could pull it off. But we kept going because the people we serve keep going.

For a long time, our small team supported two platforms simultaneously: assisting users on the old system while carefully transitioning others to the new one.

You may have noticed me chipping in on support during this time.

And now, here we are. Our transition to V2 is complete.

It’s simpler, faster, and more accessible. Anyone can use it with no costly fees or time-intensive training, and campaigners can add-on tactics and sophistication as needed.

What you can expect going forward:

✅ Faster, more responsive support (we’ve doubled our capacity).

✨ Smoother campaigns with better analytics, quicker load time and better conversion rates.

💬 Co-creation opportunities to help shape new tactics, like the first multi-platform social media
advocacy tactic!

📊 Regular improvements every 2–3 weeks.

🫶 Civic impact, always: helping campaigners win with heart and unparalleled strategic insights.

So, from the bottom of my heart: thank you.

To our funders who believed in the longer, riskier road.

To the New/Mode team, who poured their hearts into this.

And to you, the campaigners who have the courage to fight for something better, even when it’s hard.

With gratitude
Steve
Co-founder, New/Mode