Sending Portal Requests and Client Login [4]

PracticeFlow’s Client Portal is built around the work being performed. Portal requests are created from within a specific task. This keeps the information or action requested from the client connected to the underlying work, such as VAT, payroll, accounts or bookkeeping.

As a result, any documents received from the client do  not need to be moved into a relevant folder, they are already stored against the correct client and task.

A task can contain one or more portal requests, including To Do, Form, Upload, Download and E-Sign.

This article explains the overall process, from creating a request through to the client accessing it in the portal. Subsequent articles explain how to create each type of request in detail.


Creating and sending portal requests to the client

Process overview:

  1. Open the relevant task.
  2. Scroll down to Client Portal Requests and select +Add Request.
  3. Select the request type and Individual (or anyone with portal access).
  4. Complete the request details and Save.
  5. In the task side panel, the saved requests are shown in Client Portal Requests.
  6. Click Copy Link.
  7. Send the portal link to the client by email.
  8. The client clicks the link, verifies their email address and accesses the portal.

Copy and send the portal link

Once a portal request has been saved, it appears in the Client Portal Requests section of the task.

There are two ways to send the portal link to your client.

Option 1: Copy and send the link

Click Copy Link to copy the Client Portal link. You can then paste it into an email created in PracticeFlow or your own email system.


Option 2: Use a PracticeFlow email template

You can save time by creating an email template containing the merge field {{Task.PortalURL}}.

See Creating an email template.

This automatically inserts the correct Client Portal link for the task you are working on, so there's no need to copy and paste it each time.

Once you've created your template:

  1. Open the relevant task.
  2. Select Create Email.
  3. Choose your saved email template.
  4. The correct portal link is automatically included in the email.

You only need to create the template once. You can then reuse it for any task, and PracticeFlow will automatically insert the correct portal link each time.


What the client sees - client login

When the client clicks the link, they are taken to the Client Portal login page.

If you have added a Client Portal logo, the client will see your practice branding.

The client enters their email address and clicks Sign in.

PracticeFlow sends a separate email to their email address containing a 6-digit verification code. The client enters the code to verify their email address and access the portal.

What the client sees - once logged in

Once logged in, the client sees the portal requests available to them for that specific task.

Depending on the requests created by the practice, they may be asked to:

  • Complete a To Do request
  • Complete a Form
  • Upload a document
  • Download a document
  • Sign a document electronically

The client does not need to navigate through a traditional folder structure to find what they need to do. The portal presents the requests requiring their attention, while each request remains connected to the task being worked on in PracticeFlow.


Returning to the portal

If the client logs out, they can use the original portal link to return to the Client Portal.

Depending on their device and browser settings, they may be asked to verify their email address again.


Next article: Adding portal requests to a task [5]