Inviting clients to the customer portal

The customer portal is where your clients book, pay, sign forms and message you.

The easiest way in: their phone number

Clients do not need an invitation to sign in. On your portal sign-in page, the Phone tab texts them a 6-digit code. Alaga finds their record by the phone number you have on file.

So the main job is simple: keep each client's mobile number correct on their client record. Then send them your portal link.

Sharing your portal link

Go to Sidebar → Business Settings → Customer Portal.
Find your portal links. There are links for signing in, booking an appointment, booking a stay, signing up and your contact form.
Copy the link you want, or show its QR code.

Put the sign-in link in your email signature, on your website and on receipts. The Website Integration Guide on the same page shows how to add booking buttons to your website.

Sending an email invitation

Use an invitation for clients who prefer email and a password.

Go to Sidebar → Clients.
Click Invite Customer.
Enter their Email Address. First and last name are optional.
Click Send Invitation.

What to know:

Invitations last 30 days.
Waiting invitations show in the Pending Invitations card on the Clients page. You can Resend or cancel them there. Old ones are marked Expired.
Alaga tells you if that email already has a pending invitation or a portal account.

The client opens the email, picks a password (at least 8 characters, with a letter and a number), and lands in the portal. If they already have an Alaga login, they sign in with it instead.

Any staff member who can see Clients can send invitations.

Clients who sign up on their own

Clients can sign up from your portal sign-in page by tapping Sign up, or from your sign-up link.

By default, new sign-ups get in right away.
To check them first, turn on Require approval for new signups under Business Settings → Customer Portal → Portal Access. Owners can change this switch, and so can anyone with the permission to manage integrations.

Sign-ups waiting for you appear in the Pending Approval card on the Clients page. Click Approve, or reject them.

If someone signs up with the details of a client you already have, they never get straight in:

Matched by email: they get in once they prove they own that inbox with an emailed code (unless you require approval).
Matched by phone only: they wait in Pending Approval. The card warns you. Only approve if you recognise them, or check with your client first.

What pet parents can do

Book appointments, and boarding or daycare stays if you offer them.
Manage their pets: add a pet and edit feeding, behavior, vet and emergency details. They can't enter vaccination dates or upload documents. Staff do that.
See appointments and stays. For an appointment, they tap Request Changes to ask you to move or cancel it. They can't cancel it on their own. They can cancel a boarding or daycare stay themselves, and see any cancellation fee first.
Track their pet while it is checked in.
Pay invoices online, if you take card payments online. Otherwise the portal tells them you collect payment in person.
Message you. Messages land in your Messages inbox.
Sign agreements and fill in forms (questionnaires).
Manage their profile: text message consent, people allowed to pick up their pets, their password, and exporting their own data.
Choose their email notifications.

Booking rules worth knowing

Appointments booked in the portal always arrive as Pending. Your team confirms them.
Picking a time holds that slot for 10 minutes with a countdown, so two clients can't grab the same slot.
If a required agreement or form isn't done, or vaccinations need attention, the booking button tells them what to fix first.
Stay requests arrive as Requested, unless you turned on Auto-confirm reservations under Portal Access.
You can stop one client from booking online. Open their client record, click edit, and turn on Block online booking. They see "Please call to book."

Your portal's look

Your business name and logo appear on the portal. On the Premium plan, Business Settings → Business Profile → Branding adds white-label options: your colors, a custom welcome message, a login page tagline and a background image.