Messaging Your Clients Using the Client Portal

In this article:

• Sending Messages to a Client Through the Portal
• Publishing a Status Message in the User's Portal
• Reviewing Notifications

The portal messaging system allows you to send and receive chat messages with portal participants. Specifically, you can send messages and read responses from your client. You can also post official status messages to the Client Portal. Activity within the portal can be monitored using the Portal Chat option in the Notification Center (along the bottom of the Actionstep page).

Sending Messages to a Client Through the Portal

The Client Portal messaging system lets you send and receive chat messages with portal participants. It enables clear and direct communication with clients and other stakeholders involved in a matter.

To send a message:

1. In Practice Management, view the matter you want to communicate about. (See Editing a Matter for help.)
2. Click the Portal menu icon and choose Overview.
   The Client Portal is displayed.
3. On the left side of the page, select the user you would like to send a message to.
   
   The Portal Chat area shows the chat history as well as provides options for sending new chats.
   
4. In the Enter Message field, enter the message you want to send.
   
5. Click Send. The message is posted to the user's portal.
   

Publishing a Status Message in the User's Portal

To keep clients informed about the progress of their matters, you can publish a status message that will appear in the client's portal on the Status tab. (It will also be listed in the chat thread.) 

To do this: 

1. In Practice Management, view the matter you want to publish a status for. (See Editing a Matter for help.)
2. Click the Portal menu icon and choose Overview. The Client Portal is displayed.
3. On the left side of the page, select the user you want to notify. The Portal Chat area shows the chat history as well as provides options for sending new chats and status messages.
4. In the Enter Message field, enter the status update. 
5. Select Post this message as a status update.
   
6. Click Send. The message is posted on the Status tab of the client's portal:
   

Reviewing Notifications

You can track Client Portal notifications using the Notification Center at the bottom of any Actionstep page. An alert is added each time the Client Portal chat is updated. These alerts are visible only to the assigned user. You can click this notification to view the related details or view the communication in the Client Portal.