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The first session is the most important visit a client will ever make to your Portal. They’re forming opinions about whether this thing is worth their time, whether your firm is organized, and whether they’ll come back without being chased. You have a few minutes to make all three feel right.

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What they see when they sign in

By default, a new client lands on the Home app. From there:
  • The Portal sidebar shows every client-facing app they have access to
  • The Home page shows whatever you’ve configured (welcome message, action items, links)
  • A notification badge highlights anything urgent (a pending invoice, an unread message)
That’s the canvas. What’s painted on it is up to you.

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What a good first session looks like

A client who has a good first session does three things:
1

They feel oriented

They land somewhere that explains, in a sentence, what this place is and why they’re here. Not your firm’s mission. Not the platform’s features. Just: “Here’s where you’ll do X with us.”
2

They take one action

Reading isn’t enough. The first session should give them something tangible to do — review a document, fill in a profile, accept an invitation, schedule a kickoff. Something they can finish in two minutes and feel done.
3

They know how to come back

They bookmark the Portal, save the invite email, or get a follow-up message a day later. Without one of these, the first session is also the last session.

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What to prepare before the invite

A short checklist for the apps and content that should be in place before a client signs in for the first time:
The Home app shows a welcome message that names the client (or at least your firm)
At least one client-facing app has a clear first action — not a blank screen
If you’ve sent an invoice, it’s visible and explained
If you’re using Messages, there’s a welcoming message already in their thread
Your firm’s contact info is somewhere obvious in case they have questions

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Onboarding patterns that work

A few patterns that come up consistently in successful Portal rollouts:
A short, ordered list of things the client should do in their first week: complete profile, sign contract, schedule kickoff call, review onboarding doc. Marking each item complete gives them a sense of progress.This is a strong candidate for a custom-built app if the built-in apps don’t combine to produce it.
Instead of overwhelming the client with all your apps, Home shows one thing: the one thing they should do now. When they finish it, Home updates to show the next one.Works well when the early relationship has a clear linear flow (onboarding, intake, kickoff).
A day or two after the invite, your team sends a message in the Portal — not an email. The client opens the Portal to read it, sees what’s there, and gets the second exposure that turns a first session into a habit.
For high-touch clients, the first session happens with you on a video call. You share your screen showing their Portal, walk them through the apps, and answer questions in real time. Higher cost, much higher retention.

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Common questions clients ask

Be ready for these. They come up every time.
Same URL they got in the invite email. If you’ve connected a custom domain, that’s the one they should bookmark.
They set it on first sign-in. If they forgot, the sign-in page has a reset option.
Yes. The Portal is responsive and works on mobile browsers. There’s no dedicated mobile app right now.
Most firms run both for a while. The Portal becomes the primary channel for structured work (invoices, requests, documents) and email becomes the fallback for casual conversation. Be explicit about which you’d prefer.
Yes. Assembly Studio handles infrastructure security, encryption, and access control. Your team controls what each client sees. Custom-built apps inherit the same security model — a client can only see their own data, never another client’s.