"I can't sign in to the portal"

Donors sign in to the portal with a link sent to their email, not a password. When it doesn't work, the cause is nearly always the address they typed, a link that's too old, or a link that has already been used. Here's what to check and what to tell the donor.

How signing in works

1. The donor goes to your web address followed by /portal/login, such as yourname.occam.gives/portal/login, or selects Log in on your public page.
2. They enter their email address and select Send sign-in link.
3. They open the email, whose subject starts "Your sign-in link for", and select Access my giving portal.

The link works for 1 hour, and only once. After that they stay signed in on that browser for 30 days.

The sign-in page is plain. It's headed Donor Portal and doesn't show your logo or name, so tell donors they're in the right place.

What to check

1. In the sidebar, go to Donors and search for the donor.
2. Open their profile and check the email address on the Contact Information card. This is the only address that will sign them in.
3. If it's mistyped or out of date, correct it and ask the donor to request a new link with that address.

If you can't find the donor, they may be on file under a different address. Each address is a separate donor record, and it opens only the history on that record.

If they aren't on file at all, no link is sent. Add them as a donor and they can sign in, to a portal with nothing in it yet.

"The email never came"

The sign-in page shows Check your inbox whatever address is entered. It says a link was sent "if" the address is in your donor records. That's deliberate, so nobody can use the page to find out who your donors are. It means Check your inbox isn't proof that an email went out.

• The address isn't the one on their record. Nothing is sent. Check their profile, as above.
• It's in spam or junk. Ask them to search for the subject "Your sign-in link for" and your organization's name.
• Too many requests. Occam accepts up to 5 requests for a sign-in link in 5 minutes from the same internet connection. After that it sends nothing, and the page still shows Check your inbox. Have them wait 5 minutes and ask once.

"The link says it has expired"

A link that can't be used sends the donor back to the sign-in page with That link has expired. Please request a new one. The usual reasons are:

• It's more than 1 hour old.
• It's already been used. Each link works once. If they used it earlier on the same browser, they're probably still signed in: have them open your public page and select View your full dashboard.
• They asked more than once. Only the newest link works. Each new request switches off the one before it, so they need to open the most recent email.

To fix any of these, they enter their address again on that page, select Send sign-in link once, and open the new email within the hour.

A Manage your recurring donation link from an old receipt ends up on the same page with the same message. Those links last 14 days. The donor can ask for a sign-in link there and carry on in the portal.

"It keeps asking me to sign in"

• They're on a different device or browser. Opening the link signs them in on that one browser only. They can open the email on any device, but each device and browser needs its own link.
• It's been 30 days. They ask for a new link.
• They signed out. Signing out signs them out on every device. It also switches off the Manage your recurring donation links in receipts they already have.

Send them the right address

Always send donors the sign-in page on your own web address. A page on your address finds that person's record with your organization, and the link they get signs them in to your portal.

You can also ask for the link yourself: open the sign-in page, enter the donor's email address and select Send sign-in link. The email goes to the donor, not to you. Tell them it's coming, and that they have 1 hour to open it.

What you can do for them instead

You can't sign in to the portal as a donor, and Occam doesn't show whether a sign-in email was sent or whether a donor has signed in. If they need something now, you can do most of it from their profile:

• Tell them what they've given, from their Donations list.
• Cancel a monthly gift for them in Stripe. See "Cancel or change my monthly gift".
• Update their name, email address or phone number. See Add and edit donors.

If the address is right, the email isn't in spam and they've waited 5 minutes before trying again, email info@occam.gives with the donor's email address and the time they asked for the link.

For what the portal shows once they're in, see The donor portal.