Sharing with Clients

Create guest links to share boards and presentations with clients without requiring them to have a Palett account.

7 min read

Share your design work with clients using secure guest links. No Palett account required, fully controlled access, and professional presentation.

Guest Links vs. Team Members

Guest Links (Recommended for Clients)

What they are: Secure, shareable URLs for external viewing

Benefits:

  • ✅ No account required (client just clicks link)
  • ✅ You control expiration
  • ✅ Revoke access anytime
  • ✅ Limit to specific boards (not whole project)
  • ✅ Optional password protection
  • ✅ View-only or comment-only

Best for: Clients, external stakeholders, one-time reviewers

Team Members (For Active Collaborators)

What they are: Full project membership with role-based permissions

When to use:

  • Contractor working actively on project
  • Client who wants to add materials themselves
  • Long-term collaborative relationship

See: Inviting Team Members

Creating a Guest Link

Step 1: Choose What to Share

Options:

  • Single board: One specific material selection
  • Multiple boards: Several related boards
  • Whole project: Everything (use sparingly)

Recommendation: Start with single board for focused feedback

Step 2: Generate Link

For a single board:

  1. Open the board
  2. Click "Share" button (top right)
  3. Click "Create Guest Link"

For multiple boards or project:

  1. Project Settings → Sharing
  2. Select boards to share
  3. Click "Create Guest Link"

Step 3: Configure Settings

Access Level:

  • View Only: Can see content, can't interact
  • View + Comment: Can leave feedback (recommended)

Expiration:

  • 7 days
  • 30 days
  • 90 days
  • Never (requires manual revocation)

Password Protection (optional):

  • Add password for extra security
  • Client needs password to open link

Watermark (Free plans):

  • "Powered by Palett" on exports
  • Removed on Professional plans and above

Step 4: Share with Client

  1. Copy link to clipboard
  2. Send via email, text, or Slack
  3. Client clicks → Instantly views boards

Example email:

Subject: Material Selections for [Project Name]

Hi [Client],

Here are the material options we discussed:

[Guest Link]

Please review by [date] and let me know your thoughts 
using the comment feature. No account needed—just click the link!

Best,
[Your name]

What Clients See

Clean, Branded View

Clients get:

  • Professional, distraction-free interface
  • Material images and specifications
  • Pricing (if you included it)
  • Your notes and context
  • No Palett branding (Professional+ plans)

Clients don't see:

  • Your other projects
  • Internal notes (unless you included them)
  • Other boards (unless you shared them)
  • Team activity or private discussions

Interactive Features

With "View + Comment" access:

  • Leave comments on materials
  • Ask questions in context
  • @-mention you for notifications
  • Reply to your comments

They can't:

  • Add or remove materials
  • Edit boards
  • Change anything
  • See behind-the-scenes work

Managing Guest Links

Viewing Active Links

See all guest links:

  1. Project Settings → Sharing → Guest Links
  2. View list with:
    • Link ID (shortened for sharing)
    • What's shared (board name or "Full Project")
    • Created date
    • Expires date
    • Times accessed
    • Last accessed

Revoking Access

Disable a link:

  1. Guest Links list → Find link
  2. Click "Revoke"
  3. Link becomes invalid immediately

Use when:

  • Project complete
  • Client declined proposal
  • Link was shared accidentally
  • Security concern

Note: Client gets graceful "Access expired" message, not error

Regenerating Links

If link was compromised:

  1. Revoke old link
  2. Create new guest link
  3. Send new link to client

Why: Can't change URL of existing link, must create new one

Best Practices

1. Set Appropriate Expirations

Project phase-based:

  • Initial concepts: 7-14 days (client reviewing quickly)
  • Design development: 30 days (iteration expected)
  • Final selections: 90 days (procurement phase)
  • Never: Only for ongoing client relationships

Why: Forces timely feedback, reduces security risk

2. Use Board-Specific Links

Don't share whole project by default:

❌ Bad: Share full project with 15 boards including drafts, rejects, budget notes

✅ Good: Share "Final Kitchen Selections" board only

Benefits:

  • Client isn't overwhelmed
  • You control narrative
  • Hide work-in-progress
  • Change other boards without affecting client view

3. Enable Comments

"View + Comment" is better than "View Only":

Why:

  • Client can give specific feedback
  • Saves back-and-forth emails
  • Feedback lives with material (you don't forget context)
  • Clients feel heard

Exception: Final approvals where no feedback needed

4. Clean Up Before Sharing

Checklist:

  • ☐ Remove internal notes (unless relevant to client)
  • ☐ Verify pricing is client-appropriate (retail not cost)
  • ☐ Check that all images loaded correctly
  • ☐ Remove any "reject" or "don't show client" tags
  • ☐ Add context notes for client clarity

5. Follow Up Promptly

When client comments:

  • Respond within 24 hours
  • Address each question specifically
  • Update board based on feedback
  • Notify client when changes made

Why: Shows professionalism, keeps project moving

Advanced Sharing Options

Password-Protected Links

When to use:

  • High-profile clients (privacy concern)
  • Sensitive projects (NDA situations)
  • Competitive proposals

How:

  1. Create guest link → Enable password protection
  2. Set password (8+ characters)
  3. Send link + password separately (link via email, password via text)

Client experience:

  1. Click link
  2. Prompted for password
  3. Enter password → Access granted

Branded Guest Links (Professional+)

Customize client experience:

  1. Account Settings → Branding
  2. Upload your logo
  3. Set brand colors
  4. Add company info

Guest links now show:

  • Your logo (not Palett's)
  • Your brand colors
  • Your company name
  • Professional, white-label experience

Multiple Links for Same Board

Create multiple links with different settings:

Example:

  • Link 1: For client (view + comment, expires 30 days)
  • Link 2: For contractor (view only, expires 7 days)
  • Link 3: For photographer (view only, never expires)

Benefit: Different stakeholders, different access levels

Client Workflows

Scenario 1: Initial Concept Review

Your workflow:

  1. Create "Option A", "Option B", "Option C" boards
  2. Generate guest link for all three
  3. Set expiration: 7 days
  4. Enable comments
  5. Send link with: "Please review and let me know which direction resonates by Friday"

Client workflow:

  1. Click link
  2. Browse all three options
  3. Comment: "Love Option B, but can we change the rug?"
  4. You iterate and update

Scenario 2: Final Approval

Your workflow:

  1. Create "Final Selections" board with approved materials
  2. Generate guest link (view only, no comments needed)
  3. Set expiration: 90 days (for procurement phase)
  4. Send link with: "Here are the approved materials. This link is valid for 3 months for reference during procurement."

Client workflow:

  1. Click link
  2. Reference during ordering/purchasing
  3. Share with contractor for installation

Scenario 3: Ongoing Collaboration

Your workflow:

  1. Create project-wide guest link
  2. Enable comments
  3. Set expiration: Never (or 1 year)
  4. Client bookmarks for repeated access

Client workflow:

  1. Checks link weekly for updates
  2. Comments as questions arise
  3. Stays aligned throughout project

Troubleshooting

"Client says link doesn't work"

Common causes:

  1. Link expired (check expiration date)
  2. Link was revoked accidentally
  3. Password required but not provided
  4. Link copied incorrectly (missing characters)

Solutions:

  • Check link status in Guest Links list
  • Generate new link and resend
  • Verify full URL was copied
  • Test link yourself first

"Client can't comment"

Cause: Link is "View Only"

Solution:

  1. Revoke current link
  2. Create new link with "View + Comment"
  3. Send new link

Alternative: Add client as Viewer team member (requires account)

"Client seeing outdated boards"

Cause: Link shares snapshot from when created

Actually no—links are live! Updates appear in real-time

If client sees old data:

  • Have them refresh page (Ctrl+R / Cmd+R)
  • Clear browser cache
  • Try different browser

"Too many people have link"

Cause: Link was forwarded

Solution:

  1. Revoke compromised link
  2. Create new link
  3. Send only to intended recipients
  4. Consider password protection

Security Considerations

What's Safe to Share

Generally safe via guest links:

  • ✅ Material selections
  • ✅ Visualizations
  • ✅ Retail pricing
  • ✅ Lead times
  • ✅ Vendor names

Don't share via guest links:

  • ❌ Your cost pricing
  • ❌ Profit margins
  • ❌ Internal strategy notes
  • ❌ Competitor analysis
  • ❌ Budget breakdowns with your fees

Link Security

Guest links are:

  • Cryptographically secure (long, random URLs)
  • Not guessable or enumerable
  • Revocable anytime
  • Trackable (you see access logs)

Guest links are not:

  • Password-protected by default (opt-in)
  • Restricted by IP address
  • Two-factor authenticated

Best practice: Treat links like passwords—don't post publicly

What's Next?

Need help sharing with clients? Chat with us (bottom right) or email support@palett.space.

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