ChilliDB Essentials: Member Portal Configuration Quick Start

Looking for information regarding sending invitations to members once the member portal is configured or the assisting with the member log in process? See our 'ChilliDB Essentials: Member Portal - Member Account Functions' article.

When setting up a membership package in ChilliDB, users are provided with the option to allow members of that package to log-in to a Member Portal where they can then manage their own contact details and access information related to their memberships. This allows members to be more easily informed and also means organisations using ChilliDB can save time when it comes to updating member details (members now do this themselves); sharing documents; taking event registrations and a number of other membership-related functions.

The member portal access option is toggled on by checking the 'Members can access the portal' checkbox when either creating or editing a membership package.

Note: users should be aware that if they check this box to allow members to access the portal when initially setting up a membership package, any members they then add to the package will automatically be emailed the link to access the portal. Therefore, if you are setting up membership packages before you have your Member Portal configured properly, it is best to leave the checkbox unticked initially. You can then manually invite any members to the portal at a later date - see how to do this via the 'ChilliDB Essentials: Member Portal - Member Account Functions' article link at the top of this page.

The following quick start guide will provide a brief overview of how to get started with the membership portal configuration process and how to email out a member portal link to members to invite them to the portal if access wasn't granted in the initial setup of the membership package. Where applicable, links to articles that provide greater detail for certain sections will be provided so you can access more information where required.

1. Navigating to Member Portal Configuration

Step 1: Navigate to ‘System Management’ under the System main menu item in ChilliDB.

Step 2: Select ‘Manage Member Portal’ from the available options.

Note: If ‘Manage Member Portal’ doesn’t appear as an option, you can contact us at ChilliDB to have this enabled.

2. Configuring Basic Member Portal Options

   
   

   The first 3 options users are prompted to set up on the member portal configuration page are:

   
   

   i) General settings

   

   
   

   These settings relate to the naming of the member portal and the pages to be displayed as part of the portal. The setting functions are as follows:

   
   

   a) Web address: displays the address members use to login to the portal. This will be sent to members when they are added to a membership package in your ChilliDB system that has the member portal enabled.

   b) Naming: This section of the general settings allows users to dictate what naming is applied to certain aspects of their member portal.

   c) Pages: The pages section in General Settings allows users to dictate what information members will be able to view in the portal. The pages already visible in the portal will be listed in order under the ‘Pages’ heading. Any pages not currently visible will be available to add in the ‘Add new page’ dropdown menu – to do so simply choose the page you wish to add and then click the ‘Add’ button. Once the changes have been saved, the page will be displayed in your member portal for members to view.

   Note: there is a dedicated 'Pages' section in the member portal configuration section that allows users to detail the fields they want their members to see and/or the functionality they want them to have access to within each page. This will be outlined in more detail below.

ii) Branding settings

The branding options within the member portal configuration settings allow users to apply various design elements to their portal. These settings relate to the logos and colours displayed within the portal, providing the option for a more personalised experience for members logging in to view details related to their membership. While the setup of many of the options here is relatively self-explanatory, please refer to our 'ChilliDB Essentials: Member Portal Configuration - Branding Setup' article if you require further assistance, particularly when it comes to adding a logo to your ChilliDB system so it can be used in your member portal.

iii) Welcome Popup

The ‘Welcome popup’ configuration tab is where users can set up the message they wish to be displayed when members log into the Member Portal for the first time. The options available here are:

i) Active: this field allows users to set the width of the window the message is displayed in and/or to deactivate the welcome message window entirely.

ii) Window Title: fairly self-explanatory - the title the user wants displayed at the top of the welcome window.

iii) Message: also fairly self-explanatory - user writes the message they want members to see when they log in for the first time here.

3. Configuring The Pages Available to Members Within the Portal

There are a number of page options available within the Member Portal for members to access. When configuring the Member Portal, users select which of these pages they would like to make available to their members in the General settings section (see above). Once the pages to be made available have been selected, they appear in the 'Pages' menu on the left-hand side of the page. Clicking on the name of each available page opens up the configuration options for that page. An overview of the pages available is provided below. For more detailed information regarding certain pages in this section of the Member Portal configuration, see the relevant links under those sections.

i) Contact Form

In configuring the contact form, users not only indicate the titles they want displayed in certain sections of the Member Portal, they also select the fields they wish to allow their members to update from those available under the Contact module in their ChilliDB system.

The Contact page is divided into 3 sections:

a) Titles: this is where users can indicate the titles to be displayed in the navigation bar and at the top of the page.

b) Address grouping: toggling this switch dictates whether members see their address presented as one single entity or a collection of separated fields when viewing their contact details.

Note: when editing their own details, members always see separate fields for the different parts of the address - e.g.: 'Address Line 1'; 'Suburb'; 'Postcode' and so on.

c) Form fields: The contact page configuration enables users to indicate which fields they would like their members to be able to view; whether these fields are required fields in terms of needing a response; and also if they are to be read-only or fillable fields. The layout and order the fields are presented in can also be adjusted on this page.

For a more in-depth overview of how to set up the Contact form, see our 'ChilliDB Essentials: Member Portal Configuration - Contact Form Page Setup' article.

To see what a member will see when they click on the Contact Details page in the Member Portal, click on this link.

ii) Membership

The Memberships page also features a number of sections related to the information displayed to members and the functionality members have within these sections when it comes to making changes and editing information.

a) Titles: as with the Contacts page, allows users to indicate the name to be displayed in the navigation bar/at the top of the page.

b) Display memberships: this section provides options to indicate the kind of memberships members should see displayed on their member page apart from those they are currently a member of that include portal access.

c) Management: users indicate here if they want the member to be able to cancel memberships from the portal.

d) Subheading: this subheading is displayed above each package listed in the member's membership profile. The options available are 'Package Name' or 'No subheading'.

e) Membership fields: this section features the same options as the Contacts page fields section. The fields available to display to members are drawn from the Membership module.

To see what a member will see when they click on the Membership page in the Member Portal, click on this link.

iii) Documents

The options visible on the Documents configuration page are decidedly less than those offered on the Contacts and Memberships pages. This is because the settings for member document visibility, as well as the documents themselves, are located in your ChilliDB system. When you apply the correct settings to indicate you wish to display certain documents to members, they are then made available in the Member Portal for viewing.

If you are looking to display certain documents for your members to read, please view our 'ChilliDB Essentials: Member Portal Configuration - Document Page Setup' article.

To see what a member will see when they click on the Documents page in the Member Portal, click on this link.

iv) Events

The Events configuration page appears to be fairly simple at first glance - there are only two fields available, and both are related to the titles users wish to use for this page, both at the top of the screen and also in the navigation bar. However, as with the Documents page above, the reason for this is that the settings that control whether an event is displayed in the Member Portal for members to register are in the user's ChilliDB system itself.

For further information on how to set up the Events page, see our 'ChilliDB Essentials: Member Portal Configuration - Event Page Setup' article.

To see what a member will see when they click on the Events page in the Member Portal, click on this link.

v) Certificates

The certificates configuration page, like the events and documents pages above, has limited options in the member portal configuration section as the certificates are linked from the Events module in ChilliDB. As stated in the instructions at the top of the Certificates screen, any certificate that has been sent out to a member from an event using the 'Email Attendees' - 'Email Certificates' option under the Actions menu in an event will be listed on that member's certificate page.

To see what a member will see when they click on the Certificates page in the Member Portal, click on this link.

vi) Custom Page

The final type of page that can be configured in the Member Portal configuration section in ChilliDB is a custom page. This page can be named as required and gives users the flexibility to add a page that represents other needs they have for the portal that aren't covered by the system pages above. Custom pages are basically a text and picture/link/video-based page where users can create the content that is required within these formatting boundaries.

Examples of how this type of page can be used is for Home pages; Notifications pages and so on.

To see what a member could see when they click on a Custom page in the Member Portal, click on this link.

We hope you have found this Member Portal configuration article useful. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to get in touch. If you are currently undergoing onboarding, contact the onboarding representative you have been dealing with. Otherwise you can get in touch with us via the Help Desk or by contacting us at info@chillidb.com