Approvals
How to ask a client to sign off on work, what they see, what each decision does, and how every decision is recorded.
Why approvals exist
An approval turns “I think they were happy” into a record. You ask a client to sign off on a specific piece of work, such as new copy for a page or the order of a technical roadmap, and SEO Ops keeps who decided, what they decided and when.
Request an approval
- Open the task and choose Request client approval.
- Choose the Approver, one of the client’s portal users who is allowed to decide.
- Fill in What needs approval, Why we recommend it and What will happen when they approve. Plain wording works best, because the client reads this, not you.
- Optionally add a date under Please respond by.
- Attach evidence if it helps, such as a screenshot or a document. Evidence on an approval is always client-visible.
- Send the request. The task moves to Client Review, is marked as needing client approval and becomes visible to the client.
Once a task needs client approval, only the client’s decision can move it to Approved. Staff cannot mark it approved by hand. That is what keeps the record honest.
What the client sees
In the portal, the Approvals tab lists what is waiting. Each request shows the requester and date, a note if there is a response date, the four sections you filled in, any attachments (images appear as thumbnails that open the full picture) and a Your decision box:
- Approve: go ahead.
- Request changes: tell us what to change.
- Reject: do not proceed.
They can add an optional comment. The page tells them that their name, decision and the time are recorded.
What each decision does
| Decision | Approval status | The task moves to |
|---|---|---|
| Approve | Approved | Approved |
| Request changes | Changes requested | In Progress |
| Reject | Rejected | Waiting |
A request is decided once. If you need a different answer, withdraw it and send a new one. Staff can Withdraw a pending request from the task, which closes it with the status Withdrawn.
The permanent record
Who decided, when, and the decision are saved permanently in the activity history. If a client says “I never approved that”, the record answers it.
Seeing what is waiting
- The dashboard counts Awaiting approval and a client with an approval that has waited too long is flagged. You set the day thresholds under Settings › General › Client health thresholds.
- In the portal, a Waiting on you panel lists what the client needs to decide.
Common questions
Can staff approve on the client’s behalf?
No. Approving belongs to the client role. Not even administrators approve for a client, so the record always shows a real client decision.
Does the client get an email?
Notifications are in the portal and in the app. Emails for notifications are off by default; switch on the ones you want under Settings › Notifications.
What if nobody at the client is an approver?
Mark a contact as an approver when you invite them (Can approve and reject work). See Inviting portal users.