Sharing a document with a customer

Email attachments work, technically, but they have a long list of problems: they sit in inboxes forever, they get forwarded to people who shouldn't have them, you can't tell whether the recipient opened them, and you can't pull them back if you sent the wrong version. For anything you wouldn't want lingering in a stranger's inbox, a share link is the better tool.

A share link is a unique URL that a customer can click to view (and optionally download) a specific document. You can set it to expire, revoke it any time, see when it's been accessed, and require the customer to verify their identity before viewing. This article covers when to use share links, how to configure them well, and the mistakes that defeat the security benefits.

When you'd use this

Sending a contract for review before the customer signs.
Delivering an estimate or quote PDF that you may revise before they accept.
Sharing inspection photos or reports post-job.
Sending a copy of a signed agreement for the customer's records.
Granting access to a sensitive document (insurance certificate, compliance form) to a specific recipient.
Sharing time-limited documents like seasonal pricing sheets or limited-window offers.

Don't use share links for everything — for a routine invoice that doesn't need access controls, the regular invoice email with a PDF attachment is fine. Use share links when one or more of these matter: expiration, view tracking, revocation, or the document is sensitive enough that you don't want it cached forever in mail systems.

How share links work

A share link is a unique URL Suprata generates for one specific document. Anyone who has the link can open the document — there's no login required. What keeps it safe:

The link is long and random, so nobody can guess one.
You can set it to expire on a date you choose.
You can shut it off any time.
You can require the customer to confirm their email or phone before they see the document.
You can cap how many times the link can be opened.

When the customer clicks, they see the document right in their browser, and (if you allowed it) a download button.

Generating a share link

The typical workflow:

Find the document in the library or on the customer's record.
Open the share action. A panel opens with the link configuration.
Set the expiration. Default is 30 days; pick what's appropriate (more on this below).
Decide whether to require verification. Email or phone — either sends a one-time code to the customer before they can view.
Optionally set a maximum view count. "Allow 3 views" prevents the link from being shared widely.
Generate the link. Copy it.
Send to the customer. Email, SMS, or paste into a conversation.

You can also email the link directly from Suprata — it goes through the same templated email system as everything else, so you can include a friendly note.

How long should a link last?

The default of 30 days works for most cases. Some adjustments worth making:

Contract for signing: 7–14 days. Creates urgency; long-expired contracts confuse the customer when they finally come back to it.
Time-sensitive offer: As long as the offer is valid, plus a small buffer. A "30-day price hold" should match the share link's expiration.
Reference document customer might revisit: 90 days. They might pull it up six weeks later to check details.
Sensitive document for one-time view: 24 hours, plus require verification. Tight controls for genuinely sensitive content.

A link that never expires is a link you'll forget about. Always set one.

Verification — when to require it

Verification adds a step: the recipient enters their email (or phone), receives a code, enters it, then sees the document. It's a small friction; whether to require it depends on what's at stake.

Require verification for:

Documents containing personal info beyond a name and address (SSNs, dates of birth, financial details).
Signed contracts with sensitive terms.
Anything where you'd care if the link were forwarded to someone else.

Skip verification for:

Estimates and quotes — you want the customer to actually open and read them, and an extra step gets in the way.
Photos and reports — most aren't sensitive.
Marketing materials.

What the customer sees

A clean page with the document right there to read. Above it: your company name, a download button (if you allowed it), and any short message you wrote when you generated the link. Below it: nothing — no Suprata branding pushed at your customer.

If you required verification, they enter a code first. The code goes to whichever contact method you picked.

Tracking views

Every time the link is opened, Suprata records when it happened and whether the customer viewed it or downloaded a copy. Useful when:

A customer claims they "didn't get" a contract you sent. Look at the log; if it shows viewed-and-downloaded last Tuesday at 3:14pm, you can have an honest conversation.
You want to know whether to call a customer who hasn't responded — if they've never opened the link, the document hasn't reached them yet.
You're following up on multiple shared documents and want to prioritize who's most engaged.

Don't be creepy about this with the customer. Use it for your own awareness; don't lead conversations with "I see you opened my email at 3:14pm Tuesday."

Revoking a link

If you sent the wrong version, the wrong document, or to the wrong person, revoke the link. From the document's share panel, click revoke. The URL stops working immediately — anyone who tries to access it sees a "this link is no longer available" message.

Revoke before generating a corrected link. Re-using the same recipient with two valid links is messy; always replace cleanly.

Common mistakes

Sending a permanent link. No expiration, no revocation. Forwards forever. Always set an expiration.
Not revoking when the document changes. You sent v1; v2 has different numbers; v1 is still live and reachable. Customer signs v1 thinking it's current. Revoke first, send the new link.
Skipping verification on truly sensitive docs. A share link for a tax form or settlement agreement should require verification. The 30 seconds of friction is worth it.
Sharing huge files via the link. Customers download on phones with limited data. Compress PDFs (especially scanned-paper PDFs) before sharing.
Sending the link without context. A bare URL in an email is suspicious-looking. Include a sentence: "Here's the contract we discussed. It's good for 7 days; let me know if you have questions."
Treating a share link as proof of receipt. It's evidence the link was viewed. It's not legal proof of agreement. For signing, use the signing flow, not just the share link.
Sharing a document anchored to the wrong account. The viewer doesn't see the anchor, but if the document was anchored wrong in your library, it can leak context to your team. Anchor correctly, then share.
Forgetting that revoking doesn't un-download. If the customer downloaded a copy before you revoked, they still have that copy. Revocation kills the link, not their saved file. Plan accordingly.

Two share patterns to know about

One-off share

What this article has been describing. Generate a link, send it, customer views, link expires. Most common pattern.

Recurring share to a customer portal

If you have customers who repeatedly access the same set of documents (a property manager who needs the lease, the building permit, the inspection record, the rent ledger), consider granting them portal access instead of generating link after link. Portal access is described in the customer portal (forthcoming).

After sending — the follow-up

A few habits that help:

Note in the customer record that you sent the link and what was in it. ("4/29/2026 — sent estimate via share link, expires 5/13.") Future-you will be grateful.
Watch the view log. If the customer hasn't opened the link in 48 hours, follow up — sometimes the email landed in spam.
When the link expires, decide whether to re-share. Don't extend automatically; sometimes an expired link is the right outcome.