Getting Started: Inviting a Member

This guide walks you through inviting someone to your account for the first time, including how to choose whether to fund their access from an account seat or let them subscribe personally.

Before you start

Make sure you have:

• An active Colistor account with Owner or Admin role
• The email address of the person you want to invite

You do not need available seats — the invitation button is always active.

Step 1 — Open the Members page

1. Click your account name in the top navigation bar.
2. Select Members from the menu.

You will see two tabs: Members (active members) and Invited (pending invitations).

Step 2 — Click "Invite Member"

Click the Invite Member button in the top-right corner of the page.

An invitation form slides open below the header. The form is always accessible regardless of how many seats your plan has remaining.

Step 3 — Enter the email and role

1. Type the invitee's email address in the Email Address field.

2. Choose their role from the dropdown:

   | Role | What they can do | |---|---| | Member | Read and contribute to circles they belong to | | Admin | Manage members, groups, and roles | | Viewer | Read-only access to circles they belong to |

💡 You can change the role at any time after the member joins.

Step 4 — Choose seat funding

Below the role selector you will find the "Use an account seat" toggle. This controls how the new member's circle access will be funded.

When seats are available

The toggle defaults to ON. The hint beneath it shows how many seats remain, for example:

✅ 3 seat(s) available — this member will be funded by your account.

Leave the toggle ON to fund the member from your account subscription (recommended for full-time team members). Flip it OFF to invite them as self-funded instead (useful for contractors or occasional collaborators who prefer their own subscription).

When no seats are available

The toggle defaults to OFF and the hint changes to amber:

ℹ️ No seats available — this member will need a personal subscription to access circles.

You can still send the invitation. The new member will be prompted to subscribe when they first log in. Once their personal subscription is active, they gain full circle access automatically.

Step 5 — Send the invitation

Click Send Invitation. Colistor will:

1. Create a secure invitation token and send it to the email address.
2. Show the new invitation in the Invited tab with a funding badge (Seat Assigned or Self-Funded).
3. Display a confirmation message at the top of the page.

The invitation is valid for 7 days. If it expires before the recipient accepts, you can cancel it from the Invited tab and send a fresh one.

What happens next?

| Action | Result | |---|---| | Invitee clicks the link in the email | They are taken to the acceptance page | | They accept while logged in | They join the account immediately; circles load on their next page visit | | They accept while not logged in | They are prompted to log in or create an account first | | They are seat-funded | Circles are available immediately after joining | | They are self-funded with an active subscription | Circles are available immediately after joining | | They are self-funded with no subscription | A subscription prompt is shown; circles become available after they subscribe |

Next steps

• Member Subscription Status — understand the three badge states
• Seat Re-Assignment — move seats between members at any time
• Troubleshooting — if something isn't working as expected