Accepting an invitation

Welcome — someone invited you

When a friend or family member invites you to a Memory Album, you'll get a personal email or text from us with a link. Tap the link from the device you're most comfortable on, and we'll do the rest.

What happens when you tap the link

You're taken straight to the album — even for private albums. There's no sign-up wall in the way; you can browse photos, read messages, and enjoy the keepsake right away. When the album owner has invited you to join in, you'll also see a "Sign in to add your comment" box waiting for you — so the moment you'd like to leave a comment, react to a photo, or add your own memory, you can.

Tap it and we'll bring up a quick window. Here's the nice part: because your invitation already told us your email and phone number, we fill them in for you — so there's almost nothing to type:

• New to ShareLocket? We show a short sign-up with your email and phone already filled in. We keep them partly hidden for your privacy (something like m***@example.com), and they can't be changed here — they're simply the details your invitation was sent to. Just add your name and a password (or set up a passkey) and you're in.
• Already have an account? We recognize you and show the Sign in step instead, so you never end up with a second account by mistake. You can also switch to it any time with Already have an account? Sign in.

Because we use the email or phone from your invitation, you're recognized right away — and the email or text-message link you followed counts as proof of that channel, so we won't ask you to verify it again. Before your very first comment or post, we may ask for one quick confirmation of your other channel (a short code sent to your phone or email) to keep your account safe.

If the invitation was sent to a different email of yours

Good news — you don't have to sign in with the exact address the invite was sent to. As long as that address is one of the verified emails on your ShareLocket account, we'll match it up and accept the invitation automatically. So if your friend invited you at [email protected] but you usually sign in with [email protected], it just works. You can add and verify additional addresses any time from Account Settings → Email addresses.

Returning to the album on a new device

The first time you tap the link, your device is quietly noted as the one that gets the immediate look-around. That's what lets you browse the album without signing in — a small, private marker is stored in your browser.

If you later open the same link on a different device — say, you first opened it on your phone but now want to view it on your laptop, or you cleared your browser, or your email app opened a preview — you'll see a quick sign-in screen instead. Don't worry, this is normal! Just sign in (or create your account) with the email address or phone number the invitation was sent to, and you'll be taken straight to the album and joined as a member.

• For a public album, you can also just visit the album's regular page — it's open to everyone.
• For a private album, the sign-in step is the only way back in. We keep the album hidden on purpose so only the people the owner invited can see it.

If signing in doesn't match you automatically (for example, you use a different email address than the one the invite was sent to), the album owner will get a quick note to confirm it's you — that usually only takes a moment.

Still can't get in? Ask whoever invited you to tap Resend next to your name on their People page. That sends a fresh link, and the very first device to open it gets the immediate-view again.

If we need the album owner to confirm you

Most of the time you're recognized straight away. But if you join a private album in a way we can't automatically tie back to your invitation — for example, signing in with an account whose email and phone we can't match to the one the invite was sent to — we let the album owner know there's a new person to confirm. You'll see a friendly "waiting for the album owner's approval" message. The owner sees your name plus the details you used (so they can recognize you) and the address the invite was sent to, and they tap Approve or Decline. Until they approve you, you can still look around the album, but you won't be able to post or comment just yet. The original invitation stays valid too, in case the right person wants to use it later. (Public albums skip all this — you simply join and start enjoying them right away.)

If the link says it isn't valid anymore

Invitation links expire after about a week, and the album owner can cancel an invitation at any time. If you see "This invite link isn't valid anymore," just ask whoever invited you to send a fresh link — it's a one-tap action for them on their People page.

If we asked you to switch accounts

If you're already signed in to a different ShareLocket account, we'll ask you to sign out and back in with the email or phone the invitation was sent to. Invitations are personal — they only work for the recipient they were addressed to.