The fact is that any business of any shape and size can seriously benefit from having a client portal. Whether you run an accounting business, an IT management business, or any other sort of business, the truth is that you can benefit from having a client portal regardless of your business’s size or the industry that you are in.
Customer portals can help to boost customer satisfaction, loyalty, and workplace productivity, which is so many businesses are now choosing to invest in them. They also come with the additional benefit of offering a more flexible service, which is ideal for both customers and team members alike.
Bearing all of those benefits in mind, below we have created a guide to how you can create a client portal for your business, including everything that you need to know about doing so.
What is a client portal?
First things first, what exactly is a client portal? Think of a client portal as an extension of your company that is created out of software that is designed to make communicating and sharing information with your clients much easier; it’s an incredibly secure environment that also happens to be highly customisable.
Most client portals offer a range of different services. From forums and live chat features to file sharing and account overviews, client portals can offer a wide range of services that are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Whether you want to provide your customers with a chance to view their accounts and place orders virtually, would like to allow your customers to review how their orders are going, or discussing various aspects of the work more easily and in a more flexible way, investing in a client portal could be the answer.
How can you go about setting up a client portal?
You have two options when it comes to setting up a client portal: you can opt to build one yourself or purchase specialist software from experts in the field. While the option of setting up your own client portal might seem like a more cost-effective solution, it’s not advisable as it can be complicated and highly time-consuming to do.
In a professional business, you require professional solutions, which is why it’s so important to think carefully about the choice to create your own client portal. The fact is that the services your business offers, creates an image of the company as a whole. If you want to create a professional and positive image, it’s important to ensure that every aspect of your business is dealt with as professionally as possible.
For any business that wants to offer their clients the best solution possible, paying for a specialist service is the best option. As this way, you can ensure a fast, efficient and effective client portal service. In addition to saving your company time and money, purchasing a client portal through specialist software will offer your company a range of useful benefits due to the professional service available.
These benefits include:
- Efficient integration and maintenance of software
- Long-term support from the company supplying your software
- Highly effective security solutions integrated into the software
- A simple setup that’s easy to use
- Software that is perfectly customised to meet your business’s needs
- Quicker starting times - setup and implementation can take a matter of minutes
How can you go about setting your portal up?
Once you’ve determined that you are going to use an expert service to set up your client portal, the next step is to consider the steps that you will need to take to get everything sorted and in place. It’s not just a case of placing an order for a client portal, there are various other aspects that you need to consider, these include thinking about your budget, the time it will take to create your portal, and how customised you want it to be.
Below are some of the steps that you will need to take to do this:
Choose a solution: First things first, you will need to take the time to choose an appropriate solution for your business’s client portal. There will, no doubt, be plenty of options to choose from. However, it’s important to take your time when selecting the right option for you and your business, as you want to ensure that you get the highest level of benefit possible from it. Consider aspects such as cost, as well as how easy the solution will be to use. Think about how suitable it will be for what your company needs it to be. Don’t rush the process, take your time choosing the right option for your specific needs.
Speak to the experts: The next step, once you have chosen a solution, is to contact the company offering it. Get in touch with them via email or phone call and discuss the solutions that they are offering. Don’t be afraid to ask questions - it’s important to find out as much as you can about the services on offer, to ensure that the solution you opt for is the right fit for your company’s needs. Ask them for examples of when they’ve created solutions for similar businesses to yours and statistics for how successful they were. Question how they can customise client portals to ensure that they are an ideal fit for you and your clients.
Set a price: If you’re happy with the information that you have been given, the next thing that you need to do is set a price for your client portal. While some specialists have a range of set prices to offer to their customers, others don’t, so it’s important to ascertain how much your project will cost to complete. If you have a certain budget to stick to, tell them that. It’s important that you think carefully about the cost and make sure not to overspend.
Learn how to use it: Once your solution has been created, or while it’s being created, take the time to learn how to use it. If possible, it’s a good idea to work with specialists who offer a learning service that can be used to teach you and your team members how to get the most out of the client portal that you have had created. It’s not always easy to navigate around new pieces of technology, which is why having training can be so beneficial. This is especially important if you are going to use your new portal for your clients and want to ensure that they get the most out of it possible.
The fact is that having a client portal can be highly beneficial to your business for a range of reason, which is why it’s an investment that is more than worthwhile investing in. This is especially true if you want to ensure that you are providing the best quality of service to your customers and are staying ahead of the times in terms of the technology that you use to do so.
When it comes to creating a client portal that is reliable and effective, taking note of the tips and advice above is crucial. It’s important that the solution you create is as professional as possible, and provides the high level of service that your customers expect from your company. You want and need to keep your customers happy and content, which is why it’s always important to go above and beyond with the services that you provide, including when it comes to your client portal.