Customer portal development is a smart move if customers often call or email you for the same information: the status of a job, an invoice, a document or an appointment. In a customer portal they log in and sort it out themselves straight away. You get fewer one-off questions, they get answers faster.
In this article you will learn what a customer portal is, which features are often needed, how the project runs and what to watch for with security and costs.
What is a customer portal?
A customer portal is a secure online environment where customers log in to see their own data and get things done. You may know it as 'My account' with your energy supplier or insurer. Technically it is a web application: it runs in the browser, works on phone and computer, and is connected to a database with your customers' data.
A portal can stand alone, but it is often attached to your website. A visitor becomes a customer and then gets access to their own environment at the same address, in the same style.
A customer portal is different from an online shop account. In an online shop, everything revolves around ordering. In a customer portal, it revolves around the relationship: ongoing matters, appointments, documents and contact. That is why a portal suits service providers, installers, training providers, healthcare practices and businesses with returning customers.
Why a customer portal? The benefits at a glance
- Fewer phone calls and emails for questions that keep coming back.
- Customers can sort things out themselves day and night, even outside office hours.
- All documents and appointments are in one place instead of spread across mailboxes.
- Fewer errors, because customers enter and update their own details.
- A professional impression: customers feel well looked after.
- Safer than sending sensitive documents back and forth by email.
Which features does a good customer portal have?
Which features you need depends on your business. Common parts are:
- Logging in, password recovery and, if you like, two-step login.
- An overview showing the status of ongoing jobs, orders or programmes.
- Downloading and uploading documents, such as quotes, contracts, reports and invoices.
- Viewing, booking or rescheduling appointments.
- Sending messages, so communication is kept together per customer.
- Managing their own details, such as address and contact persons.
- Email notifications when there is something new in the portal.
Don't start with everything. Choose the two or three features that remove the most questions or manual work. Add the rest once customers are really using the portal.
An example: the student portal of Rijschool Benz
For Rijschool Benz in Den Helder we built a website where you can request a trial lesson in 30 seconds, with lesson packages, a price comparison with other driving schools in Den Helder and content in Dutch, English and Arabic. There is also a student portal: a private environment for students alongside the public website. See the project in our work.
It shows how a portal and a website form one whole. The website attracts new customers, the portal helps existing customers further.
Customer portal development: the project step by step
- Take stock: which questions do you get most often, and what information are customers looking for?
- Wish list: which features go in the first version, and which later? Read how to approach that in writing a functional design.
- Design: what do the screens look like, on phone and computer?
- Integrations: where does the data come from? From your CRM, your accounting or a scheduling system?
- Building in stages, with interim versions you can test.
- Testing with a few real customers before everyone gets access.
- Launch: inviting customers, explaining how it works, handling questions.
Those integrations are often the most important part. A portal where you have to keep everything up to date by hand actually creates extra work. Let the data come automatically from your existing systems. Still working from spreadsheets? Then a custom CRM can become the foundation under the portal.
A few mistakes we often see with portals, and that are easy to avoid:
- The portal gets built, but customers don't know it exists. Tell them actively, for example in every confirmation email.
- Logging in is too complicated, so customers end up calling anyway.
- The information in the portal lags behind reality. Customers then quickly lose trust.
- Nobody internally is responsible for questions about the portal.
- The portal works poorly on a phone, while many customers log in on exactly that.
Security and privacy in a customer portal
A customer portal holds personal data and sometimes sensitive documents. So security is not an afterthought. Watch these points:
- An encrypted connection (https) on every page.
- Strong passwords and the option to log in with two steps.
- Each customer only sees their own data. This must be tested properly.
- Roles and permissions: what can a customer do, what can a staff member do, what can an administrator do?
- A log of who did what.
- Regular backups and updates.
- Hosting in the EU and agreements that fit GDPR (AVG in Dutch).
Ask your developer specifically how this is arranged. For legal questions about GDPR, it's best to consult a lawyer or look at the information from the Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens).
What does a customer portal cost?
The costs depend on the number of features, the integrations with other systems and the security requirements. A portal with documents and a status overview is simpler than a portal with payments, scheduling and messaging. Weigh that against what it delivers: how many phone calls and emails a week disappear, and how much time does it take now to find and send documents?
At Violexa a custom web application starts from €1,799 excl. VAT (€2,177 incl. VAT) per project. Larger projects get a fixed price up front, in writing. After launch you can choose a maintenance plan if needed: Silver €179 (€217 incl. VAT), Gold €299 (€362 incl. VAT) or Platinum €699 (€846 incl. VAT) per month excl. VAT. You can read more about how the price is built up in what does a web application cost.
Having your customer portal built by Violexa
We build customer portals and other custom web applications, in stages and with a fixed price up front. We start with the questions your customers ask most often, and first build what makes the biggest difference there. Read more at web applications and software.
Want to know what a portal could do for your customers? Book the free quickscan: 30 minutes, online or in person, followed by short written advice and a price indication.
Frequently asked questions
How much does customer portal development cost?
That depends on the features and integrations. At Violexa a custom web application starts from €1,799 excl. VAT (€2,177 incl. VAT). Larger projects get a fixed price up front.
Can a customer portal be connected to my CRM or accounting?
Yes, if those systems have an API, a standard way of exchanging data. Many modern packages have one. That way you don't have to keep data up to date twice.
Is a customer portal secure?
That depends on how it is built. Look for an encrypted connection, two-step login, strict permissions per customer, backups and hosting in the EU.
Do customers need to install an app for a customer portal?
No. A customer portal is usually a web application that works in the browser, on phone, tablet and computer. Customers log in through your website.
