What is a Portal System?
Online portal systems are used to provide users with services, information, and resources from a central location. These portals were created to streamline and simplify access to digital content which can make it more convenient for users to find the information they require.
Purposes and Features of Online Portal Systems
Online portal systems serve as a single point of entry for users to access a range of information, applications, and services. Organizations can combine sources such as email, calendars, social media, news, and more.
Users often can customize the layout of the portal to suit their preferences. This can include removing or adding widgets, choosing a content format, and rearranging content to suit their personal preferences.
Online portals should ideally integrate with other software systems, for example, customer relationship management software. This can allow users to update their personal information and businesses to track important user data.
Portal systems should offer robust security features to protect sensitive user information, this can include creating a login portal to ensure users are verified before accessing the online portal. Login credentials can also be used to create access permissions so content can be controlled and only shown to specific users and roles.
The majority of portal systems should allow an organization to create and publish content for users to view, it is important to also include a search feature so users can easily find relevant content.
Some portal systems will include communication features like messaging, discussion forums, and email which are platforms for communication between organizations and their users.
Online portals should be created to enhance the user experience and make it easier to access relevant information. Portals can also facilitate communication and collaboration between an organization and its users.
Using Customer Portals for Customer Service
Implementing portals to create a customer service portal is an effective way for an organization to enhance the customer experience by providing a central location for users to raise their tickets, troubleshoot issues, and access knowledge bases. This can alleviate pressure on a customer support team as users should be able to resolve issues on their own before reaching out via raising a ticket.
Customer portals should ideally have a login portal to log users into their accounts. This can prevent users from providing the same information over and over again, and follow up on tickets that are assigned to their accounts.
A central location that hosts information such as FAQs and solutions to common problems should be easy to find on a customer portal, this empowers users to find answers on their own and resolve issues independently. There should be a separate page for users to create support tickets, these tickets should ask for relevant information to ensure that support teams can search for possible solutions before they contact the customer, if support teams are divided up according to support request types the information requested on the ticket should help to ensure that the ticket is assigned to the correct team.
Customers can make payments and update their payment methods through the billing section of the portal. This makes the payment process easy and reduces the likelihood of tickets being raised.
Messaging and chat features should be included in the portal to facilitate real-time communication with the customer report scene. It can be useful when users cannot find a solution in the provided knowledge bases.
Enable customers and users to upload, download, and share documents. These documents can be contracts invoices, or service agreements. This keeps all important documentation in one central location.
If an organization is looking to gather customer feedback, surveys can be embedded in these portals where users can provide their opinions and experiences about the organization and the service they receive.
If an organization implements a well-designed and user-friendly portal where customers can easily find information and resolve their issues, this can reduce the workload on support teams and can improve customer satisfaction by enabling them to resolve issues, make payments, and update their details independently.
By implementing a well-designed and user-friendly customer portal, you can reduce the workload on your customer support team, improve response times, and increase overall customer satisfaction. Additionally, the data collected from customer interactions within the portal can provide valuable insights into customer behavior and preferences, helping you make informed decisions and enhance your products or services.
Client Portal Software Platforms
Several software platforms can be used by organizations looking to create user-friendly and secure portals where clients can interact with the support team and find important information. It is important to ensure that these systems seamlessly integrate with your other database platforms – for example, if you use Salesforce as your CRM software, your selected tool should offer full integration to ensure seamless data syncing.
ShareFile provided by Citrix is a secure platform that allows for easy file sharing and collaboration. It is mostly used for legal, financial, and healthcare sectors as sensitive information and documents can be exchanged securely.
Microsoft SharePoint is a document management platform that integrates well with other Microsoft Office applications.
HubSpot’s CRM and SeviceHub offer features for organizations to create customer portals that enable customer support centers and access to knowledge bases.
Basecamp is a collaboration and project management platform that can be implemented for organizations to create private project spaces where documents can be shared.
Salesforce Community Cloud enables your business to build client portals that draw on an organization’s Salesforce CRM database. This platform does have limited customization options and does require extensive knowledge of the Salesforce platform to use this tool effectively.
Titan is a trusted third-party application for Salesforce. It is a no-code solution that enables users to create customer portals using Salesforce data. The drag-and-drop interface is easy to use so there is no steep learning curve required before an organization can implement and customize customer portals to enhance the user experience.
When choosing a platform it is important to evaluate and consider your business needs, requirements, and features you would need to create a successful customer service portal.
The Takeaway
Online customer portals provide a central location where businesses can host important knowledge bases and other resources. Choosing the right tool is vital to ensure the long-term success of online portals. Portals should be created with users in mind to ensure a good user experience, the more users interact with and use online portals, the more valuable data can be collected from them.
