Services / Customer portals

Customer portal development.

We build secure account areas where customers can place orders, check progress, download documents or approve work. The portal connects to your business systems so staff can manage those requests without copying them between tools.
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Give customers access to the information they need.

A portal is useful for repeat customers, trade accounts and ongoing client projects. It gives them a consistent place to complete common tasks, while your team controls access, account rules and the information made available.

Problems this work can address

  • Customers contact the team for order updates or copies of documents.
  • Trade orders arrive by email, PDF or spreadsheet.
  • Different accounts need different prices, catalogues or approval rules.
  • Client decisions are spread across email threads and shared folders.

Scope

What we can build with you.

We establish which parts are useful for your business and what your existing tools can already do before agreeing the build.

  • B2B ordering and repeat purchases

    Product selection, order history and repeat ordering, with the agreed account pricing, minimum quantities and payment terms.

  • Order and project tracking

    Show customers the status and next steps your systems can reliably provide. Make it clear when information was last updated and how to ask for help.

  • Documents and account information

    Let authorised users access invoices, reports and relevant files. Documents can be published to an account or requested through the portal, depending on your process.

  • Reviews and approvals

    Collect decisions on quotes, designs or project work. Record the version reviewed, who approved it and when.

  • Connections to business systems

    Use the CRM, ecommerce platform or database as the source for the appropriate records. Define sync timing, edit permissions and what happens if a connection fails.

  • Account administration and permissions

    Tools for inviting users, managing accounts and controlling access. We test that users can only see the records and documents intended for them.
A person at a computer in a stockroom lined with boxed stock and shelving

In practice · Stationery retailer · B2B ordering

A B2B portal connected to Shopify and inventory.

The stationery project included an ordering portal, Shopify synchronisation, stockist and supplier records, and inventory automation. Airtable held the data used by the custom tools.

Read the case study

Define the customer tasks. Test them with real accounts.

The scope covers both sides of the portal: what customers do and how staff manage the result. We agree account rules and data access before designing the screens.

  1. Scope

    Map customer tasks, staff actions and account permissions.

    Your involvement: Show how customers order, request information or approve work.

    Portal requirements and integration plan

  2. Build

    Build the portal, administration tools and connections.

    Your involvement: Review the screens and account rules.

    Portal ready for account testing

  3. Test

    Check ordering, access restrictions and record updates.

    Your involvement: Try it with selected customer accounts and staff.

    Tested journeys and onboarding guide

  4. Launch

    Release the portal and train the team.

    Your involvement: Invite customers and assign account administrators.

    Live portal and agreed support

After launch

We agree launch aftercare, handover and any ongoing maintenance or development with you. Your organisation retains access to its code, accounts and documentation.

Support and ongoing development

Planning the work.

Choose the customer task to make available online.

Bring a typical order, document request or approval. We can work through the account rules and underlying systems, then define what belongs in the first version of the portal.
Can the portal connect to Shopify or our CRM?

We assess the available interfaces and the account information you need to share. Some requirements can use an existing platform’s account area; others need a custom portal. We recommend the approach after checking the actual rules and data.

Can different customers have different pricing and access?

Yes. We can build account-specific rules where the connected systems support the required data. We agree how prices, permissions and account changes are managed, then test those rules across representative accounts.

What affects the cost of a customer portal?

The main factors are customer tasks, account and pricing rules, data connections, document access and payment requirements. A document portal is a different scope from a complete trade ordering system. We quote against the agreed functions.

Will customers see live stock or order status?

That depends on the source system and how quickly it can provide updates. We agree the update frequency and what to display when information is delayed or unavailable. A portal should not present old data as live.

How can we help you work better?

You don’t need a brief or a solution in mind. Tell us what’s proving difficult or what you’d like to improve. We’ll explore the options together and agree where to start.

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