How do I know if I need a portal or my existing portal needs updating?

Portals aren’t meant to be built and left. They require development, for the following reasons:

Stay up to date with technical trends
Stay on top of your competitors
To offer the best possible experience for your clients/customers.
The following reasons we’ll be going through are signs that you need to develop your current portal, or if you don’t have one, to definitely consider it.

CRISIS
Usually, people wait too long – they wait until they have run into a crisis. Don’t wait until your current company portal software has stopped working or becomes outdated. It’s always best to think in advance and consider b2b portal development whilst you are in a stress-free and non-critical situation.

CUSTOMERS
Another reason/sign you need to update your existing portal is that your customers/clients demand it. They might find it more convenient to have a certain functionality or use another software that takes the edge. To ensure they receive the best experience possible from yourselves you should adhere to this. And also, keep an open mind for any ways in which you can make your systems faster. Quick systems = happy clients/customers.

COMPETITORS
Your competitors outperforming you is another motivator to jump on the software development bandwagon. If you don’t have a web portal application, this is the time to consider it. Your competitors could be taking away your future clients/customers, this could drastically impact business and you wouldn’t want to start heading down a downwards spiral. As well as this, it’s important to stay on top of your industry trends as you can apply these to your new portal.

VISION
Having a vision of what will work best for your business is ideal as then you can determine what you can do to improve. One example of a company we worked with that had a vision in mind was Whitesales. They realised that the company that won the deal usually got their quotation in first. So they built a portal that allowed surveyors to create and send quotations on site. Instead of returning to the office. It absolutely transformed their business. Their conversion rate rose dramatically.

If you notice any conversion patterns and think you can apply this to software to increase your conversion rate, then do it!

If you wish to find out how an experienced web portal development company such as ourselves can help you out – then feel free to get in touch.