By use case: Client portals
Client portal development
Customers log in and see their own orders, files and status, so they stop having to ask.
- First workflow live
- Invite, usually inside the first sprint
- Usually owned by
- Distributors and wholesalers taking repeat orders from trade customers
- Built on
- Softr, Noloco, Bubble
- Judged on
- Status enquiries and Portal adoption
In short
A client portal is a secure login where each customer sees only their own orders, projects, files, invoices and status, read live from the systems you already run. SBD builds portals on Softr or Noloco when your data is in Airtable, Google Sheets or a similar base, and as a custom app when access rules, volume or branding need more. Every portal comes with status messages sent from real events, so clients are told before they ask.
Who this is for
The people who usually own client portals.
- Distributors and wholesalers taking repeat orders from trade customers
- Agencies and consultancies sharing deliverables and status
- Manufacturers whose customers chase order progress
- Service firms collecting documents from clients
Is this you?
If three of these sound like your week, this page is about your team.
- Much of your inbound is clients asking for status
- Files are sent back and forth by email
- Clients share one login, or still have access after leaving
- An account manager is the only way to find a client's history
- Delays are reported after the client has asked
What it costs today
Where client portals loses the hours.
Where is it
Clients email or call to ask for status, and each answer means a person checking two or three systems.
Files sent by email
Drawings, reports and invoices go back and forth as attachments, and the latest version is anyone's guess.
Access that is too wide
A shared folder or a shared login means one client can see another's data, or a former contact still can.
Updates depend on memory
Customers are told about a delay when someone remembers, often after they have already asked.
For client-facing teams
Let clients look it up.
Tell us what clients ask you for most and where that answer lives. We will show you what a portal would show them and which route fits.
Scope a portal
By company size
Client portals at 10 people, and at 1,000.
- 1 to 10
The owner answers every status message personally, on WhatsApp, at all hours.
- 11 to 50
A shared drive per client, status in a spreadsheet, and an account manager as the only way to find anything.
- 51 to 200
Hundreds of clients, files by email, and a support team whose main job is telling people where things are.
- 201 to 1,000
An ERP clients cannot see into, a portal project that stalled, and access reviews nobody owns.
What we build
What we build for client portals teams.
- 01
Secure, per-client access
Logins by email or SSO, with every record filtered to the client and the user's role. Approved accounts only where the catalogue or pricing is private.
- 02
Live data from your systems
Orders, projects, files and invoices read from your ERP, CRM, accounting tool or database, not copied into a second place to fall out of date.
- 03
Requests and uploads
Clients place orders, raise requests or upload documents, which arrive as records in your systems rather than emails.
- 04
Status messages from events
Order confirmed, dispatched, delayed or ready for review triggers an email or WhatsApp message with a link back to the portal.
The workflows
The client portals workflows, and what sets each one off.
- 01 Invite
When a client is approved or a contact added in the CRM
ThenPortal account created with the right client and role
- 02 Status update
When an order or project changes stage
ThenPortal updated and the client messaged with a link
- 03 File shared
When a document is marked ready for the client
ThenPublished to their portal and the client notified
- 04 Client request
When a client places an order or uploads a file
ThenRecord created in your system and the owner alerted
- 05 Offboard
When a contact leaves or a client ends
ThenAccess removed and logged
The numbers we move
How a client portals build is judged.
Every build has a number written into the blueprint. These are the ones client portals builds are measured by, and how we measure them.
| Metric | Before | After | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|
| Status enquiries | A large share of inbound | Falling after launch | Emails, calls and messages tagged as status questions, per week |
| Portal adoption | No portal | Tracked per client | Active client users per month divided by invited users |
| Requests via portal | All by email or phone | Measured share through the portal | Orders and requests created in the portal versus other channels |
| Access reviewed | Never | On a schedule | Accounts reviewed and removed at each quarterly access check |
Systems we connect in client portals
What is usually already there, and what we add.
Anything with an API or a database we can read works the same way. Each tool links to its page in the integrations directory.
Proof
Proof from builds like this.
- Customer story
Retailer catalogue and order portal
A gated portal for approved retailers with a live catalogue and automated WhatsApp order updates. The client reported about half as many inbound enquiries.
Read the story - Customer story
Order and dispatch management system
WhatsApp notifications on every order and dispatch change, so customers heard about status without calling.
Read the story
How it starts
An audit of the client portals work your team still does by hand.
One to two weeks. We map the workflows, put an hours-a-week figure on each, and give you a costed blueprint in order of payback. The audit is credited in full to the build.
- Week 1 to 2Audit. We sit with the people who do the work and map it.
- Week 3Blueprint. Fixed scope, fixed price, the first build chosen by payback.
- Week 4 onBuild in two-week sprints, working software every second Friday.
- After go-liveSixty days of hypercare, then a care plan or run it yourself.
What this does not do
So the scope is clear before the call.
- A handful of clients you speak to weekly. A shared folder and a message are enough.
- Data that is wrong at the source. A portal shows clients your mistakes faster; we fix the data first.
- Replacing a product your clients already log into, such as the ERP vendor's own portal, if it does the job.
Terms, defined
Client portals terms, in plain English.
- Client portal
- A secure website where each customer sees only their own records and files.
- Row-level access
- Filtering every query by who is logged in, so users see only their own records.
- Gated catalogue
- Products and prices visible only to approved accounts.
Questions
What people ask about client portals automation.
Softr, Noloco or a custom build?
Softr and Noloco suit portals over Airtable, Sheets or a similar base with straightforward access rules, and they are quick to launch. A custom app on Next.js and Supabase fits complex permissions, high volume or deep branding. If you want a specialist in one platform, our platform consultants page explains how we work alongside them.
Is client data kept separate?
Yes. Access is filtered on the server by client and role, not just hidden in the interface. We test that one client cannot reach another's records before launch.
Do we need to move our data?
Usually not. The portal reads from where your data lives. If it is spread across spreadsheets, the audit may recommend a single base first.
Can it use our domain and branding?
Yes, on all three routes. Custom builds give full control over design; Softr and Noloco cover domain, logo and colours.
How much does it cost?
The $500 Automation Audit comes first, credited to the build. Portals start at $3,000, and $5,000 as part of a multi-module system, with the fixed price set after the audit, plus the platform subscription where there is one.
Reading
- Security
Your Lovable app is probably public
Over 170 Lovable-built apps had open databases in one disclosure. How the leak works, the three named breaches of 2026, and the twenty-minute check to run.
- Operations
Who noticed when the workflow stopped?
Most automation failures are silent: the run shows green and nothing happens for weeks. How it happens in Zapier and n8n, its cost, and the four checks we add.
Related
- Industry
Professional services
Intake and engagement letters that run themselves, client documents collected without chasing, deadlines that cannot slip, and billing that follows the work.
- Industry
Distribution and logistics
Collections on a schedule, proof of delivery the same day, one stock count across every channel, and customers who hear before they ask.
- Use case
Customer onboarding
The moment a contract is signed, the account is set up, the documents you need are requested, the team has its tasks and the customer has a welcome with clear next steps.
- Use case
Ticket triage
Every ticket read, labelled and in the right queue before a person opens it, with a draft reply waiting.
By use case: Invoice processing, Lead routing, Customer onboarding, Employee onboarding, Quote generation, Order to cash, Ticket triage, Document extraction, Approval workflows, Inventory sync, Weekly reporting
Client portals
Get the client portals hours back.
Bring the one client portals workflow your team still runs by hand. You leave the call with a yes or no on fit and the first thing we would build.
Book the call