Editor's note : This article was originally written when Power Pages were called Power Apps portals and Dynamics 365 portals. Both terms are used throughout this article but all refer to Power Pages.
Would you like to make your website more interactive and collaborative for your customers? Microsoft Dynamics 365 has the perfect solution for you.
Creating modern websites with secure, high-performance capabilities is now easier than ever before with Microsoft's new Power Pages platform.
Previously called Dynamics 365 Portal, Power Pages are websites that you can customize to give your customers, partners and employees a tailored experience. Portals are integrated into Dynamics 365 for Customer Engagement so you can display data from the module directly on the portal.
To put it simply, Dynamics portal enables you to upload websites including forms that your visitors can complete. The information collected is directly linked to your Dynamics 365 so you don't waste time re-entering information. It's all done in one simple step.
Portal users can be provided with a range of experiences that will allow them to take multiple actions. So let's dive in and demystify Dynamics Power Pages!
What Are Dynamics Power Pages
Dynamics Power Pages is Microsoft's latest addition to the Power Platform family. It's a secure, enterprise-grade, low-code platform for creating and hosting modern external-facing business websites. Power Apps portal and Dynamics 365 portal are now called Power Pages. These can be edited in the new Power Pages design studio.
Microsoft's Power Pages provides rich, customizable templates. Users get a fluid visual experience through the design studio, and an integrated learning hub to quickly build sites for your unique business needs. With its low-code approach, it makes website creation easier than ever before. You can make websites for professionals and beginners. This lets customers access important information quickly and securely.
Power Pages is also fully integrated into the Microsoft ecosystem. Developers can use the same business data they use for apps, workflows, intelligent virtual agents, reports, and analytics with Microsoft Power Platform components. Plus there's no need for any migration or upgrade process - simply open up the Dynamics 365 Portal Designer and get started creating your own custom page!
Dynamics Power Pages has all the features you need for customer service forms, products online, and more!
Will Power Pages Replace My Website?
Not at all! Power Pages can make custom pages, forms, and layouts, but they're usually used to make your website better instead of replacing it. Power Pages can be embedded within your website or accessed through a Dynamics portal, providing a seamless user experience. Power Pages improve your website's capabilities and make it more engaging for users, but they shouldn't replace your entire website.
How Power Pages can Enhance My Website?
Maintaining effective communications and being available for your potential and existing customers is one of the best ways of generating customer loyalty. Being seen as a reliable and trustworthy company will take you far.
Your customers become ambassadors for your company, and you become the first person they recommend to anyone requiring your services/products. Therefore, in addition to having a customer who constantly uses your products or services, you also obtain new business opportunities. Power Pages helps you reach this status with your customers by empowering you to maintain this level of effective communications and engagement.
What's more, you can promote open dialogue with your customers by creating forms. Use open questions to benefit from constructive and comprehensive customer feedback. This is an excellent way of getting a feel for your customers and evaluating their satisfaction with your services or products.
Provide customers requiring support with special services. Give them access to a knowledge base. Enable them to create their own support tickets so that your customers can save time. Dynamics 365 Portals enables you to add value to your company by quickly creating this type of site.
Using Dynamics Power Pages for Different Purposes
Make Things Easier for your Business Partners
Do you work with business partners to sell your products? Using Microsoft Dynamics 365 Portal, you can create a dedicated partner portal for your customers, so they can place orders directly through your website. Orders will be submitted to your Dynamics 365 automatically without you having to re-enter the information. This might not seem like much, but it can really set you apart from the competition. The easier the user experience, the more they'll want to work with you and your products. Dynamics 365 empowers you with the tools you need to be recognized as a reliable company that it is easy to do business with.
Create an Employee Self-Service Portal
Dynamics 365 Power Pages (or Portals) were created to be flexible, enabling you to create several different experiences. We're simply giving you some ideas, but you can take it much further. We love the idea of using the portal as an intranet. Dynamics 365 lets you create a portal only accessible by those who have signed up for it. This gives you the ability to give customers or employees specific content they can see only. Your human resources team could use this portal to provide employees with all the documents they need to do their jobs.
What About a Customer Self Service Portal?
A customer self-service portal is a platform customers can use to get information and do tasks without help from customer support. Dynamics Power Pages can be used to create and customize a customer self-service portal to meet specific requirements.
By leveraging Dynamics Power Pages, businesses can create a customer self-service portal that offers various features such as:
Knowledge Base
Customers can access the knowledge base to obtain answers to queries, troubleshoot issues, review documentation, and more.
Case Management
Customers can create and manage their own support cases or tickets directly through the portal. They can submit inquiries, report issues, and track the progress of their requests.
Account Management
Customers can view and update their account information, manage subscriptions or services, and access personalized content relevant to their profile.
Order Tracking and History
Customers can track the status of their orders, view their order history, and request returns or exchanges if applicable.
Community Forums
Customers can engage with an online community of other customers to share experiences, ask questions, provide feedback, and gain insights from fellow users.
Businesses can make a beautiful, intuitive self-service portal with Dynamics Power Pages. It'll match their branding and be in line with their customer support strategy. The portal can be integrated with other CRM systems, such as Dynamics 365, to provide seamless data synchronization and enhance the overall customer experience.
Getting Started with Dynamics Power Pages
You'll need to have either a Power Pages subscription or a free trial. You can get access to a free trial here.
You can give your Power Pages site the jump start it needs with one of Microsoft's starter layout templates. Or, if you're feeling particularly adventurous, you can use a scenario-based template to get your site up and running in no time! When it comes to using Power Pages with your Dynamics 365 apps, there's also templates available for environments containing these apps:
- Dynamics 365 Sales
- Dynamics 365 Customer Service
- Dynamics 365 Field Service
- Dynamics 365 Marketing
- Dynamics 365 Project Operations
- Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management
- Dynamics 365 Intelligent Order Management
Power Pages are a simple way to keep in touch with your customers and show them the added value of doing business with you. As you've seen, they're easy to configure and implement! If you're inspired to start a new project or if you think this tool could be useful on your website, contact us to create your own portal.
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September 27, 2023 by Lukas Vézina by Lukas Vézina Marketing Content Specialist
Marketing specialist working at Gestisoft since 2017, I firmly believe any subject can be interestingly presented. It just takes empathic and creative storytelling.
