The good news first: You've already invested in Dynamics 365 – your customer data, service cases, orders are structured in Dataverse. Building a customer portal on top is no longer a 6-month odyssey, but an 8-12 week sprint.
Microsoft provides ready-made Power Pages templates specifically developed for Dynamics 365. These templates aren't demos – they're production-ready portals running in hundreds of companies worldwide.
1. Which Ready-Made Templates Does Microsoft Offer?
📦 Power Pages Templates for Dynamics 365 Overview
🎫 Customer Service Portal
For: Dynamics 365 Customer Service
Features: Customers create support tickets (cases), upload attachments, track processing status,
search the knowledge base, chat with service agents
Ideal for: B2B companies with high support volume
🤝 Partner Portal
For: Dynamics 365 Sales
Features: Sales partners see their leads and opportunities, register new deals,
access marketing materials, track their commissions
Ideal for: Companies with dealer or sales partner networks
🛒 Customer Self-Service Portal
For: Dynamics 365 Sales + Customer Service
Features: Customers see order status, download invoices, update master data,
manage subscriptions
Ideal for: E-commerce, SaaS, subscription models
🔧 Field Service Portal
For: Dynamics 365 Field Service
Features: Customers book service appointments, see technician location in real-time,
receive service reports, manage maintenance contracts
Ideal for: Machinery manufacturers, facility management, technical service
Documentation: All templates are fully documented on Microsoft Learn .
2. Single Source of Truth: Seamless Data Integration Without APIs
The killer feature of Power Pages: they access Dataverse directly – the database that Dynamics 365 also uses. This means:
✅ No Duplicate Maintenance, No Sync Problems
-
→ Customer updates their address in the portal:
Change is immediately visible in Dynamics 365 – your sales team works with current data -
→ Service agent closes a case in Dynamics 365:
Customer sees "Resolved" status in the portal – in real-time -
→ New order is created in Dynamics 365 Sales:
Customer can track order status in the portal – without CSV export or middleware -
→ Technician records service reports in Field Service:
Customer sees report including photos in the portal – automatically
💡 Practical Example: Machinery Manufacturer
A German machinery company uses Dynamics 365 Field Service for maintenance. With the Field Service Portal customers can:
- • Book maintenance appointments online (instead of calling the sales office)
- • Check spare part availability and order
- • Track technician arrival live
- • View service reports including checklists
Result: 40% fewer calls to the service centre, 25% higher customer satisfaction, implementation in 8-12 weeks.
3. Time and Cost Comparison: Template vs Custom
⏱️ Effort Comparison
| Phase | ❌ Custom Development | ✅ Power Pages Template |
|---|---|---|
| Data Model | 8-12 Weeks | ✓ Available (Dataverse) |
| Backend API | 6-8 Weeks | ✓ Available (Dataverse API) |
| Authentication | 3-4 Weeks | ✓ Available (Entra ID / External ID) |
| UI/UX Design | 8-12 Weeks | 1-2 Weeks (Branding Customisation) |
| Frontend Development | 8-12 Weeks | 2-3 Weeks (Template Customisation) |
| Testing & QA | 3-4 Weeks | 1 Week |
| Total | 28-40 Weeks (6-9 Months) | 4-6 Weeks |
💰 Cost Comparison
Custom Development
- • Project costs: €120,000-180,000
- • Licence costs: variable
- • Maintenance/year: €20,000-30,000
- Total Year 1: ~€170,000
Power Pages Template
- • Project costs: €60,000-90,000
- • Power Pages licences/year: ~€12,000
- • Maintenance/year: €5,000-8,000
- Total Year 1: ~€87,000
*Example calculation for 50 authenticated users. Exact costs depend on requirements and scope of customisation.
4. Typical Use Cases from Practice
🏭 B2B Wholesale with Recurring Orders
Initial Situation: Customers call daily to enquire about order status. Sales office spends 3 hours/day with status updates instead of new business.
Solution: Customer Self-Service Portal with Dynamics 365 Sales integration. Customers see order status in real-time, can trigger reorders with one click, download delivery notes.
→ Result: 60% fewer calls, sales office focuses on upselling
🤝 Dealer Network with 200+ Sales Partners
Initial Situation: Sales partners receive leads via email, commission statements are manually created in Excel, marketing materials are sent via WeTransfer.
Solution: Partner Portal with Dynamics 365 Sales integration. Partners see their leads, register deals themselves, download marketing assets, check commissions.
→ Result: 80% faster lead processing, transparent commissions, 50% less admin overhead
🎫 SaaS Company with 1000+ B2B Customers
Initial Situation: Support team answers the same questions 30 times a day. No central knowledge base. Ticket status is communicated via email.
Solution: Customer Service Portal with Dynamics 365 Customer Service integration. Customers create tickets in the portal, search knowledge base, see ticket history, chat with bots.
→ Result: 40% ticket reduction through self-service, 25% higher CSAT score
5. Your Roadmap: From Dynamics 365 to Portal in 6 Weeks
📅 Typical Project Flow
Week 1: Workshop & Template Selection
Requirements analysis, template demo, decision for Customer Service / Partner / Self-Service Portal
Weeks 2-3: Configuration & Permissions
Define web roles, set table permissions, release Dataverse entities, configure authentication
Week 4: Branding & Customisations
Adapt corporate design, create custom pages, set up workflows, customise email templates
Week 5: Testing & Training
User acceptance testing, train your users, create documentation
Week 6: Go-Live & Hyper-Care
Go-live, monitoring, support in the first days after launch
Conclusion: Your Dynamics 365 Investment Pays Off Twice
If you're already using Dynamics 365, a customer portal is no longer "nice to have" – it's the logical consequence of your CRM strategy. Microsoft delivers the templates, your data is already structured, the integration is native.
🎯 Check Your Portal Potential Now
In a free initial call, I'll analyse your Dynamics 365 environment and show you specifically which template fits, what customisations are needed and what the ROI looks like.
Book Dynamics 365 Portal Analysis Now (Free)
Tino Rabe
Microsoft MVP for Power Pages
I've implemented dozens of Dynamics 365 portals – from small partner portals with 20 users to international service portals with 5,000+ customers. The templates are the fastest way to the goal when you know how to customise them properly.
→ Book Free Initial Call