Portal has released several updates that include version 3.0 of the iOS app, new integrations, and improvements to proposals and payments.
Major iOS App Update
The Portal iOS app had fallen out of feature-sync with the company’s web app, which is the downside of producing so many new web features over the past couple of years. The solution has been to completely update the structure of the native iOS app (now version 3.0.0) so that it loads Portal’s mobile web pages. It’s now a hybrid app, which means that every week, when the web app is updated, those features will show up in the iOS app at the same time.
Proposals Updates
- New “Fee” Item Type: In addition to Custom Parts and Labor Items, Portal has added “Fees” as a third item type. Fees are designed for items other than parts and labor, such as Shipping, Travel Charges, or Credit Card Convenience Fees. They are broken out separately in the Financial Summary of the Proposal.
- Convenience Fees Auto-Added: Convenience fees are now automatically included in both the payment request and the proposal financial summary. No more manual edits or mismatched totals.
- Collapsible Areas: You can now quickly minimize areas on the proposal for faster scrolling. It’s a nice way to complete an area and close it (out of sight, out of mind). Proposals with more than 100 items will now load by default with all areas collapsed, resulting in faster load times and quicker navigation.
- AI Proposal Builder Improvements: After you assign “Installation” and “Programming” labor items for AI placeholders, Portal will remember them for next time.
- Page Load Speed Improvements: Portal has made significant optimizations on the front and back end to improve the speed and responsiveness of large proposals.
Payments Updates
- More Control Over Auto-Generated Payment Requests: You can now turn off ACH or Credit Card as payment options on the auto-generated payment request. This is the request that is automatically generated when the customer accepts a proposal.
- Easier to Manually Receive: Portal has made marking a payment received right from the proposal easier. This is for when your customer sends you a check or pays by other means. Previously, you had to create a request, save it for later, and then open it again to receive it, which was a pain.
- Major Design Improvements to Prepare for Invoices: Portal has updated the layout of Payment Requests to feel more like an invoice and has added a new Review & Submit screen that lays out the Payment Request like a clean printable invoice so you can preview everything before sending it.
Latest Integrations:
- QuickBooks Online – Client Search & Import: Portal has expanded its integration with QuickBooks Online to connect to the People module. When searching and adding a client to a proposal, it now searches both your Portal contacts and your QuickBooks contacts. If the client exists in QuickBooks, they are automatically imported into Portal.
- Zoho — New Integration (Beta): Portal has completed a preliminary native Zoho integration, including searching Zoho Contacts and Accounts and importing to Portal, creating Zoho Deals when a Proposal is created, and pushing Proposals to Zoho Books as Quotes. This is currently in a closed Beta, with an Open Beta coming soon.
- Salesforce — New Integration (Beta): Portal has built a native Salesforce integration that allows you to search and import Salesforce Contacts into Portal.
For more information, visit portal.io.
