Salesforce Experience Cloud Portal Setup

Start with One Defined External Experience

We begin by confirming who the portal serves, which tasks external users should complete, which Salesforce records they should see, what support resources should be available, and where internal ownership begins. The setup is organized around one approved customer or partner experience so navigation, permissions, records, cases, Knowledge, and reporting support one clear operating model rather than a collection of disconnected pages.

Build One Experience Cloud Site

One client-provided Salesforce org with active Experience Cloud licenses is configured with one Experience Cloud site using one supported Salesforce template. The initial site framework includes the approved site name, membership settings, publishing structure, and core administrative controls. Additional sites, microsites, regional portals, multi-brand environments, headless experiences, Salesforce CMS programs, and complex ExperienceBundle development remain separate.

Create a Clear Branded Portal Structure

The site receives one focused visual treatment using client-provided logo files, approved colors, fonts, imagery, and brand guidance within the supported capabilities of Experience Builder. Up to eight focused portal pages and one primary navigation menu with up to 10 approved items can be configured. Custom themes, original graphic design, extensive CSS or JavaScript, custom Lightning Web Components, advanced responsive engineering, and full digital-experience redesign are outside this fixed scope.

Connect External Users to the Right Salesforce Records

The included data experience is structured around Account, Contact, Case, Knowledge, Activity visibility where supported, and up to two additional approved Salesforce objects available to the client’s chosen external-user license. Up to 30 approved fields can be exposed or refined across the included record experiences. Object availability, create and edit rights, reporting access, and relationship behavior depend on the active Salesforce edition, Experience Cloud license, permissions, and existing data model.

Design One Controlled Sharing Model

One external record-sharing model is designed and configured using the native mechanism appropriate for the selected license and use case. The scope includes up to four approved sharing-set mappings or up to six straightforward external sharing rules in total, together with focused external organization-wide-default review. Sharing sets, sharing rules, account relationships, share groups, and role-based access are not interchangeable, so the final mechanism is selected according to the external-user license and record relationships available in the client’s org.

Align Roles, Profiles, and Permission Sets

One baseline external-user profile approach and up to five approved permission sets or permission set groups are configured for the included audience. Where the selected Experience Cloud license supports external roles, one focused external account-role structure with up to three role levels can be prepared. Up to 20 named pilot users can be enabled or aligned using client-approved Contact and Account records. Large-scale user provisioning, delegated administration, automated lifecycle management, identity governance, and complex multi-account access remain separate.

Give Users a Practical Record Workspace

Up to four focused record-list, record-detail, or related-record experiences are prepared so authenticated users can find and work with the records approved for the portal. Page visibility, component visibility, field access, action availability, and record access are tested together because displaying a component does not independently grant Salesforce data access. Advanced personalization, large numbers of audience variations, custom search interfaces, data grids, mass actions, and bespoke transaction workflows require separate scope.

Create One Self-Service Case Flow

One focused customer-service flow is configured so authenticated users can submit a case, review permitted case information, and follow the approved service path using native Experience Cloud and Salesforce capabilities. The included flow can use up to 12 approved case fields, one case list experience, one case-detail experience, and one straightforward confirmation or notification approach. Complex intake logic, unauthenticated case submission, entitlement management, milestones, telephony, messaging, bots, Digital Engagement, and custom service integrations remain separate.

Build a Focused Knowledge Experience

Where Salesforce Knowledge is licensed and authoring is enabled, one focused Knowledge experience is prepared with approved navigation, search, article visibility, and up to 15 client-provided articles formatted, loaded, or published. The client remains responsible for source accuracy, legal and compliance approval, article ownership, and ongoing maintenance. Large-scale knowledge migration, multilingual libraries, advanced taxonomy, federated search, AI answers, public help-center strategy, and original content creation are separate.

Configure Login and Basic User Entry

The portal’s standard login, forgot-password, and authenticated entry experience is aligned with the approved brand and user model where supported. One straightforward self-registration or administrator-created-user approach can be configured for the included audience, subject to the client’s security policy and license model. Single sign-on, social login, custom identity providers, passwordless authentication, advanced MFA design, external identity migration, custom registration code, and automated approval processes remain separate.

Make Portal Activity Measurable

Up to eight approved Salesforce reports and one portal-management dashboard with up to six supported components are configured using the data and reporting access available in the client’s org. Reporting can cover external-user adoption, case activity, Knowledge usage, record participation, or another approved operational measure supported by the selected licenses. Experience analytics, CRM Analytics, Data Cloud, custom attribution, third-party web analytics implementation, and cross-platform identity stitching are not included unless separately scoped.

Test, Train, Publish, and Hand Off

We run one controlled test cycle across up to 25 agreed scenarios covering login, user access, navigation, record visibility, sharing, roles where included, case submission, Knowledge, page behavior, reports, and the approved portal journey. One fixed-scope correction round is included when the original requirements remain unchanged. The client receives an Experience Cloud configuration summary, two 60-minute handoff sessions, one supported site publication, and 21 calendar days of launch support. Salesforce and Experience Cloud licenses, login or member usage, Knowledge licenses, additional sites or audiences, custom domains and certificates beyond straightforward supported setup, SSO, Digital Engagement, Experience Cloud add-ons, Salesforce CMS, CRM Analytics, Data Cloud, Agentforce or AI, data migration, custom development, integrations, accessibility certification, penetration testing, legal review, and third-party fees are separate.