Web portals: Types and Features

Facebook X Pinterest LinkedIn StumbleUpon

Web applications and web portals are the most widely used kind of online business solutions nowadays, along with online retailers. Their internal architecture and extensive functionality are further distinguishing features. Currently, there is an active process of integrating internal information systems of enterprises with applications that provide interaction with clients and partners, as well as with web applications intended for website visitors, and the number of related Internet projects is growing rapidly. Put another way, a lot of contemporary businesses are currently actively building the infrastructure necessary for them to use the Internet as one of their primary business tools in addition to a communication channel.

So portal development services mean implementing Internet applications that allow a company to provide its customers and employees with up-to-date information, and often direct access to corporate information systems and other business applications, as well as timely processing of information received from them (for example, orders or proposals). For this purpose, portal technologies are often used to allow the integration of existing applications within a single method of accessing them. Currently, there is rapid growth in the market for these technologies and the products that implement them and companies such as Digiteum are emerging that offer portal development and support services.

What is a web portal?

There is no unambiguous definition for web portals. Regarding this term, we can name only approximate distinctive features and features by which a site is assigned the portal level. A web portal is a global and massive site within which smaller virtual projects are collected that work as a single whole.

Types of Internet portals, and their features

Customized (individualized) portals

The volumes of information presented within the portals are colossal. In order to bring at least some order to disparate and almost unstructured materials, large sites implemented a system of filters and individual (customized) settings for users. Accordingly, such Internet portals were called customized.

Over time, data sets continued to grow, and filters could no longer provide the necessary sorting and selection of publications. Even in small thematic niches, users began to see so many articles that it was impossible to understand them. Similarly, the search did not help, because its results took up dozens and dozens of search pages.

Vertical portals

To optimize the operation of web portals, so-called “vertical” working algorithms were introduced, which led to the emergence of “vertical portals” (strictly structured projects).

All these measures were intended to limit the requested information within the boundaries of a specific thematic niche. Thanks to innovations, working with vertical web portals has become easier and more productive, since the user receives data exclusively on the requested topic. If such a structure was combined with customization of the output, the best effect was achieved.

Horizontal portals

Along with the emergence of vertical portals, “horizontal” projects also emerged. All those old global projects that did not introduce structural innovations were classified as horizontal sites. That is, horizontal portals existed before, but only at this stage were they brought under new terminology.

An Internet portal with a horizontal structure, if it had the proper amount of information and developed, became extremely inconvenient to use, but still attracted the target audience. Often such sites won only due to:

massiveness obtained over many years of work;
uniqueness of the available data;
previously acquired authority.

Corporate portals

Platforms of this kind became relevant after the largest commercial companies entered the Internet. If a company had an extensive dealer network, employed a large staff, and provided a wide range of goods or services, its website could turn into a corporate portal.

The corporate platform contained a complete list of information related to the organization’s activities. Moreover, within the framework of such projects, live communication could take place between employees, clients, partners, dealers, and administrators, for which additional tools such as forums, chats, blogs, personal pages, and internal messaging services were specially installed.

Specifics of web portal development

The portal provides the user with the opportunity to use various services that operate within a single Internet project. Their creation does not imply the use of a unified solution. It is often preceded by the creation of one’s system necessary to meet certain needs.

When creating or looking for portal development companies or services, you need to take into account the following properties of the future product:

A significant amount of data with convenient classification and search system;
Modular architecture;
Possibility of simultaneous user authorization on several services;
Access at different levels to subsections and individual components;
Availability of communication services;
Ability to change data by users;
The provided function of continuous improvement.

An effective web portal development strategy is an opportunity to offer the target audience popular, interesting, and relevant services. With their help, you can ensure high traffic, attractiveness, and demand for the resource.

Cost of the web portal

Based on the scale, it is easy to guess that the cost of the portal is very different from the prices of ordinary web projects. For a simple resource to turn into a portal, the webmaster will have to invest considerable financial resources and do a colossal amount of work.

Development of the portal

Since the web portal is called so because it contains large amounts of information and includes additional functions, it can be developed indefinitely. The development of the portal is an endless and systematic procedure, here you cannot do without the help of a professional studio such as Digiteum.

If the owner of the web portal is ready to invest or reinvest money in expanding the project, the site continues to develop and grow. Assistance here is also provided by users who voluntarily fill the web resource with new publications, new comments, notes or reviews, as well as other content.

Conclusion

It is impossible for one person to keep track of the qualitative growth of a web portal, and therefore the administration of such sites always consists of a whole group of specialists. Only the joint activities of people make it possible to maintain control over the development and growth of a global resource, which is a web portal.