Streamline Client Projects with Notion | Client Portal & CRM

Notion is an all-in-one productivity app that allows you to take notes, manage tasks, and get organized using many of its database functionalities. For entrepreneurs and small business owners, it really is the perfect companion for daily business productivity. However, did you know that on top of being an excellent organizer, Notion can also be used as a Client Relationship Management (CRM) tool, a Project Management tool, and a collaborative client portal? In this post, we will explore how you can use Notion to streamline your client project management workflow for an efficient and collaborative experience for both you and your clients.

If you’re more of a visual person and would like to watch me explain this Notion workflow instead, hit play.

Start with a Notion Home Dashboard

To begin creating your Client Management workflow, it’s essential to start with a centralized hub within Notion. This home dashboard acts as a library so you can access all of your information at a glance. I like to create different sections on my home dashboard. For example, I have the following sections created: Action Dashboard, Goals & Review, Content Creation, Fun & Exercise, Learning & Growing, and Business Workspace. You may organize your dashboard differently, so think about what aspects of your life and business you’d like to create sections for. Under each section, you can create separate pages that fall under the appropriate section. For example, I may create a page to organize all my YouTube video scripts under my Content Creation section.

You can download my free Notion Home Dashboard template here.

Create a Notion Client Database (CRM)

Maintaining an organized client database that houses all of the information regarding your past, current and future clients is key to excellent client experience. Notion’s flexibility allows you to create a dynamic and customized client database tailored to your business’s specific needs. Capture and organize key client details including contact information, timezone, how they found you, what packages they booked, and all the fine details you’ve learned about them over time. This centralized repository enables seamless client communication, relationship management, and a personalized white-glove client experience that can elevate the value your business provides.

First, create a page called Client Database under the Business Section of your Home Dashboard. Within your Client Database page, add a Table View database and start adding properties that you’d like to capture about your clients. For me, I like to note down the Year that they reached out, the date of the first Discovery call, the Status of the client, the packages that they’ve booked, How they found me, What country they are from, and the timezone that they live in. Within the property, I also like to write all the notes from the discovery call and copy and paste the information I captured from their contact form submission.

Create a Projects Database on Notion

Tracking project-specific details can be challenging without a centralized system. By leveraging Notion‘s features, you can create a project database to store all essential project information in one place. For me, I create a project database to store any internal project information that’s for me and my team’s eyes only. Later, we will create a separate sub-page for collaboration with our clients as well.

First, create a new page called Projects Database under your Business section. Within your new page, we will again create a new Table View database and start creating properties that you want to capture for your projects. For me this includes Project Name, Status, Priority, Time zone, and Next steps. And then within the sub-page, I like to store more detailed information about the project like the Project Scope, Expenses, and other relevant information as the project goes on.

Create a Custom Client Portal on Notion

Next, let’s create a client portal that serves as a dedicated space to collaborate with your clients throughout the project lifecycle. Share project-specific information, documents/images, progress updates, deliverables & feedback, and even house communication all in this one space. Not only does this streamline your work so everything can be accessed and organized in one centralized location, but it also helps your clients feel more involved in the process leading to better results and happier clients.

Within the project that you’ve already created for the client on Notion, I like to create a Client Portal sub-page that will be eventually shared with the client as a collaborator. In the client portal, I like to create sections for general project information, a welcome video, a resources section, a gallery view database for each step of project delivery & feedback, and also another database with all the project timelines listed out.

Incorporating Notion into your client project management workflow can uplevel the way you organize, communicate, and collaborate with your clients. By creating your custom home dashboard, client database, projects database, and dedicated client portal on Notion, you can streamline processes, improve efficiency, and deliver an exceptional client experience.

Now I know Notion can be a little overwhelming sometimes, especially since we typically start with a blank page. However, this client management process has worked so well for me in the past 2 years that I think every creative entrepreneur should consider it as an option for their business. So I took everything I learned from using this exact process with my clients and put it into a course called ClientHQ to help you learn and adopt the process for your business in a day. The best part? All my Notion templates for every part of this process are included so you don’t have to start from that daunting blank page.