Cheryl Porcelijn runs Webdesign Mastery, a six-month coaching programme teaching web designers her 'Master Method' - a streamlined approach to project management for solo web designers. Each student gets their own private portal as a companion to the programme.
Less course platform, more resource hub
Cheryl's student portals aren't trying to replace a course platform. There are no video lessons hosted inside, no community forum, no progress tracking. Instead, each student gets a personal resource hub where everything related to their coaching is kept in one place:
- Guides and PDF resources
- Questionnaires and templates
- Session recordings
- Bonus materials
- Important documents - contracts and invoices
The alternative was files scattered across emails and shared drives. This is tidier.
How the coaching portal is structured
The portal follows the MASTER method Cheryl teaches, so the sections mirror the programme itself. Translated from Dutch:
Discuss
- Intake and welcome materials
- How to use the portal
- Meeting scheduling
Research
- Research guide
- Questionnaires for projects
- Templates
Design
- Design concepts
- Feedback rounds
- Style guide materials
Build
- Development resources
- Feedback rounds
Launch
- Delivery processes
- Client offboarding
Grow
- Business growth materials
Learn
- Additional learning resources
Bonus ideas and more
- Bootstrap resources
- Additional templates
Important documents
- Contracts
- Invoices
- Project agreements
Controlling what students can access and when
Cheryl uses the inactive status to drip content through the programme rather than making everything available on day one.
“The first module is always available from day one. Everything else is inactive and gets activated month by month. That way students aren't getting overwhelmed before they've even started.”
Students can see what's coming - the module titles are visible - but they can't access the content until Cheryl activates it. It creates a sense of progression, and it means nobody gets six months of material dropped on them in week one.
A note on the inactive status
This is a simple but useful application of a feature that's often overlooked. The inactive status isn't just for 'coming soon' content - it's a straightforward way to pace a programme without needing any automation or third-party tools.
Is Client Portal right for your course?
Client Portal isn't the course. It's the hub. For Cheryl, the teaching happens through calls and other materials - the portal is just where everything lives.
Whether it's the right fit depends on what you need:
| Client Portal works well when... | Consider a dedicated platform when... |
|---|---|
| ✅ Your course is small and fairly linear | ❌ You need to host video directly on the platform |
| ✅ You're happy embedding video from YouTube or Vimeo | ❌ Progress tracking or certificates matter to your students |
| ✅ You're running one-to-one or small cohort coaching | ❌ You're managing a large number of students |
| ✅ You want a hub for worksheets, templates, and resource links | ❌ Community features are central to the experience |
| ✅ You want a companion resource hub alongside a course you run elsewhere | ❌ You need built-in learner management tools |
If you're running something small and linear, or want a clean resource hub to sit alongside your existing course, it's worth a look. If you need progress tracking, certificates, or a built-in community, you'll probably want a dedicated platform - and that's fine.
Why not a dedicated course platform?
Cheryl looked at platforms like Teachable and Thinkific and decided they weren't the right fit.
“Those are too big and complicated for me. Client Portal is far easier to use. It's more intuitive and there is no room for error. My courses are solely one to one. Other platforms have communities and stuff in them that I'm not using.”
Dedicated course platforms are built for scale - lots of students, community features, progress tracking, certificates. If you're running one-to-one coaching or small cohorts, most of that is just overhead. Client Portal does less, which is exactly why it works for this use case.
A side effect worth mentioning
Cheryl teaches her students about Client Portal as part of the curriculum itself. They experience it as users first, then learn to set it up for their own clients.The result: several students have ended up buying Client Portal for their own businesses after seeing it in action.
“Four of my Mastery members have bought Client Portal for their own businesses during their time in my programme.”
That's not a marketing outcome Cheryl was specifically aiming for. It's just what happens when people find something that works.
Want to see a online course portal for yourself?
Have a click around our example online course portal, or download the template and import it into Client Portal to get started.
Cheryl Porcelijn is the founder of Webdesign Mastery and host of De Podcast voor Webdesigners.
