14 Tips to Build a Knowledge Base that Works
Tips to build the best knowledge base quickly! Whether it is customer facing or internal to your staff layout a blueprint for a short term and long term strategy. Building a knowledge base sounds complex, but do not to worry.
Knowledge Base Tips
To make the best use of your knowledge base, here are a few tips to think about:
1. Create a template for writing articles, so that all the pertinent information is captured and listed in a format that is consistent and easy to follow. Understand that the template as well as the information will change. The key is to get started right away.
2. Make the effort to work the heavy hitters first. The articles that will give you the biggest bang for the buck establish quickly. If your staff constantly fumbles over certain procedures, dumb those tasks down until you see a better understanding of what needs to be done.
3. Write articles by running through the procedure involved, taking screenshots to demonstrate the description. Make sure that the article is clear and not too long and that the illustrations are relevant. It might be important to acknowledge the source of both the problem and the fix, in case further research becomes necessary at a later date. Separate your Quick Reference Guides, Frequently Asked Questions, from your Standard of Procedures documents.
4. When you learn something fresh and new, write it down. If mistakes are being made based on unreliable documentation or just not having any reference documents, write it down. Any and everything helps such as, error codes, symptoms, why it happened, what is the workaround. Simplify your thoughts to write a document so everyone understands.
5. A folder on a share will do initially until you can have a database created or usage of SharePoint would be awesome. Make the database searchable. The document description field should contain key information like the error message, the application it occurs in, and any useful extras you can think of at the time.
6. Make sure you let the technicians or the individuals using the documents evaluate what was written. A fresh pair of eyes will notice things you missed. When posted, the article should bear the name of the writer and the date it was posted.
7. Check that the article doesn’t already exist in a different form or under a folder that not easily visible. A knowledge base can start bursting at the seams with replicas if you aren’t watchful. Combine duplicate information and send an informational notice out of the changes that were made.
8. Continual service improvement is all about looking for errors and updating information. Find the time monthly or quarterly to evaluate your knowledge base. Anyone should be able to submit an article, but it should then go to another person for review, editing, and testing before posting to the live knowledge base.
9. Trusting spell check can create errors and problems with the understanding of an article. Make sure that everything is spelled correctly. Consistency is extremely important. If you have a technical writer who can manage the formatting of articles as well as provide advice on the structure of the database you will move forward quickly.
10. Creating PDF versions of everything within your knowledge base is important. What you want to do is have versions that can be edited by technical staff members and versions that are used for editing only. Editable versions should not be visible to the general staff.
11. Communication is the key to ensuring your staff knows that new articles are being posted on a regular basis. When you post a new article, make sure that the rest of the team knows about it through email broadcast or during meetings.
12. Frequently Asked Questions facing the customer allows for the customer to research on their own about the product, process, people, or technology involved. This cuts down on emails and phone calls when the staff could be working something else.
13. Customer facing versus internal knowledge bases are both good options. Having both databases sets your organization up for success. Think about it, when is too much information a poor idea as long as it’s written correctly in layman’s terms. Make your customers smile. with quality information.
14. Evaluate the effectiveness of the knowledge base. Are the staff members using the articles for success? Your operations should run smoother with less errors and complications.
New employees will be able to grow faster than the current staff because of your new knowledge base. It doesn’t matter how long it takes for the knowledge base to be effective because the key is to get started as soon as possible. Your knowledge base will never be finished, this is good because work environments will constantly change. The staffing will change, equipment will change, and technology will change. With all the changes over time action items for new articles will emerge. Furthermore, those organizations that optimize their online knowledge bases and search capabilities will quickly distinguish themselves from the competition. Beat the competition!
Mr. MakingUsmile
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