If you’ve been on any large company’s website, then there’s a good chance that they have a knowledge base on it. These are basically repositories of information relating to the business and its products or services. For instance, if you buy a pair of headphones from a company, then there’s a good chance all of their service manuals and questions relating to those products are kept in a knowledge base that anyone can search through. 

The point of a knowledge base like this is to provide your audience with plenty of information to help them diagnose and fix problems by themselves. It usually also has frequently asked questions that might relate to your products and services. By having a comprehensive knowledge base on your website can potentially reduce the number of customer support queries while also providing a higher quality of service that is convenient enough for everyone to use. 

So let’s dive a little deeper into knowledge bases and explain a few more reasons why you might want to set one up on your website. 

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One of the best ways to solve simple questions and problems is to point people to a knowledge base, specifically on a page that deals with the issue that they’re having. For instance, if someone calls in with a complaint that their headphones aren’t loud enough, you could create an entry in the knowledge base that explains what the problem is and various other solutions. 

Another good example of using this is on social media. Internet users love to help each other, which is why it’s common for people to link to your knowledge base if they know someone who has a problem. This increases the traffic to your website and improves exposure, both of which are important for growing a business. 

So if you’re currently having a bit of trouble with support and are thinking of hiring more call staff–think again! A knowledge base might take some time to make, but it’s often much cheaper (and in some ways, more effective) than trying to answer simple questions for every other customer. 

Another great way to use your knowledge base is to include a glossary. Glossaries are usually long lists of uncommon terms like jargon and technical words that most regular people wouldn’t understand, but you use them frequently due to your work. There are times when you might let slip some jargon or you might include some technical terms in your instruction manuals or product descriptions. 

So by having a knowledge base of construction glossary terms or computer concepts, you cover all of your bases and you have plenty of knowledge that can simply be searched up and applied to your other products. 

Something like this is especially useful in an industry that seemingly has its own language or vocabulary. Lots of people are put off by businesses that fail to explain concepts clearly, and as a result, they usually won’t work with them because it’s daunting. By making yourself more approachable with something like a knowledge base, your company will not only offer a better level of service but also ease audiences into your industry. 

One of the more interesting uses of a knowledge base is to use it in conjunction with your analytics. In simple terms, this means you’ll be able to see how many people access different pages of your knowledge base. This can then be compiled into a report to show you the most popular pages people visit, or the questions people go to. 

This gives you interesting and valuable insights into your products and services. Imagine one of your products receives 50% more support-related calls than others. You can take a look at all of the knowledge base entries related to that product and then check which support pages are frequented the most. Imagine it’s a page like “How do I turn on product A”, that would indicate that people are struggling to figure out how you turn on the product. This could be a product design flaw, or it could be a lack of clear and concise documentation. Either way, it’s a great indication of why your audience struggles with your products and services. 

Growing your startup or business can be tricky without support, but a knowledge base can provide it around the clock and help you deal with the most common questions. It saves a lot of time, money, and effort no matter how large your company is.