Showing posts with label technical writing. Customer support documents. Show all posts
Showing posts with label technical writing. Customer support documents. Show all posts

Friday, 28 June 2013

What to look for in a good knowledge base article.


Continuing the theme of knowledge base articles here are some hints to build a great knowledge base article.

What are the conditions that lead to the event described ?
What are the conditions exclude the event described ?

Build a compelling article by showing the
  •             The evidence needed to identify the issue
  •             What you see in that evidence,
  •             What you understand from that evidence
  •             What you recommend in this situation
  •             What does a successful outcome look like ?
  •             What reference material should you refer to.

When reviewing the document before publication
  •            Does the document read as fact or opinion ?
  •            Does the document standalone or does it need to be linked to other information.
  •            To what versions does the issue and fix apply.
  •            What impact will this have on the customer, product or company. 
  •            What is the best route of distribution, Customer alert, Urgent posting on Social media, update into company support forums, alert to customer facing teams etc.

Cue the shared knowledge picture :