Are you tired of constantly searching for answers to the same questions from your customers? Do you want to improve your customer support and create a seamless experience for your users? Look no further! In this ultimate guide, we will walk you through the process of developing a knowledge management system that will revolutionize the way you handle knowledge within your organization.
1. Source the information and data for your knowledge management system.
The key to building an effective knowledge management system is knowing what knowledge to document. Here are some effective methods to determine the common problems, issues, and questions people have:
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Sift through your support ticket system. Analyze the most common questions being asked and focus on providing answers to these frequently asked questions.
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Talk with your team about what issues come up frequently. Gather input from your support team to identify common issues and prioritize them in your knowledge management system.
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Use Google Analytics to find what people are commonly searching for on your site. Take advantage of the site search feature in Google Analytics to identify popular search terms and provide relevant content to address these queries.
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Use social listening and social tools to discover what customers are saying about your company. Monitor social media platforms to gain insights into customer feedback and address any issues or concerns in your knowledge management system.
2. Organize your knowledge management system.
Now that you have sourced the information for your knowledge management system, it’s time to organize it effectively. Here are some best practices to consider:
- Chunk articles into a set amount of topic categories (4-6 categories) for easy navigation.
- Highlight the most frequently-accessed elements on the homepage, such as popular articles and a search bar.
- Include internal links within article content to other helpful and related resources, videos, and trainings to enhance the user experience and improve SEO.
- Provide a sidebar linking to supplementary resources like chat, community, and courses.
- Incorporate a feedback mechanism to measure the response to articles and gather insights for further improvement.
- Utilize a variety of media types, including videos, images, and text to accommodate different learning styles.
The structure of your knowledge management system should align with your customers’ expectations, ensuring a seamless and satisfactory experience.
What you choose to include in your knowledge management system depends on your users’ goals. Take inspiration from other successful knowledge management systems and adapt their strategies to your own needs. While hiring an information architect would be ideal, you can follow these steps to create an effective system without the need for additional resources.
3. Analyze and optimize your knowledge management system.
Managing an information or knowledge management system requires tracking metrics to determine its success. However, the process is different from measuring a landing page’s performance. Here are some tips to effectively analyze and optimize your knowledge management system:
- Have discussions within your organization to define your goals and identify meaningful metrics to track.
- Consider using satisfaction surveys or metrics like bounce rate and time on page as indicators of success.
- Implement a binary feedback form at the end of each article to gather direct feedback on its effectiveness.
- Utilize the collected data to identify areas for improvement and optimize articles with better information.
By continuously analyzing and refining your knowledge management system, you can ensure that it remains relevant and valuable to your users.
4. Continually update your knowledge management system.
Operating a knowledge management system is an ongoing process. As support trends and issues arise, it’s crucial to stay proactive and keep your system up to date. Here are some strategies to consider:
- Add a feedback form where users can ask questions that are not addressed in the existing content.
- Invest in self-serve service and proactive support measures to empower your users and reduce support costs.
- Keep a close eye on questions from your support team, search queries on your website, and any bottlenecks within your product or website.
- Continuously update and expand your knowledge management system to ensure it meets the evolving needs of your users.
Managing a knowledge management system requires effort and dedication, but the returns in terms of happier customers, increased revenues, and reduced support costs make it a worthwhile investment.
Ready to revolutionize your customer support? Start building your knowledge management system today and leave behind the days of repetitive questions and scattered information!