![]() However, it requires more effort - and cost - to restructure information into short, single-topic KB articles, and the previous documentation structure worked fine on paper, so it should work fine online, too, right?Īctually, no. The unified document structure that might work on paper or in PDF doesn’t really work online. Recently, a Client looked at the ongoing KB maintenance effort and wondered if it wouldn’t be faster, easier, and cheaper to maintain a few long, comprehensive articles - similar to traditional user guides - rather than the hundreds of shorter, single-topic articles that existed in their KB. The Client’s KB is a public website designed to help its customers solve their own problems and to help the Client’s customer support agents assist customers. It’s a key component of the overall Client customer support strategy. KB users are usually trying to solve a problem and are likely to be anxious and frustrated, more so if they cannot quickly find answers.Īs such, its primary design consideration must be user needs and their experience: Why do users come to the KB and how are they likely to feel when they arrive? The KB should do everything possible to relieve - or at least not intensify - those emotions. That means it must present the right information to the right users in the most effective, efficient, and usable form. Users Prefer Short ArticlesĮxtensive web usability research shows a clear conclusion: people prefer to read short articles. Simple articles help readers find and retrieve the information they need quickly and easily: We’ll call these focused articles “simple” articles and call articles that cover multiple topics “complex.” Therefore, to the extent possible, each KB article should cover a single, discrete topic. ![]() Users read only about 25% of the text on a web page.They scan and skim until they either find the information to solve their problem and read it, or they give up and call customer support. Simple articles cater to user attention spans. ![]()
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