Below is an example of what the body of a well-set-up Knowledge Base article would look like. For creating a cohesive Knowledge Base, please use this template. You can replace the instructional text with your Knowledge Base content.
In addition to the template below, please make sure that your Knowledge Base article includes:
- Subject: Your title should accurately describe the application and issue being addressed.
- Article Summary: You can expand on your title. What exactly will readers find in this article?
- Tags: Add applicable tags to your article. This will help for searching and CatBot information
- Status and Published: All articles (upon approval) should be published. Approving an article does not automatically publish it and will not make it available to all.
- If the article is still being created, use the "Not Submitted" status.
- Any archived articles will be automatically unpublished. You can put in a ticket to have the article fully removed.
- Next Review Date: Always add a review date! Articles must be reviewed a minimum of once a year.
- Owner: Owners should be groups, not an individual person.
When you are ready to Approve and Publish your article, please delete all of the text above this line.
Quick Links: | Introduction (Anchor to Section Header) | Goal (Anchor to Section Header) | Solution (Anchor to Section Header) |
Introduction (Heading 2 formatting)
This can be an introduction to the application that you are creating this knowledge base article about. This can include details like the importance of the article, who it applies to, and any prerequisites before proceeding with the rest of the steps.
Prerequisites (Heading 3 formatting)
You can break down your Introduction into smaller sections using subheadings to separate bits of information. If this is not needed, please delete this section.
Goal (Heading 2 formatting)
This next section should outline the goal of what you plan to achieve with this Knowledge Base article. This may be error messages, detailed descriptions or symptoms of something that the user is trying to fix, or information about features that a certain application can provide.
Features (Heading 3 formatting)
You can break down your Introduction into smaller sections using subheadings to separate bits of information. If this is not needed, please delete this section.
Solution / How-to (Heading 2 formatting)
This section should be the step-by-step instructions on how to resolve the issue or how to access the application being advertised. Please use minimal photos, as you do not need to highlight each step. If using photos, please make sure Alternative Accessibility Text is included.
- Make sure that you use the numbering formatting in the toolbar, and avoid typing out the numbers of your steps (e.g. Step 1:, or #1:)
- It is also recommended to use bold or italicized text to bring attention to something.
- Adding colored text could be an accessibility issue for some individuals.
- Make sure that you specify how to know that the issue has been resolved and/or the user has gone through the appropriate steps.
Troubleshooting (Heading 3 formatting)
This section should be used for known issues or miscellaneous troubleshooting information. If this is not needed, please delete this section.
Still need help? Add your department's information or a link to a ticket type for further troubleshooting.
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