Searchable Knowledge Base in WordPress

How To Make a Searchable Knowledge Base in WordPress (The Easy Way)

Are you looking to empower your website with an incredible feature that enhances user experience and saves them and you precious time? Today, we’re delving into creating a “Searchable Knowledge Base,” The best part is that the only cost to you is a little time. Yes, you heard it right.

In this guide, we’ll explore the art of building a seamless and user-friendly searchable knowledge base on your WordPress site the easy way. Whether you’re a pro or just starting your digital journey, we’ve got your back.

Let’s get started!

What Is a Searchable Knowledge Base?

A Searchable Knowledge Base is the type of knowledge base that provides advanced search and browsing options. It includes robust search functionality, allowing users to enter keywords, phrases, or questions to find relevant information.

Think of a searchable knowledge base as a mini Google hosted on a particular website. It’s like having your spot to search and discover answers to all kinds of questions you might have about the products they offer. Just type in your query, and you’ll find the info you’re looking for!

Why Should You Make Your Knowledge Base Searchable?

Make Your Knowledge Base Searchable

Adding search functionality to your knowledge base saves your users tons of time. But that’s not only the prominent benefit! Below, I have listed some other advantages that help you understand why you should make your knowledge base searchable:

☑️ Enhanced Customer Experience: A searchable knowledge base makes it easier for your customers to find answers and resolve issues on their terms without waiting for support, leading to fewer frustrations and a smoother experience.

☑️ Time and Cost Efficiency for Businesses: A Searchable Knowledge Base reduces the need for repetitive inquiries, freeing the support teams to focus on more complex issues. As fewer resources are required to handle routine queries, businesses can save money and time.

☑️ Reduced Support Load & Increasing Support Team Efficiency: You get the power to decrease incoming support requests by providing self-service options through a searchable knowledge base. This enables your support teams to provide more customized assistance and focus on intricate problems, ultimately increasing their effectiveness.

How to Make a Searchable Knowledge Base in WordPress?

We have learned what a searchable knowledge base is and how it can benefit your support team and customers.

Now we are coming to the main question: how to make searchable knowledge in WordPress. We will take help from a WordPress plugin, but choosing one plugin from hundreds of options is always challenging! Uggh…

Well, we’ve done the research & work for you; say hello to the best solution available in the market: KB Support! 🙌🏻

KB Support: One-Stop Solution for Creating a Searchable Knowledge Base in WordPress

KB Support is an effective helpdesk and support plugin for WordPress. Including all the incredible help desk features; KB Support comes with a built-in KB Article feature that lets you create a fully functional knowledge base on your website.

kb support wordpess helpdesk plugin

Imagine all features combined into one plugin, help desk features, + knowledge base functionality! Great deal!

And the best part is you get all the essential features in the FREE version of KB Support. For advanced functionalities like 3rd party email integration, WooCommerce integration, and integration with your existing knowledge base solution, you need to shop for additional extensions.

Speaking of KB Support’s built-in KB Articles feature, you get all the options that you would expect in a web-based knowledge base tool. You can create custom kb articles, add FAQ pages, add access restrictions to articles, or assign custom tags & categories.

Further, you can add a search form for KB articles on any page of your WordPress website, making it easy for users to search through the help docs/articles you’ve published.

Installing and Activating the KB Support Plugin

Now that you’ve learned about the KB Support plugin, let’s see how to create a searchable knowledge base in WordPress.

If you’re an experienced WordPress user, you know what our first step will be.

You’re right; we’ll start by installing and activating the KB Support on your WordPress website.

You can install and activate the WordPress plugin through 2 methods:

Let’s install and activate KB Support directly from your WordPress site. Head over to your admin dashboard and click Plugins >> Add New.

This will redirect you to the plugin’s page. Search for the “kb support” in the search bar, and as soon as the plugin appears, hit the Install and then Activate button.

add kb support plugin

The complete plugin installation process will hardly take 60 seconds, and just the moment the process completes, new menu options, Tickets, and KB Articles appear on your dashboard.

These options help you ensure that KB Support is successfully activated on your website.

options of kb support

Understanding KB Support’s Settings and Configurations

Before you dive into the exciting world of creating searchable knowledge-base articles, let’s get familiar with the essential Settings and Configurations of KB Support.

The new options, Tickets, and KB Articles are self-explanatory.

“Tickets” is your go-to for managing all things ticket-related, including all other additional settings, and the option “KB Articles” is your toolkit for creating and handling knowledge-based articles.

Head to the Tickets section and click Settings to configure the search-related features.

kb support settings

On the Settings page, you’ll see many tab options. Go to the tab named KB Articles.

kb articles interface

You’ll see a new page with a list of options. We love to call it the General KB Article Settings page.

kb supports general setting options

These options might seem overwhelming, but there is no need to stress! I’ll walk you through each option. We’ll dive deep into what they do and how they help you build a fantastic searchable knowledge base.

  • Disable KB Articles and Categories: This option lets you turn off the functionality related to KB Articles and Categories within the plugin.
  • Restrict KB Articles: When enabled, this option restricts access to KB Articles, requiring your users to meet specific criteria (e.g., logged-in status) before they can view the content of the knowledge base articles. You can also change the restriction option on a per-article basis.
  • Show Register / Login Form?: If any site visitor tries to access a restricted KB Article, this option lets you decide whether to display login and registration forms and ask them, “Hey, you’re not on the guest list. Wanna join?” If you turn this on, it shows a login or registration form to non-logged-in users.
  • Hide Restricted KB Articles: Enabling this option hides restricted articles from the archives when users who haven’t logged in visit a particular page (like a kb articles archive); it prevents the display of any restricted articles.
  • Restricted Ajax Search: This option puts an extra layer of invisibility for search results. When users search for something, this option ensures that any restricted articles won’t appear in the search results for non-logged-in users.
  • Number of Results from Ajax: This option lets you decide how many KB Articles are displayed in the search results to users.
  • Search Excerpt Length: When users search and receive results, this option controls the extent to which the article is revealed. It’s like showing a preview of the article—short and sweet or a bit longer!
  • Count Agent Views?: Enabling this option allows the system to track how often support agents view a KB Article. It keeps track of how many times the agents look at these articles.
  • Show Views on Dashboard: When you enable this option, it displays how many times each KB Article has been viewed. It’s like a badge of honor for the most popular articles.

Remember to click the Save Changes button once you go through all the settings options and choose your preferences.

Before tweaking these settings, create your knowledge base, including all the necessary articles and documentation guides.

Let’s start with creating categories and relevant tags for your knowledge base.

Creating Categories and Tags for Your Searchable Knowledge Base

Categories is the general term that I am sure you’ve already heard of.

Grouping of similar items in a particular format is known as categorization. The same way, in WordPress, we can create categories for our blog posts and pages.

Adding separate categories for the knowledge base is also essential. Imagine visiting a site and discovering hundreds of documents published on a page without organization. And then, you spend hours navigating through docs to find the answer to your query. Time-consuming and frustrating for users.

Organizing articles into categories makes things much easier to find.

Tags, on the other hand, are like little sticky notes. They highlight specific details within an article. Let’s say you have an article about “Google reCAPTCHA.” You could tag it with “google,” “recaptcha,” “captcha,” “field,” and more.

When you assign categories and tags correctly, you ensure the correct info gets to the right people.

Say, for instance, you’re looking for “How to add a Google reCAPTCHA field.” If the article is present under the “Google reCAPTCHA” category and tagged with ”captcha” or “google,” the system knows exactly which article to fetch in the search results.

Using the KB Support plugin, let’s add categories and tags to your knowledge base.

To add Categories, head to your admin dashboard and click KB Articles >> Categories. This will redirect you to a page where you can add your categories.

On the page, you’ll need to define:

add new categories for searchable knowledge base
  • Name: You need to add the kb article’s category name here. Let’s say you plan to put up articles or docs related to shortcodes and make a category called “Shortcodes.”
  • Slug: I suggest you leave this option blank, as the system will make a slug based on the category name. But if you want a custom slug different from the category name, you can add one, too!
  • Parent KB Article Category: This option helps you properly organize your articles. You can make a family tree or hierarchy of your kb articles using the Parent Category option.
  • Description: This is where you give a quick intro about what your article’s all about. Keep it short and sweet!

Once you’ve sorted everything, hit the “Add New KB Article Category” button, and your fresh category will pop up on the right side of the page!

Next, we need to add Tags for your knowledge base.

Clicking on the Tags option on the left under KB Articles will take you to the tag creation page.

Add a Tag Name, a Slug (or let it auto-generate from the name), and toss in a quick Short Description.

Once done, hit that “Add New KB Article Tag” button.

add new tags

Perfect! The exact process you need to follow to create other categories and tags for your knowledge base.

Once you add all the categories and tags, it’s time to build those awesome knowledge-base articles.

Add New KB Articles

To create a new KB article, in your WordPress Dashboard, under the KB Articles option, press “New KB Article.”

add new kb article

Next, you’ll be directed to the KB article creation page. You’ll see a similar interface to the WordPress Posts creation page.

Adding KB Title and Description

The first step in creating an educative, informative, and helpful knowledge-base article is to add a well-defined Title and detailed query Description.

Define your article title in the “Enter KB Article title here” section, then add content about the query.

add new knowledge base article

A detailed and well-written help guide is the building block of your support system. Here are some quick tips that will help you curate comprehensive knowledge-base articles for your users:

  1. Keep your help articles clear, concise, and to the point. Avoid heavy technical terms and use plain language to make content understandable.
  2. Refrain from throwing information in front of your users. Organize your articles with a clear structure. Use headings, subheadings, bullets, and points to break down complex topics into manageable sections.
  3. Include relevant keywords in your articles to make them easily searchable.
  4. Add screenshots, pictures, GIFS, etc. Make your articles more interactive by adding multimedia content.
  5. Include internal links to other relevant articles within your knowledge base. This helps users navigate between related topics and find additional information that could be valuable to them.
  6. Look for common questions and issues that users might encounter. Create a FAQ page/section or a troubleshooting guide to address these concerns.

Assigning Categories and Tags to Your Knowledge Base

Once you add content, jump to the page’s right side and scroll down until you see the Categories section.

Check the appropriate category and add a tag.

assigning categories and tags to knowledge base

Publishing Your KB Articles

After adding content, double-check all the settings, and if everything seems good, click the “Publish” button at the top right corner of the page.

publishing your kb articles

You can also view your recently published KB Article by clicking the View KB Article button.

view kb article

This is how you can create your help docs/knowledge base articles/support articles using KB Support.

Embedding All the KB Articles on a Single Web Page

We have created single help articles. Now, we need to display all the articles on a single web page for easy navigation.

KB Support offers a simple shortcode that embeds all your KB Articles on a single page. To do that, first, create a new page on your WordPress website.

On your dashboard, click Pages >> Add new.

After creating a new page, define its name, add the Shortcode block, and paste this shortcode:

[kbs_articles]
searchable knowledge base

Publish your page, click the View Page button, and it’ll display a list of all your published KB articles.

preview of knowledge base articles

As you can see in the above image, all the articles are presented in a straightforward list format. There’s no search bar at the top.

Imagine your users or support engineers looking for one particular article; they must navigate the options list. This, indeed, is a time-consuming process.

The best way to save time and enhance navigation is to make your knowledge base searchable.

Making the Knowledge Base Searchable

To make your knowledge base searchable, KB Support provides an exclusive shortcode. You can add this search shortcode to any page and let your visitors or support executives effortlessly search through all the KB Articles you’ve got!

Open the page where you want to display the search form. Add the shortcode block and paste this shortcode:

[kbs_search]
make your knowledge base searchable

And this is how KB Support’s search function works:

As you can see, creating a searchable knowledge base in WordPress using KB Support is as easy as a b c….

It’s a 4 step process; let me give you a quick revision:

  • Step 1: Install and activate KB Support
  • Step 2: Create categories & tags
  • Step 3: Add Your KB Article
  • Step 4: Add the shortcode

And you get everything worked without spending a single penny! Isn’t it awesome? All the powerful features are FREE of cost.

Yet, if you want more advanced features and integration options, you can check KB Support’s Paid extensions list.

Wrapping Up…

We hope you’ve enjoyed our tutorial on creating a WordPress-searchable knowledge base using KB Support.

With this step-by-step guide we’ve walked through, you’ve learned how to structure your content, add tags and categories, and even implement powerful search functionality. Also, remember, the keys to a thriving knowledge base are organization, user-friendliness, and, of course, making it easy for your readers to find what they need.

The Ultimate Guide to Creating an Effective FAQ Page on Your WordPress Website

Hey there! Are you thinking about adding a FAQ page to your WordPress website? You’re in for a treat! 🌟

Imagine cutting down on support work and giving your potential customers a fantastic experience all in one go. That’s what a killer FAQ section/page can do for your online business.

So, if you’re ready to rock your site and take your online presence to a new level, get excited, as this ultimate guide got you covered. We’ll show you how to create an effective FAQ page on your WordPress website with our incredible KB Support plugin.

Buckle up, and let’s dive in!

What is a FAQ Page?

A FAQ page (Frequently Asked Questions) is an individual page on a website that gathers and answers the most common questions people have about a particular topic related to your product or services. It’s like having a cheat sheet that saves you time and energy by giving answers to the most common queries people usually have.

Instead of repeatedly answering common questions or searching everywhere for answers, you can neatly organize all your FAQs on a single page and quickly find them as needed.

The Superpowers of FAQ Page: Why Your Website Needs One 🤔

Having a Frequently Asked Questions page (FAQ) can work wonders! Want to know why? Well, let me tell you some key points about why having a separate FAQ page is such a great idea:

what is a faq page
  • Enhancing customer satisfaction: Picture this – your customers have questions, and you have answers right at your fingertips! With an FAQ page, you’ll be sprinkling some customer satisfaction stardust. They’ll be thrilled to find quick and easy solutions, which will surely put a big smile on their faces. Who doesn’t love happy customers?
  • Streamlining support workload: Are you tired of dealing with tons of repetitive support requests? By having a well-crafted FAQ section, you can address common questions and concerns upfront. As customers find answers independently, the number of support requests decreases, freeing up your support team’s time to handle more complex issues and provide personalized assistance when needed.
  • Boosting website engagement: An engaging FAQ page can keep visitors on your website longer. When customers see that you have addressed their questions and provided helpful information, they feel valued and are more likely to explore other parts of your website. This increased engagement can lead to more clicks, longer visit durations, and a better chance of converting visitors into customers.
  • Enhancing SEO (Search Engine Optimization): A Boost for Your Website! Want your website to rank high in the search engine rankings like a phoenix? An FAQ page can be your secret potion! Including carefully chosen keywords and meta descriptions in your FAQ page can positively impact your website’s SEO.
  • Providing valuable insights: The questions on your FAQ page can provide valuable insights into your customers’ needs, pain points, and interests. By analyzing these common queries, you can better understand your target audience.

How to Create an Effective FAQ Page?

Now that you know the perks of adding a separate page for frequently asked questions, how about some tips on an FAQ page that will improve user experience and benefit your support team?

Here are some tips for creating an effective FAQ page:

✅ The first step in creating a FAQ page is to make it visually appealing. Plain text and long answers are a thing of the past. Ensure to add eye-catching images, videos, and interactive elements that bring your FAQ content to life.

✅ The last thing your visitors want is to sift through a sea of information to find the answer they need. Organize your FAQs into categories and define tags that are easy to navigate. With clear and intuitive categories & tags, you can help users find information without sifting through a long list of FAQs.

Adding personality to your FAQ page is the key to making it stand out! Feel free to showcase your brand’s unique voice; people connect with authenticity.

✅ Keep your FAQ page updated and relevant. As your business grows and evolves, so should your FAQs. Take the time to regularly review and update your content to ensure it remains accurate and helpful to your visitors.

✅ Leverage the magic of social media! Connect with your audience on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and online communities. Keep an eye out for questions and discussions about your website or products. You may discover a list of frequently asked unanswered questions in these interactions!

✅ The secret to powerful FAQs lies in adding questions and answers that are crystal clear. Avoid jargon or technical language that confuses your users. Keep it simple, and your FAQs will work their magic!

✅ Optimize your FAQs with relevant keywords. This will help search engines discover your FAQs and lead users to your website. But also don’t flood your FAQ page with keywords to rank high in SERPs (Search Engine Result Pages). Keep the subtle balance of content to make it friendly for both – your users and search engines.

Besides including all the pointers mentioned above, selecting the right plugin is crucial in creating an effective FAQ page. Going with a poorly coded WordPress FAQ plugin might slow your website loading speed, cause vulnerability issues, or, worst case, affect your SEO rankings.

If you plan to invest in premium options, ensure the plugin offers the necessary features and functionality to build a good FAQ page.

Or if you’re tight on budget or looking for a pocket-friendly plugin with advanced features, KB Support is the best plugin to create a simple but effective FAQ page on your WordPress website.

So, let’s learn the process of creating a FAQ page using KB Support.

Building a Powerful FAQ Page on Your WordPress Website Using KB Support 💪

Before we proceed, let me clarify that KB Support is not a dedicated WordPress FAQ plugin but a helpdesk and knowledge base plugin that allows you to build a fully-fledged support system within your WordPress dashboard.

What makes KB Support special is its built-in KB Articles functionality. With this, you can add & manage a variety of knowledge base articles, ranging from FAQ pages to how-to guides to official documentation.

Additionally, KB Support allows you to define separate Categories and Tags. By organizing your articles into specific categories and assigning relevant tags, you can ensure smooth navigation and efficient management.

KB Support offers a Shortcode that allows you to embed your FAQ page in any position on your web pages – without any fuss.

Now that you have learned about KB Support’s features let’s create an outstanding FAQ page on WordPress.

1. Install and Activate KB Support

To get started, install and activate KB Support on your WordPress website. And because it’s a FREE plugin, you can directly get it from your website’s plugin area or download a zip file from the wordpress.org profile.

If you’re reading this guide, it’s safe to assume you have a website running on WordPress, so let’s install KB Support from the dashboard.

Login to your website, head to your admin dashboard, and click Plugin >> Add New.

On the plugin’s page, search for “kb support,” hit the Install and then Activate button.

install and activate kb support

Once KB Support is activated, you’ll see new options: Tickets and KB Articles on your dashboard.

activated kb support plugin on wordpress

Fantastic! Now, let’s define categories and add tags for your FAQ pages.

2. Create Categories and Tags

Categories and tags help you keep everything organized and allow your users to navigate smoothly and quickly to understand a FAQ page. Let me guide you on how you can create specific categories and add tags for your FAQs using KB Support.

To create Categories, click KB Articles >> Categories on your dashboard. Doing so, you’ll end up on a page where you can add your categories.

create faq categories in wordpress

You can assign:

  • Category Name: If you’re adding FAQs related to purchases, you can create a category About Purchase, or if you’re making a specific page including a single FAQ associated with the coding-related query, you can name it like Developer Doc.
  • Slug: You can leave this option blank because it’ll automatically create a slug based on your added category name. And if you want to define a custom slug other than the category name, you can do that, too.
  • Parent KB Article Category: This is an essential option because you can create a hierarchy of FAQ pages using the Parent Category option.
  • Description: Here, add a short description related to your FAQ page.

When you’re all set, click the “Add New KB Article Category” button. And ta-da, your new category will appear on the page.

add new category for faq page

Now, let’s create Tags for your FAQ page.

Look for the “Tags” tab on your left under KB Articles. Upon clicking the tab, you will be redirected to the page where you can create your tags.

Add a Tag Name, Slug, and a Short Description. Once done, click “Add New KB Article Tag.”

add faq tag

If you’ve completed all the steps correctly (that I am sure you’ve done), your added Tag Name appears on the page.

Once you’ve completed the process of adding Categories and Tags, proceed to create your FAQ page.

3. Add Your FAQs

To create a FAQ page, under the KB Articles option, click “New KB Article.”

add new faq page

Upon clicking this, you”ll be taken to the page where you can add a single FAQ or multiple FAQs per your preference.

First, define your FAQ title in the “Enter KB Article title here” section and add the content.

add faq page in wordpress

4. Assign Categories and Tags to your FAQ Page

Next, on the right side of the page, you’ll find additional options under the Kb Article tab. Scroll down the page till you see the Categories section.

Choose the relevant Category, and select the Tag for your FAQ page.

choose fag category and tag in wordpress

5. Publish Your FAQ Page

Once you have done everything, check all the options and hit the Publish button present on the top right of the page.

publish the wordpress faq page

You can also view your published page by clicking the View KB Article Button.

view faq page on live site


And that’s how simple creating a FAQ page with KB Support is.

6. Embed all FAQs on a single web page (optional).

If you’ve published multiple FAQ pages, KB Support allows you to embed all the pages on a single web page using a simple shortcode.

Let’s create a new page on your WordPress website to do that. On your dashboard, click Pages >> Add New.

Once in the editor, name your Page, add the Shortcode block, and paste this shortcode 👇

[kbs_articles]
kb shortcode for faq page

Once you add the shortcode, Publish your page and click the View Page button.

And this is how all your FAQ pages look live on a single page.

wordpress faq page

You can even add a search form to your FAQ pages using this simple shortcode 👇

[kbs_search]
kb support's search form for faq


Wrapping Up!

And this is how you can create an effective FAQ page on your WordPress website. This guide has given you the know-how and inspiration to create an FAQ page that stands out, resonates with your audience, and elevates your online website.

With KB Support’s features and functionalities, you can create an engaging and user-friendly FAQ page, and that too, without spending a single penny. Woohoo!

Also, remember to keep your FAQ page up-to-date by regularly analyzing user feedback and tracking emerging trends in customer inquiries. Happy crafting! 🖍️

KB Writing Tips

Writing Effective Knowledge Base Articles

All too frequently, companies do not spend enough time thinking about what the aim of each knowledge base article is

A knowledge base article should serve to allow customers to help themselves when they have a question or do not understand how to achieve their goals with your product(s).

Read More