AITS - KB Admin - KnowledgeBase - What Makes a Good KB Article?

All published KB articles need to meet content and stylistic standards. This is used as a checklist before articles are approved for publishing.

Before Adding New Content:

  • Is the document relevant to our current environment?
  • Test the solution documented in the article.  Does it work?  Is it confusing?  Are users going to be able to follow it?
  • Is the information duplicated elsewhere in the KB? Check by searching the KB!
  • Is the focus too narrow?  i.e. would the information be a better fit inside an existing article?
  • Is the document too long?  i.e. should the information be broken into multiple article?
  • Look for conflicting solutions. Is there another article that provides different information?

Title, Keywords, Summary fields:

  • Titles should list the Department - Sub-department (if there is one) - Service/Application - Subject Matter
    • example:  AITS - Service Desk - ISA - Password Reset
  • Summaries should describe and introduce the document in a few sentences. Make sure the summary is different from the first sentences of the document.
  • Keywords should list all the search terms a user may use to search for the document.  Make sure that keywords are standard and relevant.
    • Can add questions

Content Guidelines:

  • How does the document look to the customer? Will users find it easy to read and follow? Is it pleasing to the eye?
  • If the document contains links, make sure they work.
  • If the document links to PDF or Word attachments, would that content be better served if it were pasted in the body of the KB article?
  • Even if you are not a subject matter experts and don't fully understand the content, ask questions to the document owner if something doesn't make sense. If it doesn't make sense to you, it may not make sense to the customer either.
  • Documents should be written in a consistent, clear, and concise style.
  • KB document style guidelines: https://kb.wisc.edu/kbGuide/page.php?id=5304
  • Ensure images and screenshots meet guidelines:  https://kb.wisc.edu/4643
    • All images should use inset border


KeywordsAITS, KB, knowledge base, document, content, style. guidelines   Doc ID81061
OwnerAITS Service DeskGroupUniversity of Illinois System
Created2018-03-22 09:12:25Updated2024-05-09 10:50:04
SitesUniversity of Illinois System
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