Building a Knowledge Base That People Actually Use

Most knowledge bases fail. Here is how to build one that does not.

Rachel Whitfield

Former Support Operations Lead · Updated 2026-01-25

A good knowledge base reduces ticket volume by 20-30%. A bad one just takes up server space. The difference is not the tool. It is the content strategy and maintenance habits.

Start with your top 10 tickets

Pull your most common ticket categories. Write articles that answer those exact questions. Do not try to document everything on day one. Ten good articles beat a hundred mediocre ones.

Write for scanners, not readers

Short paragraphs. Clear headings. Screenshots with annotations. Step-by-step formatting for how-to content. Your customers are looking for an answer, not reading a novel.

Maintenance is the hard part

Schedule monthly reviews. Flag articles that get negative feedback. Update screenshots when the UI changes. A knowledge base with outdated content is worse than no knowledge base because it destroys trust.

Tie it to your helpdesk

The knowledge base should be searchable from inside your support tool. Agents should be able to link articles in responses with one click. Platforms like Help Scout, FyneDesk, and Zendesk integrate their KB directly into the agent workspace.