Why having a knowledge base is important

Having a knowledge base is crucial for businesses and organizations because it allows for the centralized storage and organization of important information and expertise. This can include customer support documentation, company policies and procedures, product information, and more. With a well-organized knowledge base, employees can easily access the information they need to perform their jobs effectively, reducing errors and improving productivity. 今日の環境では、情報を効率的に見つけることが重要になってきています。結局、従業員のほぼ半数が、自分の仕事を効果的に行うために必要な情報を見つけるのに苦労しています。

Additionally, a knowledge base can help to standardize processes and procedures across the organization, ensuring consistency and quality in service delivery. Ultimately, a knowledge base is a powerful tool for improving collaboration, communication, and knowledge-sharing within an organization, leading to improved performance and better outcomes.

7 steps to building a knowledge base

Step 1: Conduct research to determine knowledge base need

Understanding the utility of a knowledge base is one thing. Deciding on the purpose your knowledge base will fill for your organization is another. 

The first step in setting up a knowledge base is to determine the need your knowledge base will fulfill. Think about your audience. Do you want your knowledge base to support your employees, your customers, or both? Once you know which audience(s) you want your knowledge base(s) to serve, research where the biggest gaps in knowledge exist.

• What questions or topics do your employees or customers ask most often?
• What department is overwhelmed by requests for information on a consistent basis?
• What is your current response rate to employee and client questions and is that response rate getting longer?
• 情報が効率的に共有できないために、あなたの組織内の生産性は低下していますか？
• What serious gaps would exist if certain company employees left the organization and took their knowledge with them?

 The answers to those questions will help you understand if you do need a knowledge base and to begin thinking about how it should be structured.

Step 2: Determine type of knowledge base

Once you know that you need a knowledge base, you must determine what type of knowledge base would best serve your needs. There are six common types of knowledge bases. To decide on the type of knowledge base you may want to create, think about the audience the knowledge base will serve, how accessible you want the knowledge base to be to the general public, and whether you will host the knowledge base on your company server or rely on a provider to host it.

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Step 3: Develop knowledge base structure

Organization is a key component in creating an organizational structure for a knowledge base. You want all users to be able to quickly and easily find what they are looking for. Developing your knowledge base structure at the beginning of your process will not only help you organize your content as your knowledge base grows, but will inform navigation design and help make it more intuitive for users..

There are a number of different ways you can choose to organize your knowledge base:

• User Type or Role: When you have different users or customer types, organizing your knowledge base by role is effective. Your users would be able to quickly tap into the knowledge that would be specific to them. For example, an [HR knowledge base](http://Step 3: Develop knowledge base structure Organization is a key component in creating an organizational structure for a knowledge base. You want all users to be able to quickly and easily find what they are looking for. Developing your knowledge base structure at the beginning of your process will not only help you organize your content as your knowledge base grows, but will inform navigation design and help make it more intuitive for users..  There are a number of different ways you can choose to organize your knowledge base:  User Type or Role: When you have different users or customer types, organizing your knowledge base by role is effective. Your users would be able to quickly tap into the knowledge that would be specific to them. For example, an HR knowledge base could be organized by breaking out specific information about your company with designated sections aimed at contractors, full-time employees, and part-time employees. Activity: If your audiences who will use the knowledge base need specific information about actions to take, organizing your knowledge base by activity works well. For example,  a knowledge base for a large travel agency may be organized by activities like planning your trip, booking tickets, and contacting an agent. Stage/ Experience of User: When you organize by stage or the experience of the user, the user of your knowledge base is quickly able to match their needs with your information. For example, a knowledge base for an online service may be organized by stages like getting started, upgrading service, and user tutorials. Product Type: You could also organize your knowledge base by product type. 例えば、家具ビジネスでは、リビングルームの家具、寝室の家具、子供用の家具、オフィスの家具によって知識ベースを整理できます。あなたの知識ベースは、コンテンツが拡張されたり、編集されたり、アーカイブされたりすることで、常に変化します。 だからこそ、トピックやテーマに応じてサブカテゴリ化できるさまざまなコンテンツを含むように、カテゴリを広く設定することが重要です。ステップ4：コンテンツを作成するための専門家を確立する。あなたの知識ベースには、聴衆のニーズに特に応える興味深く魅力的なコンテンツの絶え間ない流入が必要です。 主題の専門家（SME）と指定された編集者（または2人）が、品質、正確性、効率を確保するために、従業員や顧客に配布される知識ベースのすべてのコンテンツを開発する責任を持つべきです。 このプロセスがどのように機能するかを示します：知識ベースの管理者が、各カテゴリに必要なコンテンツを決定します。 The manager outlines the purpose of each piece of content, the primary messaging, keywords, and the call to action for each article. They also set the deadlines and are responsible for assigning content development to SMEs. SMEs are responsible for using their specialized knowledge to create content that follows the directions outlined by the knowledge base manager. SMEs also review edited content for accuracy. Editors review the content provided by SMEs and correct for spelling, grammar, style, and readability.  Because you will likely have more than one SME writing content for your knowledge base, you will need a style guide to make sure your content is consistent in look, tone, and feel regardless of who is writing or editing that content. Your marketing or communications department likely has a style guide that includes guidelines for punctuation, brand style, formatting, and more.   Step 5: Write knowledge resources You want to be sure your content is easy to understand and that your SMEs provide that content in an efficient manner. To do both, provide them with writing directions that cover these basics:  Clarity: Use action-based headlines to help your audience know at-a-glance what the content will explain. Explain all jargon or technical terms in clear language. Readability: Readers prefer content that provides information at-a-glance. That means paragraphs should be short and blocks of text should be broken up with headings, subheadings, bullets or numbered lists where applicable. Engagement: Include images, charts, infographics, or videos within content or as stand-alone content to increase engagement. Utility: Be sure to link to related articles within your knowledge base. This will help your audience easily find other resources that fully answer their questions. Value: Every piece of content in your knowledge base should offer a valuable solution or insight.   Step 6: Upload resources to shared platform A shared knowledge base platform is a software system that makes it easy for information to flow from your knowledge base to those who need it. The shared platform you choose will include the tools that extend the functionality of your knowledge base. For example, the shared platform software could include search tools, file sharing, analytics and reporting, a user feedback system, and more. The shared platform you choose should also be able to scale with the growth of your knowledge base.  Step 7: Update content often Updating content will be a regular activity in order to keep your knowledge base relevant and useful. 知識ベースソフトウェアシステムの内蔵分析に頼ってください。 The data you review will help you better understand:  The type of information people are accessing  How search traffic on once-popular articles changes When an article was first published and updated  Plan to have your SMEs review all content (on a rolling basis) throughout the year in order to update, optimize, or retire content as necessary. In addition, you should plan to update relevant content any time your company policies, products, or changes to your services.) could be organized by breaking out specific information about your company with designated sections aimed at contractors, full-time employees, and part-time employees.
• Activity: If your audiences who will use the knowledge base need specific information about actions to take, organizing your knowledge base by activity works well. For example,  a knowledge base for a large travel agency may be organized by activities like planning your trip, booking tickets, and contacting an agent.
• Stage/ Experience of User: When you organize by stage or the experience of the user, the user of your knowledge base is quickly able to match their needs with your information. For example, a knowledge base for an online service may be organized by stages like getting started, upgrading service, and user tutorials.
• Product Type: You could also organize your knowledge base by product type. 例えば、家具ビジネスでは、リビングルームの家具、寝室の家具、子供用の家具、オフィスの家具によって知識ベースを整理できます。

Your knowledge base will constantly change as your content expands, is edited, or archived. だからこそ、トピックやテーマに応じてサブカテゴリ化できるさまざまなコンテンツを含むように、カテゴリを広く設定することが重要です。

Step 4: Establish SMEs to create content

Your knowledge base requires a constant inflow of interesting and engaging content that specifically meets the needs of your audiences. 主題の専門家（SME）と指定された編集者（または2人）が、品質、正確性、効率を確保するために、従業員や顧客に配布される知識ベースのすべてのコンテンツを開発する責任を持つべきです。 このプロセスがどのように機能するかを示します：

• The knowledge base manager determines the content necessary for each category. The manager outlines the purpose of each piece of content, the primary messaging, keywords, and the call to action for each article. They also set the deadlines and are responsible for assigning content development to SMEs.
• SMEs are responsible for using their specialized knowledge to create content that follows the directions outlined by the knowledge base manager. SMEs also review edited content for accuracy.
• Editors review the content provided by SMEs and correct for spelling, grammar, style, and readability.

Because you will likely have more than one SME writing content for your knowledge base, you will need a style guide to make sure your content is consistent in look, tone, and feel regardless of who is writing or editing that content. Your marketing or communications department likely has a style guide that includes guidelines for punctuation, brand style, formatting, and more. See how a knowledge manager can help create and enforce guidelines.

Step 5: Write knowledge resources

You want to be sure your content is easy to understand and that your SMEs provide that content in an efficient manner. To do both, provide them with writing directions that cover these basics:

• Clarity: Use action-based headlines to help your audience know at-a-glance what the content will explain. Explain all jargon or technical terms in clear language.
• Readability: Readers prefer content that provides information at-a-glance. That means paragraphs should be short and blocks of text should be broken up with headings, subheadings, bullets or numbered lists where applicable.
• Engagement: Include images, charts, infographics, or videos within content or as stand-alone content to increase engagement.
• Utility: Be sure to link to related articles within your knowledge base. This will help your audience easily find other resources that fully answer their questions.
• Value: Every piece of content in your knowledge base should offer a valuable solution or insight. 

Step 6: Upload resources to shared platform

A shared knowledge base platform is a software system that makes it easy for information to flow from your knowledge base to those who need it. The shared platform you choose will include the tools that extend the functionality of your knowledge base. For example, the shared platform software could include search tools, file sharing, analytics and reporting, a user feedback system, and more. The shared platform you choose should also be able to scale with the growth of your knowledge base.

Step 7: Update content often

Updating content will be a regular activity in order to keep your knowledge base relevant and useful. 知識ベースソフトウェアシステムの内蔵分析に頼ってください。 The data you review will help you better understand:

• The type of information people are accessing 
• How search traffic on once-popular articles changes
• When an article was first published and updated

年間を通じてすべてのコンテンツを更新、最適化、または必要に応じて削除するために、あなたのSMEがすべてのコンテンツをレビューする計画を立ててください。 さらに、会社の方針、製品、またはサービスの変更があるたびに、関連するコンテンツを更新する計画を立てるべきです。 Guruの検証エンジンにより、あなたの知識は常に最新の状態に保たれます.

チームに最適な知識ベースソリューションの種類を見つけましょう。

知識ベースは、社内情報を整理して会社全体のコラボレーションを促進する素晴らしい方法です。 しっかりと維持された知識ベースは、顧客が製品やサービスについて知りたい答えに迅速にアクセスできるようにも役立ちます。 Guruは、あなたのニーズに最適な 知識ベースの種類を特定するのを手伝えます。 今すぐ Guruを無料で始めて、あなたのビジネスのために統合知識管理の力を利用しましょう。