Creating KB Records

Usage

All types of Knowledge Base records (FAQs, forum topics and ideas) are created in a similar manner. Although, some of the record types have type-specific fields that are filled out when a record is created.

Path

Knowledge Base tab – New

Procedure

To create a new record, click New in the second menu. On the opened page, select the type of a record to be added: FAQ (Question/Answer or Document), Discussion or Idea ; then specify the record title and choose a category to which the entry should refer. Click Submit. A Knowledge Base record edit detail page will appear.

The page has the following fields:

• Access – defines to which access level the question belongs;

• Record Type – allows changing the type of the Knowledge Base record. By selecting an appropriate option, you may choose in to which type of record the current record should be turned.

• Subject (required) – a title of the issue;

• Question / Answer (required) – applicable for FAQs of the Question/Answer type only; area for question and answer text input;;

• Content (required) – area for issue description text input; the field is available for FAQs of the Document type, forum topics and ideas;

• Keywords (optional) – area for keywords and phrases related to the current entry;

• Idea Status (required) – applicable to records of the Idea type only; status of an idea showing whether the idea is taken for considerati on, implemented or is a new one;

• Category (required) – the product or/and area to which the entry topic refers;

• Comments (optional) – allows defining whether comments should be available for the FAQ, forum topic or idea. ‘None’ denotes that the comments section should be hidden; ‘Open’ denotes that customers may both view and submit comments to the record description; ‘Closed’ denotes that customers may only view comments but cannot submit new comments to the record via the customer interface.

CRMdesk Knowledge Base recognizes two types of attachments:

• If you uploade your image in the ‘GIF’ format, the system will make a full-screen illustration in the description of a Knowledge Base record. For all other graphic formats the system will create thumbnails to the image.
  The system automatically reformats the image once it is uploaded to the server. Larger files will just take more time to upload, but they will be stored with the optimal format for fast downloading.

• If the system determines that the file is not in the graphic format, it will create a hyperlink to it instead of creating a thumbnail to the image.

To add an attachment, specify the local file path in the File field, Image Size for graphic files (“Auto” is recommended) and Add New in the Action field. Click the Upload button.

In the edit mode, attached files are presented at the right side of the record main fields. If you want to display an attachment on the FAQ, discussion topic or idea page, insert the attachment number in braces {2} into the Answer field.

To update an attachment, specify the local file path (the “replacement” file) in the File field, Image Size (for graphic files) and Update with a corresponding attachment number in the Action field. Click the Upload button.

To delete an attachment, select the corresponding check box and click the Delete Marked button below the attachments list.

In addition to attachments, the system automatically detects and highlights three hyperlink types:

• Web URLs – should begin with an ‘http://’ string and must not have spaces (e.g. ‘http://www.crmdesk.com’); the linked page will open in a new browser window;

• E-mail addresses – should begin with the ‘mailto:’ statement and should not contain spaces (e.g. ‘mailto:info@crmdesk.com’); a new e-mail message will be created by your default system e-mail client application;

• Other records in your CRMdesk Knowledge Base – use the ‘#number#’ format, where ‘number’ is the ID of the record you would like to provide a link to (e.g. #1234#).

To check your spelling, click the Check Spelling button.

To save your changes, click the Submit button.

Tips

Knowledge Base records may also be created based on questions sent by CRMdesk customers. To convert a question to a FAQ, forum topic or an idea, use the Create FAQ Record button on the questions details page.

To facilitate the process of searching through the knowledge base, for each record define keywords and keyphrases that can be later used by your customers to find the necessary information.

Try not to delete Knowledge Base records, even when they do not seem relevant anymore (e.g. after a new release of your product). Rather, move them to a restricted access level unavailable for all customers. Remember that many records may be useful as your internal Knowledge Base, and you have unlimited CRMdesk storage space.

Next: Editing KB Records