Following on from the recent HC Workshop (notes can be found here), we'd like to start using the following method when creating a Work-In-Progress article (WIP).
This methodology falls within the KCS Solve loop; so it's important to remember to search early, search often. It's also important to remember when problem solving, we should seek to understand before we seek to solve.
The key element to a WIP is context. This is absolutely critical. We need to ensure that article titles and content correctly relate to what was actually asked for by the ticket requester. This is important because this is the language that would be used again to search through our Help Centre - we all know how frustrating it can be to know there's an answer but your search is hindered because you don't think an article relates to your issue (when it actually does).
The following is a guide on how you could go about incorporating the WIP process into your ticketing routine. By all means, if you have found your own rhythm that results in an article being created at the same time as the ticket being worked on, please use it - this is a guide only.
The only pitfall we must avoid is trying to create articles from the past. This is simply just bad practice - you can never get the time back that you spend on a ticket, and this process is supposed to be part of the ticketing process and not something found as an afterthought.
1. Search Early, Search Often: Answer Suggestion
When you pick up your ticket, first use the Answer Suggestion sidebar app to see if we have an answer within the Help Centre. If we do, add a link to the comment and send it to the requester.
If this answer works, use the "Article Reused" field option to add the correct tag to the ticket. This means that it has logged that this ticket was successfully directed to an article that the requester found helpful.
2. Search Early, Search Often: Show Related Tickets
The Show Related Tickets app already completes a search on your behalf, using key words from the ticket and providing related tickets. Check through these to see if an article has been used or created, see if there is an answer structure in the ticket you can refer to (and perhaps create your own article with?) or see if there is a team article to show you how to complete this task.
3. Create a Work-In-Progress: Ticket to Help Centre
You should create a draft WIP for every ticket you work on (before you start working on it!). Creating a WIP doesn't necessarily mean it will be published as an answer, but capturing context and getting an article created is a good practice to be in.
It may be that you initially don't think a ticket will need an article and then realise at the last moment that it does - this would mean going back and creating it, which would be much easier if you'd already taken the time to create it at the first instance and had prepared it ready for your answer.
1. Click Post Article
2. Click on the comment you'd like to use to base the article on (this could be the first comment from the requester - this is a great way to capture context and edit it)
Please make sure that no personal details are logged - no company names, user names, sensitive data or otherwise compromising language.
3. Click Next and then select which section it relates to. If you can't find a suitable one, feel free to temporarily use Innovation Resources > Draft WIPs as an area to save your draft. If you need a new Section creating, speak to me and I can create one for you.
4. Add the relevant labels and whether you would like this article to be Promoted (meaning it stands out at the top of the section).
Please make sure to never click "Disable comments" - we always want people to join in the conversation!
5. Once you click next and create the article, it is automatically saved as a draft.
Initially, I would like to check over articles so I can make sure we're all remembering to follow the structure required - once we're in the swing of things, you can go ahead and publish.
Finally, please remember to complete the Help Centre Actions field to update tickets where you have created, reused or modified an article.
Without this information, we won't be able to report on how effective we are working as a team in adopting the KCS process. Creating articles is not a leaderboard approach - it's absolutely valuable to reuse articles and really encouraging to see articles modified and updated to be current.
If you have any questions at all or would like to know more - please feel free to comment on here.
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