Have you heard of the recent shift in customer service preferences? According to Zendesk, 67% of online shoppers prefer self-service over human contact. A whopping 91% of consumers also prefer using online knowledge bases, which they can use as tools to identify whether a business is worth their time and money.
These numbers make perfect sense considering there might be more introverts than extroverts nationwide. Introverts typically prefer to minimize unnecessary social interaction from their daily lives. Offering self-service technology is one way to cater to these needs.
A Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page serves as a knowledge base and self-service center in one. It provides straightforward answers and solutions to common concerns, preventing customers and companies from asking and answering the same questions. And that’s not all.
Benefits of Having an FAQ page
Here’s a closer look at why your business needs an FAQ page.
1. Improve User Experience
A well-structured FAQ page enhances the user experience on your website by accomplishing the following:
- A one-stop shop for must-know information: An FAQ page acts as a user-friendly guide, making it easy for visitors to find answers. It simplifies their website journey, reducing frustration and the likelihood of them clicking out.
- Quick and anxiety-free problem solving: Users, especially recent discoverers, often have questions about a business. They might have questions about your products, services, or company values. An FAQ page offers instant answers and solutions, saving users the time and effort needed for contacting support.
- Reduced cognitive load: A well-organized FAQ page presents information in a structured, easy-to-digest format. It reduces cognitive load and helps users process content more effectively.
2. Time and Resource Efficiency
Implementing an FAQ page on your website boosts operational adequacy and resource allocation.
- Less work for your team: As mentioned, an FAQ page is a form of self-help technology. By reducing the volume of inquiries sent to your customer support or sales team, it frees up time for more complex tasks.
- 24/7 availability: An FAQ page never sleeps. It answers user queries round the clock, even beyond business hours.
- Cost savings: As users find answers independently, it diminishes the need for excessive customer support staffing and cuts down training expenses.
3. Collect Data-Driven Insights
Monitoring user interactions with your FAQs page can yield valuable insights into common pain points and frequently asked questions. For example, your sales and marketing teams can use the data as a cornerstone for strategic decision-making, enhancing offerings, or generating customer-centric content. Making the most of these insights can optimize user experiences and maintain website dynamism.
4. Enhance SEO
An FAQ page is a powerful tool for improving your site’s search engine optimization (SEO) in the following ways:
- Targeted keywords: Strategically incorporating relevant keywords into your FAQ content boosts the chances of your website appearing in search results for specific queries, helping it rank higher and attracting more organic traffic.
- Structured data markup: Using structured data markup (e.g., Schema.org) for your FAQ content can increase your website’s visibility by enhancing how search engines understand, process, and display your information.
- Internal linking: A strategic FAQ page links to other relevant pages on the same website. This internal linking structure improves a website’s overall architecture, making it easier for search engine giants to crawl and index content.
- Fresh content: By updating your FAQ page with new information or addressing emerging customer queries, you are signaling to search engines that your site is active and relevant, which may improve your rankings.
Related: 10 Reasons Why Your Rankings Drop and How to Fix Them
5. Showcase Expertise
A well-curated FAQ page is more than a repository of answers; it’s an opportunity to demonstrate your organization’s expertise and authority in your field. Here’s how:
- In-depth knowledge: Addressing complex or industry-specific questions in your FAQ shows how much of an expert you are in your industry. This reassures visitors that they are in the hands of professionals who understand their needs.
- Thought leadership: Use your FAQs page to share insights, tips, and best practices. For example, if you sell an innovative product, your FAQ page can include content about how to use it, how often, for how long, etc. Providing helpful information answers immediate product queries and positions your brand as a thought leader.
- Industry updates: Address FAQs related to changing industry regulations or trends. This information keeps your audience up-do-date and shows your commitment to staying current.
What to Include in an FAQ Page
A well-structured FAQ page is a valuable resource that addresses common queries, provides helpful information, and enhances the user experience on your website. Here are some of the information and functions to include in an FAQ page:
- The obvious: Include the most frequently asked questions about your products, services, industry, or business. You can also brainstorm with your team about all potential queries your customers may have and address them in advance.
- Detailed answers: Aim to provide clear and comprehensive solutions to each question. Use simple language and avoid jargon to keep the information as accessible as possible to a broad audience.
- Search functionality: HubSpot found that 82% of customers consider an “immediate” response important or very important when they have a sales- or marketing-related query. Avoid making your customers go through hundreds or thousands of words before finding the answer to their one question. Implement a search bar allowing users to locate specific questions or topics quickly. This function is especially crucial if your FAQ page has drop-down menus, which conceal information and negate the keyboard shortcut for the Find command.
- Contact information: Include contact details for customer support or a link to your contact page. Some users prefer to reach out directly for personalized assistance.
- Multimedia elements: Enhance your FAQ page with images, videos, or charts. Visual aids can simplify complex explanations and engage users more effectively.
- Links to relevant resources: If a question requires a more in-depth explanation, link to related blog posts, articles, or product pages for further information.
- Updates and revision dates: Indicate when you last changed the information on your FAQ page. Outdated information can cause confusion and frustration.
- FAQ feedback: Allow users to provide feedback, send any follow-up queries, and suggest new questions to improve your FAQ page.
- Legal and policy information: Attach links to your terms of service, privacy policy, refund policies, and other legal or compliance-related documents to build trust.
- Troubleshooting: If applicable, add a troubleshooting section addressing common issues or error messages that users may encounter when using your products or services.
Do It Right – Don’t FAQ It Up!
From prospects to returning customers, people will always seek help. Unfortunately, the majority of them are unwilling to walk into a store, pick up the phone, engage in chat, or wait for longer than 15 seconds for a response. The information must be available immediately and in the format they enjoy most: a self-service knowledge base or FAQ page. The best part is, having one entitles you to all the above benefits.
The FAQ of the matter is, more and more consumers prefer self-service. If you need an FAQ page for your e-commerce store or company website, the PrimeView team can do the research, study your competitors, create your content, design your page, and boost your SEO. Write to us for a free quote.