One of the biggest concerns folks have when adopting a knowledge base is that toughest of questions: how do I get people to actually use my documentation? Very often, requiring that folks go to yet another website--like your KnowledgeOwl knowledge base--seems like an additional step that will prevent people from really getting the most out of your documentation.
That's where our knowledge base widget comes in handy. Basically, we generate some code so that you can embed your knowledge base in other websites, applications, etc. You can see this widget in action in two places in our KnowledgeOwl sites:
- On this documentation site, if you click "Contact Us" in the upper right, you'll see the Contact Form-only version of the widget slide out from the right.
- In app.knowledgeowl.com as you are editing things, click the Help link in the upper right corner.
The widget will show Popular Articles, let readers search for articles, and can also suggest articles based on the page in your website/application that they're currently on. If you're using our Contact Form, it can also open the Contact Form and let readers send you a message.
How to use the widget
First, you'll configure the widget to your liking in Settings > Widget.
Then, once you've saved those configurations, copy the embed code provided at the bottom. Give this code to your developers to embed in your website, software application, etc. (We recommend tying it to a button or a link, but there are all kinds of possibilities.) See Widget Installation for more information.
Once your developers have added the embed code and properly tied it to something in your website/application (such as a button, link, etc.), your readers will be able to use the widget.
Note: by default, the widget will not inherit the CSS styling of your knowledge base, but the CSS styling of the website or application that you've embedded it in. So you may need to have your developers update your website/application styles to style the widget.
If you want to set a list of recommended articles for pages in your website/application, see: Pages to Recommend On (Contextual Help)
