How Do I Create a Useful and Well Optimized FAQ Page?
If there was an award for the “webpage customers visit most, website owners think about least”, the FAQ page would probably be close behind the About page.
The FAQ page is a Miscellaneous Contents page, or a page customers should look at.
Many content strategists believe that one should be avoided.
FAQ pages are so common that customers often search for them.
Think of it as a user. What are your favorite clicks when you research a product? Are you a fan of FAQs?
If you take them one by one, they can be very helpful. These are some best practices for creating FAQ pages on your website.
What is an FAQ Page?
A FAQ page is a web page that answers frequently asked questions.
FAQ pages were around before the advent of the commercial Web.
These were created on Usenet groups as both navigational tools and standalone curated content. The format was adopted by ecommerce websites, as online buyers couldn’t physically inspect products or speak to sales representatives.
They are often formatted using drop-downs and long-lists.
FAQ pages are often used as catch-all pages for other content or to improve user experience.
Do I need an FAQ page?
Your website should answer every customer question as it arises. The best user experience anticipates and resolves problems before they arise.
Consider little scrollovers and text in buttons that frame your expectations.
However, FAQ pages can be a useful resource for users. Customers may find it helpful and reassuring. However, they do not have to use it.
It boils down to three simple questions.
- Do your customers have frequent questions that aren’t easily answered in your existing sections of your website?
- Are you constantly dealing with product and service queries?
- Do you have outlier customers or use cases that could distract from your target audience?
An FAQ page may be the right place for you.
Do not create a second page to cover bad website content, or simply for the sake. Your website can answer your questions without referring to it on a separate page. If that is the case, then you should fix your website copy.
FAQ Page: Best Practices
What makes a FAQ page a good one?
Like most marketing questions – it depends. It is important to break down the problem into smaller pieces and resolve each issue on your website.
These are some common starting points to structure your page.
Find & answer real questions
Real questions are what you need to answer. You need to be able to anticipate the question and then find a way within your existing content to answer it when it comes up.
Inventing questions just to answer them is a recipe for confusion and noise.
Customers often ask completely different questions than you would expect if you’ve ever had to chat with them.
You can create educational content by creating a Buyer’s guide or How-To post. You shouldn’t try to fit a buyer’s guide on a separate FAQ page.
These can be found from many sources, including your customer service department, your website feedback form, and even your email. Check out your social media channels. People love to ask questions on the Facebook pages of businesses. For questions that people ask on other platforms, you can also go into keyword research.
Make questions relevant & timely
Customers shouldn’t ask the same questions for a long time.
You can either solve them in your website content, or you can make sure to update your FAQ page often to address any new questions or seasonality changes that may affect your business.
Be clear & concise
Keep questions & answers simple. It is important to make sure questions and answers are clear.
After you have your questions and answers sorted, it’s time to think about how to organize your FAQ pages.
You may only have five questions, if you’re lucky. A standard FAQ is sufficient in this case.
If you are like many brands with FAQ pages full of questions, you will want to arrange the information so that your visitors have the best possible experience.
It is their goal to be able to find the information they need quickly and easily.
Ask batch questions together
Your FAQ page should be easy to navigate. You can organize your FAQ pages by category, with prominent headlines, to make it easy for customers to jump to the section that interests them.
Ex: Netflix
Answers are further down the page
Kissmetrics recommends grouping questions at the top of a page for easy scanning.
The questions can be duplicated with the answers at the bottom of your page. Once a question is clicked, you can use the jump feature to direct users to the answer.
Ex: Baskin-Robbins
Connect to external sources
Although you don’t want customers to go in circles, FAQ pages can be great for internal linking.
Make sure the link you provide supports your answer and not takes away from it.
MailChimp: Ex:
How to get the most out of your FAQ page
Once you have your best practices down it is time to dig deeper. If you use it correctly, an FAQ page can be full of opportunities. These are some tips and tricks to help you get the most from your FAQ Page.
Retarget customers using custom targeting
You have a unique audience when users visit your FAQ page. These visitors may need a little bit of confirmation that they are making the right decision before they convert, but they have high intent to purchase.
Create a highly targeted, small-scale retargeting campaign that offers a free demo/sample, or a return on investment. Let them test your product/service without strings attached to reassure them.
Target Google Rich Answers
Google is now serving more rich answers directly in search results, if you haven’t noticed.
These FAQ pages are a good fit for these keywords because of their question/answer structure.
Google is now able to recognize FAQ schemas, which it will then pull into search results.
Emphasize education
Do you remember how I talked about linking to supplementary content.
Your FAQ page can be used as an educational tool to educate your visitors about your brand and the problems that you solve.
Linking to an article about the topic you are solving is a great way to answer a question. It’s amazing how trust can be increased when everything is geared towards educating your customers.
Ex: Etsy
Your brand’s voice will be heard
While you should be clear and concise on the FAQ page, it is still an excellent opportunity to establish your brand’s voice.
Remember that FAQ pages are customer service touchpoints. Customers often find themselves lost or frustrated at FAQ pages.
It’s a chance to show your business cares about people. If you are like Cards Against Humanity this is the perfect time to show your sarcastic side.
Ex: Cards Against Humanity
Extra Inspiration
Want more inspiration? These are just three examples of FAQ pages for companies that hit all the right notes:
Organization & Education
Hulu’s “help center” website is well organized. The top section is divided by question categories, while the bottom section is broken down by resources, actions and popular devices. The search function makes it easier to find answers faster.
The best user experience
Under Armour makes sure that its customers have all the information they require with its top question categories, educational resources, search function and multiple contact options.
Product and Service-Oriented
Weber’s FAQ page is organized by product type and the various actions customers might have questions about (like orders).
This is an excellent example of an approach that works well for Weber’s target audience but might not work for other eCommerce sites (like the Gap).
Conclusion and Next Steps
The FAQ page should not be used as a way to hide bad design or boring content. Your FAQ page should provide valuable information and education to your customers.
To get there, you need to do extensive research about what your customers want. Next, organize the questions and answers in a way that is appropriate for your website and business structure.
Finally, ensure you are looking for ways to link to educational resources. This is a touchpoint for customer service. The experience should be able to build your brand, not destroy it.
