Organization & Role
Helpshift (acquired by Keywords Studios) is a mobile-first customer support platform. As their first Content Designer, I created and managed all in-app copy and knowledge base content.
Project
I created a guide for Web Chat, Helpshift’s first web chat widget, during the product development phase.
Problem
This guide was created to educate users on the value of this feature for their workflow, then help them quickly get started with it. Since this was a brand-new feature that deviated from Helpshift’s typical product offerings (it was their first foray into web support, having historically been a mobile support platform) this guide needed to comprehensively present a lot of new information AND have some marketing appeal.
Approach
The first task of creating this guide was to decide on a visual element for showcasing the power of web chat. To demonstrate how quickly and conversationally the widget responded to customer inquiries, I created and placed a GIF of a use case that is applicable across multiple industries (login isn’t working!) at the very top of the guide.
Via qualitative user test sessions conducted at another company, I’ve learned that people are more likely to watch a GIF then a video. The shorter time limit of a GIF means it is less of an investment, and the lack of sound means they don’t have to spend time rooting around for headphones. GIFs are also easier to update than videos are as the product evolves.
The second challenge was organizing a large volume of information in a way that was digestible and which would enable a reader to jump directly to what they want to know most.
There was a lot of information that needed to be conveyed in the introduction alone, including the ‘why should I use this’ statement, a list of supported browsers, and two small but important blurbs about a companion tool and collaborating with your devs. Through the revision process, I managed to condense the intro down into bite-size mini-sections.
When creating the table of contents, to make it easier for team members to collaborate to complete implementation, I stated that role that would be required to complete each step in the section title.
Within each step, numbered lists and screenshots are provided to guide them to the right place in the product. This also makes it easy for customers to ask about a particular step when writing into support, e.g. “I got stuck on step 3 of the guide”.
Common errors and edge cases that may be encountered during this process are documented in FAQs linked to in appropriate places within the guide. Just as with all other feature-based content, the goal is to allow them to get up and running as soon as possible, with the minimum amount of content consumption required.
Outcome
Post-launch, web chat quickly became one of our most popular features, and continued to be in the top 5 most-viewed guides until my departure. The organizational flow was well-received by customers, many of whom were able to self-serve setup without having to consult with their Account Manager or the support team.
See the current version here: Web Chat Guide
