Customer support knowledge base article template

A customer support knowledge base article template turns a blank page into a repeatable writing process. It helps every writer cover the same useful details. It also helps readers scan an article when they need an answer fast.

The template below works for a task, a common question, or a simple problem. Copy it into your editor. Replace each instruction with facts from your product. Then test the finished article before you publish it.

Copy this knowledge base article template

Title

State the task or problem in the customer's words.

Good: How to export your invoices as a CSV file

Weak: Invoice data options

Summary

In two or three sentences, say what the reader will do, who can do it, and what they will get. Mention a requirement before the steps if it can stop the task.

Before you start

Required role or permission
Required plan, device, or app version
Information the reader needs
Any change that is hard to reverse

Steps

Start from a place the reader can identify.
Use the exact label shown in the product.
Give one action in each step.
State what the reader should see after an important action.
End when the task is complete.

Expected result

Describe the visible result. Say where a file, message, or setting will appear. If the result can take time, explain what shows that work is in progress.

If it does not work

Name the first check.
Give a safe fix for each common cause.
Include the exact error text when it helps search.
Tell the reader what details to send to support.

Link to the next likely task, one prerequisite, and a focused troubleshooting guide when one exists.

Use a title that matches the search

Customers search with goals and symptoms. They rarely search with your internal feature name. Review recent ticket subjects, customer phrases, and failed help-center searches before you name the article.

Keep one main question in each title. “Set up billing and fix failed cards” hides two tasks. Split it into “Set up a billing method” and “Fix a declined card.” This makes both answers easier to find and maintain.

The primary phrase should appear naturally in the title, opening paragraph, and one heading. Do not repeat it in every section. The article must sound like help, not a list of search terms.

Write steps a new customer can follow

Start each step with a verb such as open, select, enter, or save. Name the page before the control. “In Billing, select Download CSV” gives more context than “Click Download.”

Do not hide requirements in the final paragraph. If only an administrator can complete the task, say so before step one. If a step changes data for every user, say what will change before the reader confirms it.

Screenshots can help, but they should support the words. A reader must still understand the task when a screenshot is old, blocked, or hard to read. Add useful alt text and crop the image to the part that matters.

Add proof and a recovery path

A list of actions is incomplete without an expected result. Tell readers how to confirm success. For example: “A download starts, and the file name begins with invoices-.” This helps a customer tell the difference between a slow result and a failed action.

Then cover the common failure path. A focused problem may need its own article. Use the troubleshooting guide template when the reader must check several causes.

Never tell a customer to send a password, full payment card number, private key, or other secret. Ask for the minimum safe details that help your team investigate, such as the error text, time, browser, and step that failed.

Review the article before publication

Ask a person who did not write the article to follow it in a test account. The writer can miss gaps because they already know the product.

Use this review list:

The title matches one customer question.
The summary states the result and key requirement.
Labels match the current interface.
Steps use a safe test account when needed.
The expected result is clear.
Failure advice is specific and safe.
Links go to current pages.
The article has an owner and review trigger.
Public text contains no customer or company secrets.

Templates create consistency, but they do not replace judgment. Remove sections that do not help the reader. Add a warning only when the risk is real. If your library has grown without a common format, use a knowledge base content audit to find the first articles to repair.

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