The FAQ section of your site is meant to answer frequently asked questions about your service or product. A well-structured FAQ saves customers from sending emails or calling customer service, thus, avoiding an additional workload to your team.
In this blog article, we’ll look at how to create an FAQ, along with some effective tips and tricks.
What is an FAQ?
FAQ is the short form for “Frequently Asked Question”. An FAQ can be found on almost every type of professional website and is one of the most important pages on every online store. Indeed, it enables customers find at best all the desired answers concerning the products, the service offered and the website itself.
Why create an FAQ?
First, posting an FAQ on your website is a way to answer most of your customers’ queries. Whether it’s questions about your products, your service or your website, most Internet users have become accustomed to looking for frequently asked questions first rather than sending an email or calling customer service: saving time for them and for you. After all, customers often ask the same questions.
In the best case, a well-designed website FAQ will even help you optimize your website’s costs or the budget dedicated to managing customer service.
In addition, a well-written website FAQ conveys an image of expertise and trust. It is a sign that you have studied in detail your subject and everything related to it.
Create an FAQ and exploit its SEO potential
The second purpose of a FAQ is targeted site optimization for search engines. Indeed, Google aims to provide as accurate an answer as possible to search queries. This is why there has recently been a “Other questions asked” section on the first page of results. Whether the user enters a specific question in the search bar or a term alone, if you manage to display your website FAQ as a snippet in this area, it is a real SEO booster.
Create an FAQ: the right questions
Want to create your own FAQ? Here’s how to find the right questions.
Questions asked by your customers
Check your emails or ask your customer service department what are the most frequently asked questions by customers. Your social media profiles can also be a source of typical FAQ questions.
So put yourself in your customers’ shoes: what questions would they ask? What are the possible obstacles or uncertainties that could hinder online shopping? How to overcome them easily with clear answers and instructions?
Competitive analysis
Look at what other online sellers are doing and use their FAQs as an example for yours. You may discover something different or better.
Important: Do not copy anything word for word but adapt the questions and answers individually.
Use Google and online tools
Google a question, the beginning of a question or a keyword related to your activity and check the suggestions that appear in the drop-down menu of the search bar or at the bottom of the results page. The questions in the “Other questions asked” section will also give you some ideas.
Online tools or sites like Answer the Public or Quora can help you find questions from Internet users around a specific term.
Please note that the questions asked are not always directly related to your online store or service. in order to present yourself as an expert, questions relating to your sector of activity are also relevant. For example, if you sell bikes, repairs, or traffic laws have their place. Optionally, create a “Things to know” section or blog on your site for these types of questions.
Create an FAQ: Writing tips
Once you’ve found the relevant questions, it’s a matter of formulating the answers to create your website’s FAQ. Here are some tips:
- Ask simple first-person questions such as “How do I return an item I purchased?”
- The answers to the questions should be short and to the point, ideally yes or no. If the answer should be longer, arrange for it not to exceed 100 words or link to other FAQ questions or linked subpages.
- Formulate questions in plain language, especially for products or offers that require explanation, as customers also use the questions in the FAQ to understand your offer. Avoid technical jargon as much as possible and, in some cases, remember that video and images provide practical help.
- Show your personality. While the purpose of the answers to the questions in the FAQ is to solve problems in the first place, there is nothing to prevent them from writing them in a light and entertaining way. However, be careful that humor does not obscure the informative content and only use it if it corresponds to the image you want to convey.
- Place the FAQ on your website in a way that it’ll be easy to find. It has long been the custom to place a link in the footer, but FAQs are now often accessible via the main menu. It may also be interesting to place the link to the FAQ in critical places, for example in the ordering process. Be careful, however, not to distract the user from his purchase.
- Important: The FAQ page should be called this (Frequently Asked Questions or FAQ).
- Structure the FAQ of your website into thematic subsections. In general, the FAQ includes the subsections Product Information, Payment and Shipping, Customer Account, and Return Policy.