The HelpKit search bar is a core feature that allows users to quickly find articles in your knowledge base. It helps users locate relevant information by simply typing keywords or phrases related to their questions. This powerful search functionality reduces time spent browsing through categories and ensures users can access the exact information they need when they need it.
Where to Find the Search Bar
Depending on your Helpkit layout:
- Help Center Layout: The search bar is positioned in the top section of the help center
- Documentation Layout: The search bar appears either:
- In the top header bar, or
- On the right top side as a button that opens a beautiful search modal
How Search Works
As a user types in the search bar, Helpkit dynamically suggests relevant articles based on the query. The search experience is immediate and responsive, helping users find information without needing to complete their search term.
Search Algorithm Priorities
Our search algorithm weighs different elements of your content in the following order:
- Article Title (highest priority)
- Article Description (medium priority)
- Full Article Text (lower priority)
Note: Full text search is available on Business and Professional plans.
What is Fuzzy Searching?
Helpkit utilizes fuzzy search technology to improve search results. Fuzzy searching (more formally known as approximate string matching) is a technique that finds strings that are approximately equal to a given pattern rather than requiring exact matches.
This means:
- Minor typos won't prevent users from finding relevant content
- Similar terms can still return appropriate results
- The search is more forgiving and user-friendly
Optimizing Your Content for Better Search Results
The effectiveness of the search functionality depends on the quality of your content. To optimize your articles for search:
- Use clear, descriptive titles that include key terms users might search for
- Include relevant keywords in your article descriptions
- Ensure your content uses terminology that matches what your users might type
- Be consistent with terminology throughout your knowledge base
- Consider the most common questions or problems users might have and incorporate those phrases
Remember: The better keywords you use in your content, the better your search results will be for your users.
Refreshing Search Content
When you make changes to your knowledge base, it's important to understand how these updates are reflected in search results:
- Single Article Resync: When you resync a single article, only the content within that article is updated in the search index. Changes to the article's title and description will not be reflected in search results.
- Full Knowledge Base Sync: To update article titles and descriptions in the search index, a full knowledge base sync is required. This ensures that all metadata and content are properly indexed for search.
If you've made important changes to article titles or descriptions and want these to be immediately searchable, make sure to perform a full knowledge base sync rather than just resyncing individual articles.
Search Intent Analytics
Helpkit also offers a powerful search intent feature that saves and analyzes user search queries. This valuable tool helps you identify topics and questions that users are searching for but might not be covered in your existing content.
By reviewing these analytics, you can:
- Discover content gaps in your knowledge base
- Understand what information your users are seeking most
- Prioritize new articles based on actual user needs
- Continuously improve your knowledge base's effectiveness
This search intent analytics feature is included in our Professional plan. Learn more about our search intent analytics.
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