Frequently Asked Question: What Do Customers Want in an FAQ Page?

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There are a handful of pages and features websites are typically expected to have. One such element is a page for frequently asked questions. However, the FAQ resource is something very few companies do an effective job of creating. This is unfortunate, since these pages provide a number of tangible benefits.

What Customers are Looking For

The issue many businesses have is they don’t know what their customers are looking for in a FAQ page. As a result, the page ends up looking like a muddled mess of irrelevant content.

While an added benefit of a well-developed FAQ page is that you can address some issues that customers would have emailed or called you about otherwise, this shouldn’t be the primary goal. The FAQ page is about serving the needs of the customer, not making things easier on your team.

According to Casengo, a leading provider of customer service software, “FAQs are there for one purpose, and one purpose only: to give potential customers the answers to the questions they are most likely to ask, but which didn’t fit neatly into the structure of your website.”

How to Optimize Your FAQ Page

Now that you understand what a FAQ page is, let’s take a look at some of the specific ways you can optimize your page to satisfy the demands and preferences of your customers.

  1. Make the Page Digestible

The number one key to a successful FAQ page is to make it easily digestible. For a customer, there’s nothing worse than clicking on a page and seeing an endless stream of content that doesn’t seem to be in logical order. You can avoid this by making an effort to divide questions into categories.

This FAQ page from Stor-Mor Self Storage shows what this looks like in practice. Notice how the top of the page acts like a table of contents, separating questions into three different categories: Frequently Asked Questions, General Hints, and Commonly Stored Items. Visitors can then click on a question and the page automatically scrolls to the appropriate position on the page. This is a feature all FAQ pages should have.

  1. Embed Long-Tail Search Terms

While the FAQ page should be designed around the needs of the customer, this doesn’t mean you can’t also use the page to benefit your business. One natural convergence between these two spheres involves the use of long-tail search terms.

Conduct some keyword research around various friction points and find out what information customers are searching for. Based on this information, you can integrate these keywords into your FAQ page to make them more searchable.

If there isn’t much keyword research out there, then meet with your team. “Talk to your sales team, store employees, and customer service teams again to find out the types of things people ask or need to know about your business, products or services,” says SEO expert Brittney Sheffield. “Ask them what customers are frustrated with after they interact with your business.” Then, address these issues on the page.

  1. Talk Directly to Customers

If there’s one major mistake businesses frequently make, it’s that they don’t actually take the customer into account. This isn’t always a conscious decision, but it happens, nonetheless. Businesses assume they know what questions customers have and then provide answers in language that fails to connect with page visitors.

Remember that a FAQ page is designed to answer questions that are not addressed anywhere else on the website. When a customer visits this page, they don’t want to sift through a bunch of information they’ve already seen. If you’re merely repeating everything you’ve already told them, then you’re serving your own needs.

This FAQ page from the popular personal finance platform Mint is a good example of what it looks like to talk directly to customers, as opposed to preaching at them. The page only addresses pertinent issues and speaks in a tone that’s appropriate to the situation.

  1. Regularly Update

Just as the products and services your brand sells change over time, so do the needs of your customers. The FAQ page isn’t something you can create when developing a website and then let sit for a year or two. This page should be updated on a rolling basis as you learn more about your target market and how they see your business. A FAQ page is only beneficial if it’s relevant, so make sure you’re constantly optimizing.

Don’t Leave Your Customers Hanging

The FAQ page plays a vital role in the conversion process. If a visitor reaches this page, it tells you that they’re very interested in what you have to offer. Your ability to answer their questions in an efficient and comprehensive manner may mean the difference between closing or losing a sale. Take advantage of these opportunities by optimizing your page today.

Larry Alton
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Larry Alton is an independent business consultant specializing in social media trends, business, and entrepreneurship. Follow him on Twitter and LinkedIn.

1 COMMENT

  1. Faq page is most desirable and important page for any website, on this page any consumer want complete details about issues which they were facing. So faq page must be consumer friendly for desired results.

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