Content Strategy & Design for a Help Center

When I stepped into the role of content strategist for an online marketplace, one of my main areas of focus was their Help Center.

Nearly half of all incoming contacts to customer service were messages sent directly from what was intended to be the Self-Service section - more than from any other single source (including replies to daily marketing emails and transactional alerts).

I conducted a complete audit and identified unnecessary, outdated and/or incorrect information as well as knowledge gaps.

From my findings, I redesigned its information architecture to center the product’s two unique user journeys and made significant content updates -

all which reduced incoming customer service messages by 32%.

Below is one key area I updated: seller education.

BEFORE: Seller categories & topics

The two-sided marketplace had a very Buyer-oriented Help Center despite its user base being roughly 50/50 Buyers & Sellers. With only two seller-focused categories (Selling and Earnings), here is the view of the various topics available in the Selling section.

BEFORE: faqs in a Selling category

After selecting the first topic ("Using...") in the Selling section, here is the next screen.

Data showed the answers to these basic account questions were some of the least viewed pages of the Help Center.

AFTER: Seller categories & topics

I redesigned the categories based on journey mapping and analysis of customer contacts and feedback.

I also separated pre- and post- sale info into the "List From Your Closet" and "Confirm Your Sale & Ship" categories. Additionally, the "List ..." category starts with a high-level overview section on how the process works, then addresses the particulars of posting

AFTER: faqs in a Selling category

After selecting the first topic (How Selling Works) in the "List From..." section, here is the next screen.

A substantial pain point discovered throughout numerous customer contacts and satisfaction surveys was a lack of a single place for an overview of the selling process.

BEFORE: Dos and Don'ts

I made copy updates throughout to align with the company's updated Style Guide - which meant getting rid of this especially stiff-sounding topic.

Additionally, the questions about what can and can't be sold were awkwardly placed between shipping and canceling info.

AFTER: Dos and Don'ts

Because these were truly the most-asked questions as customer service data and feedback showed, these pages became some of the most commonly viewed in the Help Center and contributed to improved seller satisfaction.