Internal Knowledge Base Software: A Definitive Guide

Imagine a workplace where employees don’t waste hours digging through old documents or emailing colleagues for answers. Instead, they have instant access to accurate, up-to-date information, right when they need it. That’s the power of an internal knowledge base.

A study by McKinsey indicates that employees engaged in interactions dedicate approximately 28% of their workweek to email and around 20% to locating internal information or colleagues who can assist in a task.

Now, picture this: what if all that knowledge, including processes, policies, and expert insights, were stored in one centralized hub? That’s exactly what internal knowledge base software offers.

It transforms scattered information into a structured, accessible resource that empowers your team to work smarter, faster, and with greater confidence.

In this blog, we will discuss internal knowledge base software, its advantages, and offer tips for establishing a centralized information repository within your organization.

What is an internal knowledge base?

An internal knowledge base is a centralized, secure repository of your company’s policies, product and service information, standard operating procedures (SOPs), onboarding guides, troubleshooting tutorials, and other essential resources.

It ensures employees across departments have easy access to accurate, up-to-date content.

Modern knowledge base software typically includes advanced search functionality, enabling staff to quickly find relevant information, such as FAQ answers, helping to streamline workflows.

Top 6 benefits of using internal knowledge base software

Establishing an internal knowledge base offers numerous advantages that go beyond enhancing organizational efficiency. Let’s explore the key benefits of implementing this software.

Facilitates smooth onboarding

Having a well-organized internal knowledge base tool makes it easier to bring new employees up to speed, solve problems, and improve their experience.

It provides reference material for effortless training and reduces the workload of senior team members.

Enhances productivity

When crucial information is readily available, worries about delays and inefficiencies diminish. Employees can focus on essential tasks and improve team productivity, as they no longer need to sift through multiple sources of scattered data.

Fosters a culture of teamwork

An internal knowledge base enables support agents to easily share ideas and best practices, access information for references easily, and ensure everyone stays aligned with the shared goal.

Improves decision-making

An internal knowledge base enhances organizational results by equipping your customer service agents with the information they need to address customer concerns quickly and confidently.

Employees can always refer to the knowledge base for company policies and guidelines, ensuring they have the right information before making important decisions.

Encourages quick resolution of technical problems

According to a Panopto study, 81% of employees get irritated when they can’t find the information they need to do their jobs well.

Customer service agents can quickly identify and fix technical problems with the aid of an internal knowledge base.

They can refer to the troubleshooting guides or FAQ pages for possible solutions and resolve the customer issue in a short period.

Additionally, the agents can publish and share the solutions as guides so that others can use them in future and ensure consistency.

Promotes knowledge retention

Establishing an internal knowledge base enables companies to leverage the insights and experiences of departing employees.

This tool also ensures that confidential company information remains secure, even when staff members exit the organization.

What resources should your internal knowledge base have?

A well-organized internal knowledge base system is essential for empowering your team, improving efficiency, and fostering a culture of continuous learning.

Here are the core resources you can include to ensure employees can find the information they need quickly and confidently.

• Company information: Includes key details such as your mission, vision, and values, office locations, contact information, company policies and procedures, code of conduct and ethics, and communication guidelines.
• Training resources: Offer learning modules covering technical skills, compliance, and personal development. Utilize AI to customize training paths based on roles and goals.
• Onboarding resources: Introduce your company’s customer service culture, policies, tools, and expectations to help new hires understand their responsibilities, foster connections, and get started smoothly.
• Standard operating procedures (SOPs): Provide detailed, step-by-step guides, enhanced with visuals like screenshots, so employees can perform tasks accurately and confidently.
• How-to videos: Use engaging self-help demos to explain complex procedures, demonstrate soft skills, or share leadership messages—catering to different learning styles.
• Audio recordings: Include podcasts, recorded meetings, or important announcements that employees can listen to during breaks, ensuring knowledge sharing is accessible anytime, anywhere.
• Troubleshooting manuals: Offer systematic guides for resolving common issues independently, reducing downtime. Include clear escalation paths for unresolved issues.
• FAQs: Maintain an up-to-date FAQ section that addresses common questions clearly and efficiently.
• Legal and compliance resources: Provide contracts and agreement templates, regulatory compliance guidelines, and data privacy policies to help teams operate within legal boundaries, protect sensitive information, and stay aligned with industry standards.

Best practices for an effective internal knowledge base

Creating an internal knowledge base involves more than just gathering information; it’s about ensuring every team member can easily access, use, and benefit from it. Here are the key steps to guide you.

Identify the needs of your customers

A practical knowledge base begins with profoundly understanding your users’ requirements.

By conducting a team survey, you can pinpoint what employees struggle to find the most and include that information in the KB.

Set clear goals

Having a clear goal is key to your business journey. Start by writing down your visions to ensure your actions match your desired outcomes.

Consider your audience to identify specific objectives. These might include managing support tickets, cutting costs, and improving satisfaction.

Proper goals will boost your efforts and lead to a rewarding experience.

Create a knowledge base team

Before you start drafting the content to include in your knowledge base system, build a team of experts.

Start with content writers, growth hacking team, website team, editors, and more.

An effective team will ensure the information is always relevant, up-to-date, and of good quality.

Provide a robust search function

Strong search features, such as dynamic search engines and keyword optimization, can enhance a knowledge base’s usefulness.

Fast information access greatly improves customer experiences. Adding customer tags and metadata can help facilitate information gathering and improve search efficiency even more.

Enhance your content with impactful visuals

An internal knowledge base without visuals is dull and lifeless, much like a book lacking illustrations.

According to a study conducted by Student-Circuit, visual learning is 83% more effective than text alone because it’s easier to absorb and remember.

Utilize text, photos, and videos to create an immersive and educational knowledge base to improve the self-service experience by explaining procedures and embracing different learning styles.

Present your information in a clear and organized manner

The effectiveness of knowledge base software relies on how easily users can find the information they need.

Design a simple, user-friendly interface that follows a clear, consistent structure. Organize content into well-defined categories and enhance the search functionality to help users find what they need quickly and easily.

Collect feedback and assess content effectiveness

Measure employee engagement metrics to know the performance of your internal knowledge base.

Ask employees about the challenges they face when navigating the self-service resources. Collect all the possible suggestions to improve.

Consider scalability

Scalability impacts your ability to grow and change to meet evolving needs. Issues with rigid software can arise for both clients and staff.

Your software must grow with your business to accommodate an expanding staff and rising content requirements.

Tips to choose the best private knowledge base software

Choosing the right internal knowledge base system is essential for successful knowledge sharing and management. During your selection process, bear the following points in mind.

• Check for seamless integration options: Ensure the knowledge management system smoothly integrates with your existing tools and workflows, like CRMs, project management tools, and communication platforms.

• Evaluate ease of use and search capabilities: Choose a platform with a user-friendly interface and intuitive navigation that includes advanced search features like tags, filters, predictive suggestions, autofill, and AI-powered.
• Examine security and compliance measures: Choose help desk software that offers robust security controls, access management, and compliance options to safeguard sensitive data.
• Prioritize ready-to-use templates: Select a platform that provides pre-designed article templates to facilitate quick content creation and ensure consistency across your knowledge base.
• Consider built-in reports and analytics: Prioritize software that offers comprehensive reporting and analytics tools, enabling you to monitor knowledge base metrics, identify improvement areas, and make data-driven decisions.
• Assess AI capabilities: Look for platforms that incorporate knowledge-based AI to offer smart suggestions or content summarization and have automated tagging to enhance efficiency and user experience.

Best internal knowledge base examples

1. BoldDesk

BoldDesk offers a comprehensive knowledge base solution that supports both internal and external customers.

Its internal knowledge base has powerful tools such as an advanced search function, top-level security features, multimedia support, version control, AI support, and more.

All these features ensure employees can easily create, share, publish, and manage information.

BoldDesk’s top features

• User-friendly editor: Create, edit, and manage knowledge-based articles without coding expertise.
• Multilingual support: Connect with a global audience by offering multilingual customer support.
• Powerful search and analytics features: Utilize advanced search features and analyze users’ behavior to optimize content.
• Collaboration tools: Enable multiple agents to work on a single article at once for team-based knowledge creation.
• AI assist tools: Leverage an AI Copilot for features like content suggestions and auto-summarization.
• Customization capabilities: Customize the knowledge base appearance to match your brand and website design.
• Content organization: Organize articles into categories and subcategories for better navigation and searchability.
• Custom templates: Empower agents to create and post content quickly and be more innovative with knowledge base article templates.
• Article performance tracking: Gauge article engagement via views, likes, dislikes, and comments with integrated performance tracking.
• Unlimited articles: Generate unlimited articles on various brands and products.
• Permission and access control: Maintain the integrity and security of the information stored within your knowledge base.
• SEO and social-friendly tools: Enhance your help center materials for improved search engine visibility and social media engagement.

BoldDesk pricing

BoldDesk empowers support teams with a hybrid model that balances cost and performance.

Its agent -based pricing options allow businesses to integrate AI while maintaining service excellence.

Note: AI agents are available in Momentum and Enterprise plans at $0.75 per resolution.

AI Copilot can be added for $20/month to support human agents.

BoldDesk delivers smart, scalable support solutions.

Looking to grow your team? Let’s build a custom plan together — chat with our experts now!

2. Confluence

Confluence is a documentation tool that enhances knowledge sharing within organizations. It integrates with other Atlassian products, such as Jira, offering a holistic project management solution.

Key features

• Search and navigation
• User roles and permissions
• Ready-made templates
• Reporting and analytics
• Collaborative team editing

Pricing

• Free: $0 for up to 10 users (monthly subscription)
• Standard: $5.42/agent/month
• Premium: $10.44/agent/month
• Enterprise: Contact Atlassian

Free trial duration: 7 days

3. Notion

Notion is a versatile tool that enables users to create, manage, and organize content within a customizable workspace.

It utilizes a block-based system, allowing users to integrate different types of content blocks, including text, images, databases, tasks, and more, on a single page.

Designed for teamwork, Notion offers real-time editing and commenting capabilities.

Key features

• Branding and personalization
• Collaboration and sharing options
• Role management and permissions
• Tailorable templates
• Reporting and analytical tools

Pricing

• Free: $0/month, limited blocks for teams
• Plus: $10/user/month
• Business: $20/user/month
• Enterprise: Contact Notion

4. Helpjuice

Helpjuice is a knowledge base software that allows businesses to create, share, and manage information for internal use.
It has an affordable pricing plan with a user-friendly interface.

Key features

• Intuitive user interface
• Advanced search capabilities
• Collaborative content development and management
• Analytics and reporting tools

Pricing

• Knowledge Base: $249 per month up to 30 users
• AI-Knowledge Base: $449 per month up to 100 users
• Unlimited AI-Knowledge Base: $799 per month for unlimited users

Free trial: 14 days

Unlock efficiency with an internal knowledge base

Choosing the best internal knowledge base software is key to unlocking your team’s full productivity. It empowers employees to efficiently create and share knowledge, leading to faster issue resolution and smarter collaboration.

We recommend BoldDesk, one of the best knowledge base software, as your team’s companion when it comes to building simple yet powerful knowledge repositories.

You can reach out to our support team for any inquiries.

Do you have any additional feedback? Please feel free to leave a comment below.

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• How to Build a Knowledge Base in 7 Easy Steps
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