If you deal with a lot of customers, chances are you or your team hear a lot of the same questions. Here is how to create an FAQ in WordPress, to help answer those questions before they come up again.
General Questions About a FAQ’s
Before we go into the details of how to create an FAQ, let me clear up some more generic questions you might have about FAQ’s.
What is an FAQ
FAQ stands for Frequently Asked Questions. It allows you to give short, concise answers to the questions your customers commonly have.
When Should I Use an FAQ
Any time you hear the same questions repeated over and over from your customers.
Why are FAQ’s Helpful for My Website?
FAQ’s help in two ways, actually. First, an FAQ section helps to answer common questions, which is good for your customers and good for your customer support specialists too. Second, an FAQ is great for SEO at the moment. Google loves to provide simple answers to users’ questions, and tends to put FAQ content from websites around the Internet at the top of its search results.
Are There Plugins to Create a WordPress FAQ Section?
Definitely! Read about which ones to use here.
How to Prepare an FAQ Plan for Your WordPress Website
Creating an FAQ section is going to take some foresight, so start with a written plan showing what your FAQ should do. This usually begins by writing down a list of all the questions or issues that have come up in the past. What do you think your customers might ask you if they could talk to you right now? Ask your customer service reps if they can remember any examples of important questions they keep hearing.
Look over your list of questions. Are there any questions on your list that only apply to a small number of customers? Consider removing these. Remember, the FAQ is a general information source for all of your customers. Are there any questions that are simple to answer for everyone, but not on your list? Consider adding these to the list. For example, “When will I be charged for X service?” or “How do I use X product?”
When you’re finished with your written list, you should have questions with the following characteristics:
- These questions keep coming up (questions that are frequently asked)
- These questions are easily answered
Once you have a pretty decent list of questions, start to try to organize them into groups or categories. This will make it easier for customers to find the answers they need. Depending on the number of questions and answers you have put together, you may want to break up each group into a separate FAQ page, linked to from the main FAQ page on your website. If so, put that in writing on your FAQ plan.
Plugins to Create WordPress FAQ Content
The next decision is how to display your FAQ in WordPress. Try to choose an FAQ design that uses proper schema markup. Using the correct schema will allow Google to embed your questions and answers in their search results. This also helps your SEO ranking. Here are some examples of WordPress plugins you can use to make your life easier.
Ultimate FAQ
Ultimate FAQ is one WordPress plugin that provides the FAQ schema markup you need to be part of Google’s answers section. It comes with a WordPress FAQ block you can use, if you use the WordPress Site Editor. In addition, it also comes with a shortcode you can use in any block editor. If you want the best FAQ’s anywhere, and you don’t mind adding an extra plugin just for that, this is your plugin.
Rank Math SEO
Rank Math SEO is an all-around excellent SEO plugin. I highly recommend it for your SEO needs, and if you’re already using it for SEO, I also highly recommend utilizing its FAQ functionality in WordPress if possible. The free version includes a WordPress FAQ block with SEO-critical FAQ schema markup built in behind the scenes. For paying users, there’s also a way to add custom FAQ schema to your pages via their Schema Builder, which is useful for page builders besides the WordPress Site Editor. Learn more about that process on their website here.
Yoast SEO
Yoast SEO, very much like Rank Math SEO, includes a WordPress block for adding FAQ functionality that includes that important FAQ schema markup behind the scenes. If you’re already using this plugin for SEO, I also highly recommend utilizing its FAQ functionality if possible.
Final Thoughts
FAQ content tends to go stale over time. It may help to have your customer service representatives peruse your website’s FAQ section at least once a year, and write down notes about which questions or answers could be improved, which are no longer necessary, and which are missing from the FAQ section altogether. Over time your FAQ section will become much more focused, and much better at resolving customer issues quickly. Your customers and your customer support staff will thank you!
FAQ Fun
Did you notice I included an FAQ about FAQ’s at the top of this blog post? I used Rank Math SEO! Let me know if you caught that in the comments!
