This is the fourth in a series of suggested practices for creating knowledge base content.
Your knowledge base content is even more helpful if it includes links to other helpful content. Note these tips for constructing and formatting external and sample links:
There's No "Here" Here
Not helpful: "For more information, click here."
More helpful: For more information, see Constructing Useful Links.
Lose the URL
Don't use the URL as the link text – use the target title text instead so people know the subject of where they're headed.
Set the Context
Let people know if they're leaving your site to go to an external location. For bonus points, let them know what type of information the link provides, for example, a documentation topic, an article, a PDF file, and the like.
Use Variables in Sample URLs
When providing a sample URL, use variables rather than internal server or employee names.
For example, https//:<instance-name>.example.com/dev/.
Clicking the Clicky Thing
Make sure that sample URLs are not automatically converted to clickable links that will not work. They should appear as regular article text.
Tip – In the HTML source, use the < and > special characters rather than typing angle brackets.
For example, <p>When testing your app, go to https://<instance-name>.plirg.com/test/.<p>
Irreplaceable
Set the link to open in a new window/tab so it does not replace the open article in the current window/tab. Within the <a> tags, include target="_blank" as well as the href= URL.
For example, <a target="_blank" href="https://docs.plirg.com/testing-links.html">
More Tips for Authoring Knowledge Base Content
For even more helpful tips for authoring good knowledge base content, see the other posts in this series:
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