Knowledge Base Article Standards

Summary

A guide that outlines the required style standards for creating Knowledge Base articles.

Body

Overview

This guide outlines the required style standards for Knowledge Base (KB) articles to ensure consistent content, formatting, and tone. Follow these guidelines while completing your selected KB template, and refer to Create a Knowledge Base Article for instructions on the article creation and submission process.

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Procedure

Choose the Correct Template

Before creating a knowledge base article, select the appropriate department template. Templates contain department-specific Contact Information, while all other content provides guidance for creating your article. 

Click Templates and choose from the following: 

  • KB General Template – IT Help Desk Contact & Remote Support
  • KB Academic Technology Template – Academic Technology | NMSU Global
  • KB Admissions Template – Undergraduate and Graduate Admissions
  • KB HR Template – HR Service Center

 

Article Sections

To maintain consistency across the Knowledge Base catalog, all articles must follow the standard article structure and section titles provided in the KB template. These sections are pre-defined and should not be renamed, reordered, or modified. While not every section is required for every article, any section that is used must retain its original title and format. Sections that do not apply may be deleted. For each section you keep, replace the instructional text within the template to be the content specific to your article.

  • Overview: Briefly summarize the article and what users will learn or accomplish.
  • Before you Begin: List any prerequisites or requirements. If none apply, delete this section.
  • Procedures: Provide clear, step-by-step instructions that follow the text and image guidelines.
  • If You're Still Experiencing Issues: Replace the placeholder URL with the appropriate service link for submitting a support request.
  • Contact Information: Do not modify this section. If a department-specific template is unavailable, submit a request to the IT Help Desk.

 

Formatting Guidelines

Every knowledge base article should follow these formatting guidelines:

  • Do not change the default font or font size.
  • Body text should be 16-point font. If the font size changes while editing, reset the affected text to 16 point. 
  • Use bold for emphasis. If additional emphasis is needed, underline the word or phrase.
  • Quotation marks should not be used in articles. Any text that would normally appear within quotation marks should be bolded instead.
  • If important information must be reviewed before proceeding, add a Note at the beginning of the next section.
    • Format Note: in bold and use Firebrick red (#B22222) font color.
  • Remove unnecessary white space at the end of the article

 

Do's and Don'ts

Style Guide Do's  Don'ts
Acronyms:
Spell out the terms the first time used followed by parentheses. 
 Knowledge Base (KB) KB
Active and Positive Voice: 
See examples
Save any changes before exiting the application.
Do not exit the application without first saving changes. 
Audience: 
Use proper capitalization. Capitalize product names, acronyms, and proper nouns as appropriate. Use sentence case for general instruction text.
Microsoft Office
 
UNIX
 
Select the correct driver
microsoft office
 
unix
 
select the correct driver
Date:
DD/MM/YYYY
11/05/2025
11/5/2025
11-5-2025
Gender:
Create instructions gender neutral
Open the dialog box
Have him open the dialog box
Graphics:
Use ONLY if necessary
Avoid large files sizes
.gif
.jpg
.pdf
.bmp
File naming convention for attachments:
Use ONLY in extreme cases
TypeDescriptionAsis.Doc
Type_seperating_each_word_with_underscore.format
Input instructions:
See examples
Click submit
Double-click the icon
Hit the submit button
Click on the icon
Hyperlinks:
Name Hyperlinks for clarity, using the link icon
Signature creation 
https://support.office.com/en-us/article/create-and-add-a-signature-to-message-8ee5d4f4-68fd-464a-a1c1-0e1c80bb27f2?ui=en-US&rs=en-US&ad=US
Key combinations:
Use the + character if keys are to be pressed at the same time 
Use commas for sequences
Press CTRL+ALT+DEL
 
Press ALT, F, and X
Control, Alt, Delete
 
Press "ALT", then press "F", and then hit "X"
Lists:
Use bullets for lists when order does not matter
Use numbered lists for procedural steps where order is important and there is more than one step
Limit sublevels to tow
1. First level
      a.     Second level
               i. Third level
               ii. Next Item
     b. Next Item
2. Next item
 
 
First level, Second level, Third level
Next Item
Numbers:
Spell out numbers zero through ten. 
Use numbers for 11 and above. Use commas for values above 1,000
There are three options on the menus
 
The value is 1,200
There are 3 options on the menus
 
 
The value is 1200
Punctuation:
Use commas to separate multiple actions, after introductory phrases and to separate words in a series of three or more
Bold information to clarify
Don't use single quotation marks
We support xyz, abc, and def. 
 
The message reads Shutdown your PC
 
Microsoft application won't open
We support xya and abc and def
 
The message reads, "Shutdown your PC". 
 
 
'microsoft' app won't open. 
References:
List references at the end of the step-by-step procedures
See page ten of the Cisco reference guide
Use the Cisco reference guide for more details
Variables:
Use n for numeric data
Use a for alphabetical data
Use x for data that can be either numeric or alpha
Cancel [n] print jobs before restarting (where [n] represents an unknown number of print jobs)
Cancel however many print jobs there are in the queue before restarting. 
 Vocabulary:
Use spelling and grammar checks
There is no reason for this 
Their is no reason four this

Adding a Note

If you have additional information that would be important for the user to know before proceeding

  1. Press Shift + Enter to create a new blank line
  2. Start the sentence with Note: 
  3. Type the whole sentence
  4. Highlight Note:
  5.  Add bolding  Note: 
  6. Change the color to Firebrick red (#b22222)  Note: 

Tags

To improve search results, include tags for relevant terms that aren’t already in the article’s content.

  • Include common spelling variations (e.g., email, e-mail, wifi, wi-fi).
  • Use hyphens for multi-word tags (e.g., article-structure).

Note: Avoid over-tagging — too many tags can reduce search accuracy.

For more information, visit the Search in TeamDynamix guide. 

Adding Font Awesome

Note: Use of Font Awesome will add common icons to your article

  1. Click Insert Font Awesome 
  2. Browse through the icons available or search 
  3. Click the icon you want to use
  4. Click Okay

 

Adding Links

  1. Click  Link.
  2. Enter the following:
  • Display Text
  • Link Type
  • URL
  1. Click the Target tab.
  2. Set the target to New Window (_blank).

 

Linking to other Articles

Note: Any article linked within the article body should also be added as a Related Article, which appears beneath the Details panel on the right side of the article.

  1. Open the article you'd like to link
  2. Click Edit Article
  3. Click Related Articles tab
  4. Click Add
  5. Search and locate the related article
  6. Select the article you want to add
  7. Click Save

Note: You can select more than one article prior to saving settings. 

Contact Information:

IT Help Desk Contact & Remote Support
In Person: Hardman & Jacobs Undergraduate Learning Center - Room 105
Phone: (575) 646-HELP (4357)
Email: help@nmsu.edu
Chat: Chat with Support

Details

Details

Article ID: 20275
Created
Wed 11/5/25 6:25 PM
Modified
Tue 8/11/26 11:34 AM
Environment
What service, system, process, application, or product could be impacted? Has anything changed in the environment recently? Environment statements are specific to the issue and resolution, and are true before and after resolution.
Knowledge Base