Delivering great customer service is a vital part of running a business. Quickly responding to queries, efficiently collaborating on tickets, and providing helpful solutions are just some of the responsibilities of your customer support team.
In order to achieve their goals, your people need to have the right software available to meet their needs. One such software is a self-service knowledge base, which provides helpful content to your customers so your agents can spend more time on the tasks that matter.
ProProfs knowledge base is a popular option for companies looking to develop a self-service resource. However, ProProfs knowledge base is not the only solution on the market, and in this article we are going to be looking at some powerful ProProfs alternatives.
What is ProProfs Knowledge Base?
ProProfs knowledge base is software for creating a website that contains tutorials, FAQs, troubleshooting guides, technical documentation, product guides, and much more. When you set up a ProProfs knowledge base, your site contains a search bar and an extensive navigational system that makes it possible for your customers to find the content they are looking for.
A knowledge base is much more than a normal website. The Information Architecture differs substantially, as it is created with storing a complex set of pages in mind. Knowledge bases are intended to contain documentation that will come in useful for your users, whether they are external customers or internal employees.
The analytics that run in the background also differ, as it tells you whether your content is helpful or not, and knowledge bases like ProProfs offer vital integrations that enable you to connect your different systems together.
What Does ProProfs Knowledge Base Offer?
Content authoring
First and foremost, ProProfs Knowledge Base is a content authoring system. You log into the platform, and build a knowledge base either from scratch or using the templates provided by ProProfs Knowledge Base. Then you start to fill your knowledge base with content, using their simple editor which provides a WYSIWYG view. You can easily format your text with images and video, tables and call outs, making sure your content is designed in a way that best suits your users.
Branding and customization
With ProProfsKnowledge Base , it is possible to brand and customize your knowledge base to suit your business’s needs. You can change the logo and colors, choose from more than 600 fonts and themes, and directly edit the CSS and HTML if you have access to development resources.
User management
In the ProProfs Knowledge Base, you can assign user roles such as editor, contributor, administrator, and viewer to different users and groups. It’s possible to define their permissions based on their roles, so you can take full control of who can perform what actions in your knowledge base.
Security
ProProfs Knowledge Base has state-of-the-art computer servers which are hosted at a secure location that maintains multiple power feeds, fiber links, dedicated generators, and battery backup. Their software and infrastructure is updated regularly with the latest security patches. The network is protected by an enterprise-class firewall and all ProProfs plans include remote data backups to keep your data safe.
Contextual help
You can use ProProfs’ Knowledge Base contextual help tool to build on-site and task-based help provided whenever your customers need it most. Guide customers with tooltips, light boxes and popups that appear in your website or app. You can explain technical terms, share additional product features or pricing disclaimers that work across all operating systems, browsers and mobile devices.
Search
ProProfs Knowledge Base supports a robust search functionality that allows users to quickly find the information they’re looking for. It’s possible to easily add this search box to your website or web application to enhance the user experience with your navigation. The search will match with each page’s content, page title, search keywords, and table of contents name.
Integrations
ProProfs Knowledge Base offers a number of integrations including Zendesk, Desk, Google Analytics, Google Translate, Google Fonts, Live Chat, Olark, SnapEngage, Wufoo, and Freshdesk. With these integrations, you can streamline your support workflows and get more out of the software.
Mobile version
ProProfs Knowledge Base Touch is an optimized version of your site for smartphones and tablets, so your documentation will display correctly on any device. ProProfs Touch makes your knowledge base look and feel like a native app right in the web browser, with nothing to download or install. Underpinned by HTML5 and CSS3, it works on Apple, Android, BlackBerry, and Windows devices.
Limitations of ProProfs Knowledge Base
No private hosting
Unfortunately with ProProfs Knowledge Base, you can only access the software as a SaaS app. There is no option to privately host your knowledge base for your own peace of mind. You have to trust ProProfs’ security.
Doesn’t support ticket deflection
With ProProfs Knowledge Base, it’s impossible to identify whether tickets have been deflected from your support team. There is no way to tell whether customers have been able to self-serve their queries and thus saved an interaction with a support representative.
Rudimentary analytics feature
Native analytics with ProProfs Knowledge Base don’t go into much depth and you are required to install Google Analytics for any reporting features.
Limited Integration
The integrations offered by ProProfs Knowledge Base are fairly limited and don’t include in-built integrations with many popular tools out there. This means you have to jump between different tools when dealing with your customers, wasting valuable time and effort.
Contextual help requires development resources
Tooltips, light boxes and pop-ups require input from the development team, meaning it doesn’t work properly out of the box. It’s not suitable for non-technical users.
Co-editing is not available
It’s not possible for content producers to simultaneously edit content and work collaboratively. Users cannot see updates being made in real-time.
The 7 Best ProProfs Knowledge Base Alternatives
1. Document360
Document360 is an incredibly powerful knowledge base software suitable for startups, growing teams, and enterprise businesses. While extremely simple and intuitive to get started with, Document360 offers a broad range of features to allow you to create a knowledge base with simple steps
Document360 includes an advanced portal for content producers, with a state-of-the-art editor, category manager, analytics and more. As soon as you start using
Document360, you can set up your knowledge base with ease using in-built templates or designing your own site. Content producers are empowered to create content using either the WYSIWYG or Markdown editor.
Brand your knowledge base, style it to your heart’s content, and create a public or private knowledge base with a custom home page and domain. The knowledge base can require access credentials for users so your knowledge base is kept private.
An embeddable widget links your product or website to your knowledge base so users can get answers no matter where they are with contextual help.
It’s possible to connect your knowledge base with your favorite third-party help desks, chatbots, translation services, analytics tools and team collaboration tools. Integrations include Freshdesk, Zendesk, Intercom, Drift, Slack, and Microsoft Teams, with more being added all the time. Also you can integrate any product with JavaScript snippet.
You can view version history between multiple article versions or rollback to a prior version without fuss. You never have to be concerned about unintentionally overwriting the content with automatic source control. This powerful feature makes Document360 extremely suitable for collaborative teams. You can collaborate with other editors and reviewers directly by tagging them with @name.
User’s opinion on Document360
“One of the best tools out there for creating a knowledge base”
The interface is very intuitive. I was able to dive right in and start creating my knowledge base without any training. The documentation is thorough and well written. The training videos are very helpful.
Document360 offers a great deal of customization when it comes to the look and layout of your knowledge base. The customer service is top-notch. They are always quick to respond to questions. It is easy to import content from Google Docs and Microsoft Word. The output looks great.
Source: G2 Crowd
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2. Nuclino
Nuclino is designed to work as an internal wiki to allow teams to share ideas, projects and documentation. You can create beautiful content and bring it to life with text, images, videos, files, tasks, embeds, code blocks, and more.
Nuclino supports Markdown for those users who prefer to work with this simple language. Collaborate in real-time as every item is instantly shared with your team. When someone is editing, you can see changes as they type, making this software extremely suitable for teams who want to collaborate on documents just like Google Drive.
User’s opinion on Nuclino
“To organize and work as a team”
Very simple to use, everything can be organized in a straightforward, user-friendly manner, making it easier to navigate than Google Drive files. It has good functionality for processes of editing, documentation, and communication. Its low cost makes it really attractive.
Source: G2 Crowd
3. Bloomfire
Bloomfire is cloud-based knowledge management software that enables companies to collect, connect, and democratize the knowledge and insights that exist across the entire organization. Bloomfire is intended for use by internal teams to centralize their collective wisdom and make it easier to find and share the information they need.
Bloomfire supports teams to find the information they need on a much quicker scale. It boasts an AI-powered search engine that deep indexes every single word in every file, including videos. Automated tagging, customizable filters, search suggestions, and search that runs across all your knowledge base give users several methods of finding knowledge they need.
Bloomfire is also a tool for community building. You can encourage team members to ask questions and get answers through the platform, interact with articles through comments and likes, and create customized feeds that display the content and contributors they most want to see.
User’s opinion on Bloomfire
“Simple, Intuitive, Resourceful”
I can find everything I need at the tips of my fingers. Not only do I see articles, but I am also seeing questions and answers to unique inquiries from agents of all levels.
Source: G2 Crowd
4. Guru
Guru is another internal wiki that adapts to your workflows, so the information team members need to be effective is always available. Guru is notable for organizing content into cards, boards, and collections so it’s easy to navigate the wiki when searching for information.
Guru’s browser extension means users can work with the knowledge base wherever they are. Its integration with Teams and Slack means users can access content in their collaboration tools and avoid answering the same questions over and over.
User’s opinion on Guru
“It is very useful for small-medium companies to manage knowledge base.”
I like that Guru is not overloaded with features that are not critical for small teams, it is very easy to start utilizing Guru – just start writing your own thoughts, then formalize them each time you check the card and verify that the card is up to date. Don’t forget to add tags for easy searching info next time
Source: G2 Crowd
5. Knowledge Owl
KnowledgeOwl is knowledge base software that can be used for external-facing customer documentation or internal-facing teams. KnowledgeOwl is notable for providing a distraction-free editor and with extensive configurations for displaying content and managing access. KnowledgeOwl has a full-featured WYSIWYG editor so non-technical authors can create content with ease.
The KnowledgeOwl search is robust with auto suggest and search synonyms, making it easy for end users to find content. Their built-in contextual help widget surfaces content in-app or on your website, further increasing the likelihood of your audience using your knowledge base.
Also Read: KnowledgeOwl vs Document360 Comparison: Which Is Better?
User’s opinion on KnowledgeOwl
“Great way to update our employees”
I like that I am able to update the information needed by our employees as I get it. The program is very intuitive to use and take little time to learn. You do not need mad computer or HTLM skills to run the program. It is great to have customer service that actually wants to help you in a quick and efficient manner. We get great feed back from our employees on the ease to use and search. It is hard to even think about going back to the old way of doing business after being spoiled with this program.
Source: G2 Crowd
6. Notion
Notion is a project management software that allows teams to share content with one another and find information relating to projects and other topics. Notion is an all-in-one workspace that combines notes, docs, project management, and wikis to enhance the collaboration of your team.
Notion is powerful because it combines the functionality of apps like Evernote, Trello, Monday, and One Note and brings them into one simple platform. Notion is designed for teams who want to share their work and overcome the challenges inherent with working remotely.
Notion makes it easy to start with a template and customize it to your specifications. You can choose from thousands of free, pre-built setups that are suitable for all manner of work tasks. Notion offers critical integrations that give you the context you need in one tool. It’s possible to view the content and status of Jira tasks, Slack threads, GitHub issues, and more, all without leaving Notion.
User’s opinion on Notion
“A Collaboration and Productivity Tool that meets all of my needs!”
I love that Notion is super customizable. There are tons of free templates for you to utilize to edit and make your own. I use Notion to not only track work tasks and my school work, but I also use it for my personal life. It’s just an awesome tool.
Source: G2 Crowd
7. Stonly
Stonly provides interactive guides for customers and employees. You can take your users through customized workflows to help them find the answers they need. Stonly is suitable for self-serve support to enable customers to find answers to issues, onboarding for product adoption, and training teams to share internal knowledge.
With Stonly, you can encourage customers and employees to achieve success at scale, because a one-size-fits-all guidance system doesn’t work. Stonly enables you to provide self-serve guides that adapt to the individual who is using it, and prompt them on the journey towards onboarding, issue resolution, and adoption.
User’s opinion on Stonly
“Easy tool to create helpful guides”
Stonly is very intuitive and easy to use. The opportunity to highlight CSS selectors makes guided tours very smooth and cool. The support is very fast and friendly.
Source: G2 Crowd
Wrapping up
ProProfs Knowledge Base can be a useful tool for both a customer-facing knowledge base and internal documentation. However, it may not be a perfect platform for everyone and there are plenty of alternatives out there, including Document360.
Document360 has been designed exclusively with content producers in mind so you can create content for your users with a minimum of fuss.
Document360 offers a very intuitive user experience and the ability to create a high volume of content for either customers or employees. You can customize the software to suit your own workflows and import or export data from all your favorite tools. Drastically reduce your support ticket volume or supercharge knowledge management within your company using Document360.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What is ProProfs knowledge base used for?
ProProfs Knowledge Base is a simple solution for creating a knowledge base, FAQs, help centres, documentation, and manuals. The tool is fully customizable as it allows you to tailor your knowledge base to your liking with its wide range of formatting and styling features. And integrates with live chat and help desk software.
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What are the best alternatives for ProProfs Knowledge base?
The top 3 alternatives of ProProfs knowledge base software are: 1. Document360, 2. Nuclino, 3. Bloomfire
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