Receiving Content from Contributors

[teresab82435819]

Hello All

Does anyone have a standard form for contributors to present their content that can be shared? My call center folks need structure in submitting content. 

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

Not quite sure what you're asking - how does this relate to RH? Are your call center folks going to be using RH to contribute to the content?

[teresab82435819]

They are submitting content for Robohelp. 

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

Ok, so that could come into RH in many ways - Word docs, Google docs, Notepad text files, e-mails - it all depends on how much editing and processing you want to put into it once you've got their input.

[Amebr]

If it's more free form content, rather than knowledge base Q & A / troubleshooting style content, then I've had some success with a Word template.

Set it up with nice looking Heading 1 - 5, Normal, and maybe one or two note/tip styles. I find if it doesn't look nice staff get a bit obsessed with formatting everything to look professional.

Don't add fancy styles like MyCompany-SubHeading_Level1. Just the absolute basics for simple structure. I'd recommend not setting up fancy numbering and bullet styles either.

Include a 1 page quickstart guide that lists very basic writing style guidance, and tell staff to use the defined headings, and for any lists, to use the bullet and simple numbering toolbar icons and the Increase and Decrease Indent buttons for nesting. Explain you'll add the correct numbering to headings and lists etc later.

Link out to the corporate style guide in case people get excited, but in my experience they rarely follow any guide. 😛

For a more structured knowledge base style, I'd suggest a template that includes a boilerplate table that mimics the knowledge base page structure can work, so they include things like date, owner, product area and whatnot.