QnA Best Practices

Tips for Writing Questions 

Make sure the language is natural (i.e. how people talk).  Phrase questions the way a person would ask them verbally, keep it short and simple.

Your users will have the greatest success getting the answer they are looking for if you provide as many variants to the question as possible as everyone will phrase things differently.  For example…

EXAMPLE QUESTION WITH VARIANTS:

• What is your pricing?
• How much does it cost?
• How much do you charge?

EXAMPLE ANSWER: Our rate is fifty five dollars an hour.

Draft one question at a time.

EXAMPLE: Instead of writing, “What services do you offer and how much do they cost?”, break those into two separate questions of “What services do you offer?” and another for “What is your pricing?”

Tips for Writing Answers

Answers should be short (2-3 sentences max.), but more than a simple “yes” or “no” answer.
If you really want to engage your customers in a conversation, consider giving them a suggested next question or a call to action at the end of your answer – think about how a conversation would naturally flow.

EXAMPLE: Our rate is fifty five dollars per hour.  If you would like to hear about the services we offer, just say, ask Brown Consulting, what services do you offer?
When offering a leading follow up question at the end of your answer, be sure you also have a question phrased the same way in your QnA.

EXAMPLE ANSWER: Our rate is fifty five dollars per hour.  If you would like to hear about the services we offer, just say, ask Brown Consulting, what services do you offer?

EXAMPLE QUESTION:

• What services do you offer?
• What do you specialize in?
• What services do you provide?

General Tips

Use a comma for short pauses between words and a period for a slightly longer pause. Instead of using symbols that some voice platforms may not translate, TYPE out your words so that they are read correctly.

EXAMPLE: The “.” in www.joespizza.com is read correctly when written as w, w, w.  dot. joes. pizza. dot. com.

Phone numbers read best written as follows:  3, 0, 3.  5, 5, 5.  5, 5, 5, 5.

SAMPLE QnA

QUESTION 1:

• Tell me about Joe’s Pizza
• What is Joe’s Pizza?
• What is the history of Joe’s Pizza?

ANSWER 1:  Joe’s Pizza is a local pizza parlor that has been in New Haven since 1980. Still operated by the original owner, Joe’s Pizza is the best place to grab a slice for lunch. If you would like our address, just say, ask Joe’s Pizza what is your address?

QUESTION 2:

• What is your address?
• Where are you located?
• How do I find you?

ANSWER 2: Joe’s Pizza is located at 12 Barber Street in New Haven and is open from 11am until 8pm. If you would like to contact Joe’s Pizza, just say, ask Joe’s Pizza what is your contact information?

QUESTION 3:

• What is your contact information?
• What is your phone number?
• How do I order?

ANSWER 3: You can reach us by calling 1, 0, 1.  1, 0, 1.  1, 1, 1, 1.  Or you can visit us online at w, w, w. dot. joes. pizza. dot. com.  To hear about our most popular pizzas, just say, ask Joe’s Pizza what are the most popular pizzas?

QUESTION 4:

• What are the most popular pizzas?
• What pizza is ordered the most?
• What pizza should I order?

ANSWER 4: Our most popular pizza is the Hawaiian Pizza which has red sauce, cheese, ham, and pineapple. The second most popular is pepperoni, followed by our barbecue chicken. If you would like to place an order, you can call us at 1, 0, 1.  1, 0, 1.  1, 1, 1, 1.