Indexing keywords and phrases for answers

When an answer is saved, the answer's content is indexed in the knowledge base, and the answer is instantly available for searching. Single words and 2- and 3-word phrases are eligible to be indexed for an answer. Two factors determine whether a word or phrase is indexed: words specifically excluded from searching and a limitation on the number of words and phrases that can be indexed for a specific answer.

URL and Attachment-type answers:  In 8.0 and later releases, you can create two additional types of answers -- URL and attachment. With URL and attachment-type answers, only the Products and Categories, Keywords, and Summary fields are indexed. The content of the URL or the page the URL points to are not indexed. For attachment answers, the content of the attachment is not indexed.

The sections below apply to standard, HTML answers saved within the RightNow application. These answers include the Summary, Question, and Answer fields.

Excluded Words

Words listed in the exclude wordlist file are not indexed when the answer is saved. In addition, phrases that include these words are excluded from being indexed. By default, the exclude file contains common words such as "an, the, on, with, is" and so on. You can also add words that are common to your industry or organization if you wish.

To view the contents of the exclude file, use the steps below:

1. Access the File Manager.
2. From the Switch to: menu, select wordlist files.
3. Click the file name to open the file and review the alphabetical list. The word list file that excludes words from being indexed is named exclude_answers.txt. 

Note: If you choose to remove words from the list, you will need to rebuild the phrases table for your answers. For more information on modifying the exclude file, refer to Answer ID 1309: Excluding Words and Phrases from Searching.

Phrase Indexing Limitation

When dealing with answers that include lengthy content, there is a limit of 750 as to the number of words and phrases indexed for each answer. Words and phrases located towards the end of longer answers may not be indexed and as a result may not be searchable.

When adding and editing answer content, the application indexes words and phrases based on the fields they are used in. The content is indexed in the following order:

1. Products and Categories (as well as sub-products and sub-categories)
2. Keywords
3. Summary
4. Question
5. Answer
6. Flagged file attachments (in 7.x and higher)

You will also see results if an answer has the particular keyword in any of the following:

• A link within the body of the answer which points to a page that contains "horse."  This could be another answer on your page or a link to a third-party page.
  
• A related answer which shows under the heading "Answers others found helpful" that contains the word "horse" somewhere within it.
  
• A related answer which shows under the heading "Answers others found helpful" that has the keyword "horse" as a (sub)product or (sub)category.
  

If you find that a peculiar answer is returned because of these three issues, here are some general solutions to help stop the relationship:

• If the (sub)product or (sub)category is the keyword, remove the (sub)product or (sub)category or recognize that it will likely show up in a keyword search.
  
• Delete the link which points to a page containing the keyword.  Click save.  Try entering it back and save again.
  
• Copy an Answer by right clicking on a saved Answer and choosing "copy."  This will eliminate any relationship with "Answers others found helpful."
  

For long answers, you can enter important keywords and phrases into the Keywords field when editing the answer. This ensures that those words and phrases will be indexed for that answer and are searchable.

Note: When entering multiple words and phrases into the Keywords field, be sure to separate entries with a comma to ensure optimal performance. For more information on the Keywords field when editing answers, refer to Answer ID 1301: Using Keywords with Published Answers.

Another option when dealing with longer answers is to consider breaking the answer into smaller, separate answers so that more of the overall content is indexed across several answers. Answers with fewer words are not adversely affected by the phrase limitation and may be easier for an end user to find and comprehend.

Note that this phrase indexing limitation was implemented by design in order to manage the overall size of the phrases table in the database. In the interests of maintaining an effective and efficient knowledge base, we recommend that answers be composed as succinctly and concisely as possible. This is important not only for the benefit of end users who must absorb the information, but for increasing the accuracy of their searches.

An overabundance of indexed keywords often makes searches less accurate, not more accurate. Using the Keyword field and adding frequently used terms to the exclude file can help you to ensure that the expected search results are returned every time.