How do I answer questions straight from my docs site?
You answer questions straight from your docs site by putting a chat widget on it that answers from articles you publish, and nothing else. Docusaurus, Mintlify, VitePress and ReadMe each take one config line or script tag. A reader asks on the page they are stuck on, gets the documented answer in seconds, and anything undocumented becomes a ticket.
Last updated: October 2026 · View as Markdown
Why does this keep happening?
Readers do not read. They land on a page from a search, skim for their case, and ask when they do not find it, in Discord, in an issue, or by giving up. The answer is often two pages away.
Search boxes on docs sites match words, not questions. "Why does the build fail on Node 18" matches nothing, even when the Node version note is right there under Requirements.
A widget that answers from the docs turns the site from something to read into something to ask. The docs stay the source of truth; the widget is the way in.
How do I fix it, step by step?
Add the widget to the docs site
Docusaurus takes one scripts entry in its config, VitePress one head entry or the official package, ReadMe one paste in Header HTML, Mintlify a small JS file. Each is on the integrations directory with the exact lines.
Publish the pages readers ask about most as articles
Installation, configuration, troubleshooting, the FAQ. Paste them into the DeskCrew knowledge base. The widget answers from these and only these.
Let it answer on the page
A reader on the configuration page asks about an option and gets the documented answer in the chat, with no tab change. If the docs do not cover it, the widget says so and opens a ticket.
Connect Discord if that is where readers already ask
The same articles power the Discord bot. One server is included on the free plan.
Write the missing page from the tickets
Every ticket is a question the docs did not answer. That is the backlog for the next docs sprint, ranked by how often it was asked.
What is true about this today?
| Fact | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Docs platforms with an official DeskCrew install path | Docusaurus, Mintlify, VitePress and ReadMe; GitBook allows no scripts, so link the help center instead | DeskCrew integrations directory, October 2026 |
| Customers who want to resolve as many issues as possible on their own | 69% | Zendesk, self-service research, July 2021 |
| Customers who rate an immediate response as important or very important | 90% | HubSpot Research, updated May 2025 |
| DeskCrew free plan | 10 AI answers and about 100 conversations a month, no card | DeskCrew pricing, October 2026 |
What changes, and what does not?
It answers from the articles you published, not from a crawl
You paste or publish the pages you want answered. That is deliberate: the widget never quotes a draft, a deprecated page or a random forum post. Keep the articles in step with the docs.
Mintlify custom JS is a paid Mintlify feature
The widget itself is free, but Mintlify only runs custom scripts on its paid plans. GitBook allows no scripts at all; there, link the help center from the sidebar instead.
Ten AI answers a month on the free plan
Enough to see whether readers use it. A busy docs site moves to Pro at $29 a month flat, with 150 answers included.
What else do people ask?
Does the widget read my whole docs site automatically?
No. It answers from the knowledge base articles you publish, which for a docs site means pasting the pages that matter: install, configure, troubleshoot, FAQ. That keeps a draft or a deprecated page from being quoted. Most projects start with ten pages and add one each time a ticket shows a gap in the docs.
Will it slow the docs site down?
No. It is one deferred script that loads after the page renders, inside its own isolated container, so it cannot conflict with your theme or your search box. There is no server-side piece on your docs host and nothing to build. Removing it is deleting the one line you added.
Can readers reach a human from the widget?
Yes, at any point. The widget opens a ticket with the question and the page they were on, and asks for an email if they want the reply outside the chat. A maintainer replies from the dashboard, Slack or Discord, and the reader gets it where they asked or by email.
What if the docs are versioned?
Publish articles for the version readers ask about most, usually the latest, and say the version in the article title. A question about an older version that the articles do not cover becomes a ticket rather than a wrong answer, which is the safe failure. Add the older version only if the tickets show it is needed.
Which docs platforms are supported?
Docusaurus, VitePress, Mintlify and ReadMe have install guides with the exact lines, and any static docs site takes one script tag in the base layout. GitBook does not allow custom scripts on published sites, so the honest answer there is to link the DeskCrew help center from the GitBook sidebar.
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