Why did failed searches go up in my Help Scout Docs report?
The Help Scout Docs help pages give 3 common reasons. The first to rule out: A search counts as failed when its terms match no article, so questions that no article covers can raise the failed search count.
What causes it?
A search counts as failed when its terms match no article, so questions that no article covers can raise the failed search count.
In the Help Scout Docs help:
When you see failed searches in your Docs report, it means people are searching for terms that don't match any articles.
How to Fix Failed Searches, read 2026-11-12.A word or brand name that customers often misspell, or spell differently from your article, can miss the article unless those spellings are added to its keywords.
In the Help Scout Docs help:
For example, if you have a word or brand name that is commonly misspelled or has alternate spellings you didn't use in your article, add those other spellings to the Keywords for that article.
How to Fix Failed Searches, read 2026-11-12.Customers do not see private articles in search results, so a topic covered only in a private article stays out of their search results.
In the Help Scout Docs help:
Your customers will not see private articles in search results.
Private Collections and Articles for Internal Users, read 2026-11-12.
How do I check it myself?
Look at the failed searches table in the Docs report to see which terms customers searched for without finding a match.
In the Help Scout Docs help:
The Failed searches table shows you a list of common terms and search phrases your customers are using to search for articles.
Reports: Docs, read 2026-11-12.Check whether the article that should answer a failed term is private, since a private article shows a grey title with a small lock beside it.
In the Help Scout Docs help:
The article title will be grey, and you'll see a tiny lock icon to the right of the title.
Private Collections and Articles for Internal Users, read 2026-11-12.
How does Help Scout Docs work with Feder?
- Connect Help Scout Docs to Feder and it joins your Visits apps.
- When you connect Help Scout Docs, Feder checks the connection straight away and shows Connected only when that check passes. If a reading cannot be taken later, Feder shows it as not read, never as zero.
Some numbers are too quiet to judge daily, such as a form filled in a few times a week. Until there is enough of your own history to judge a change, Feder says it is still learning and scores nothing, rather than guessing.
See whether you can trust the numbers in Help Scout Docs, one of your Visits apps. Feder only reads. It never changes anything in Help Scout Docs.
What else goes wrong with these numbers?
- Why did views of a Help Scout Docs article suddenly drop?Help Scout Docs
- Why did my Help Scout Docs visits suddenly jump?Help Scout Docs
- Why did Google Analytics stop collecting data?Google Analytics
- Why aren't my key events showing in Google Analytics?Google Analytics
- Why does Google Analytics show (not set)?Google Analytics
See every question.
Where do these answers come from?
Every cause and check on this page comes from the Help Scout Docs help pages, quoted above with the date we read them. Last reviewed 2026-11-12. We read them again by 2027-11-12. If one changes, this page changes or comes down.