How to hand off a client help center properly
A good help center handoff leaves the client able to publish, maintain, and recover their site. Deliver the source and content, document ownership, and have the client complete a real update before signing off.
Name owners for the parts that can expire or drift
Record the owner of the domain, hosting, billing, content, and support contact route. These may be different people. Add a backup contact for each critical responsibility.
Use client-owned accounts where that is the agreed operating model. If the agency retains hosting, document how access and source will transfer when the engagement ends.
Deliver a maintainable content system
Give the client an article inventory, the approved category structure, reusable article blueprints, and a list of known gaps. Assign each article an owner and explain what triggers a review.
For multilingual clients, record the source language, translators, reviewers, and how stale translations are identified. A language switcher alone does not provide a translation workflow.
Separate brand approval from functional acceptance
Brand approval covers logo, typography, colors, and voice. Functional acceptance covers search, navigation, mobile use, keyboard access, support routing, redirects, and HTTPS.
Use the same functional checklist for every client, then add requirements unique to their product or market. Repeatable checks are more useful than copying a previous client’s policy content.
Do a publish-and-rollback exercise
Ask the client to edit a harmless sentence, publish the change, verify it on the public URL, and restore the previous version. If they cannot complete the exercise, the handoff is not finished.
For the static template, that means editing source, running the build, and deploying files. If the client’s content owners do not work in code, choose a managed editor such as HelpCenter.io and document the equivalent publishing process there.
Agree on maintenance and exit terms
Record the review cadence, who pays renewal bills, the process for urgent corrections, and the work included in the engagement. Deliver a source archive and content export, with credentials shared through the agreed password manager.
The kit’s agency-handoff document includes ownership, access, billing, localization, acceptance, and maintenance sections. Complete a separate copy for every client.
Common questions
Can agencies use Compass for client projects?
Yes, including commercial projects, under its GPL-3.0 license. When distributing modified versions, follow the license’s source and notice requirements. The download includes the source and license.
What should a help center handoff contain?
Source and built files, content inventory, access and ownership records, domain and hosting details, redirect checks, a successful publishing exercise, known gaps, and an agreed maintenance process.
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