Blog posts vs Help Center documentation
NearbySpy publishes two kinds of long-form content: the blog and the Help Center. They look similar from the outside but they exist for different reasons.
NearbySpy publishes two kinds of long-form content: the blog and the Help Center. They look similar from the outside but they exist for different reasons. Knowing the difference helps you find what you actually need and helps you decide what to share with a prospective Client or peer.
What the Help Center is for
The Help Center is product documentation. Each article explains how a specific feature works inside NearbySpy — how to send a Case invite, how Evidence integrity is enforced, how reviews appear on a public profile, what a particular setting does. The audience is people who already use the platform and want a precise, current answer to a "how do I" or "why does it" question. Articles cross-link heavily so you can follow a workflow end to end.
How to navigate it
Start at the index — see Using the Help Center index and articles — or use the search box. Articles live under categories such as Getting Started, For Investigators, For Clients, Trust, Safety & Security, and Troubleshooting. Most articles end with a Related list that points you to the next relevant document.
What the blog is for
The blog is industry content. It speaks to the broader private-investigations market: trends, tradecraft, regulatory updates, business operations for solo PIs, marketing, hiring subcontractors, and case studies. The audience includes existing users, prospective users who are evaluating NearbySpy, journalists, and search engines. Posts are written to be useful even if you never sign up for the platform.
How to recognize the difference
- If the URL starts with
/help/, you are reading product documentation. - If the URL starts with
/blog/, you are reading industry content. - Help articles describe NearbySpy buttons, tabs, and flows. Blog posts describe the world the platform operates in.
When to share which
If a Client asks "how do I find the Reports you sent me," send them the Help article for Viewing shared Reports as a Client. If a peer asks "what do you think about the new licensing rule in your state," that is a blog topic. Sharing the right link sets the right expectation about what they are about to read.
Search ranking
Both areas are indexed in the public sitemap and surfaced through normal search engines, but they live in different namespaces and rarely compete for the same query. Help Center pages target product-specific searches; blog posts target broader industry queries. Read How public pages get indexed for the discovery model.
How updates flow
When the product changes, the Help Center is updated first. Blog posts are written and dated as a snapshot of opinion or analysis at a point in time, and may not be revised when the product later evolves. If something on the blog seems out of step with the current product, the Help Center is the source of truth.
Related
Related in Marketplace
Contacting an Investigator from a public profile
You can reach out to an Investigator directly from their public profile, with or without an account. This article explains the choices on a profile page, what the Investigator sees, and what to expect after you send a message.
Featured placements in directory and search
Featured placements are paid slots that promote your Investigator profile to the top of NearbySpy's directory and search results within a specific geographic area.
How Investigator search and filters work
The Investigator search on NearbySpy is built on Algolia, with rules that combine location, specialty, credentials, and reputation. This article explains how results are ordered and how the filters change what you see.
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