Church AI Agent: Knowledge Base

The Knowledge Base is the library of information your Church AI Agent draws on when donors ask questions. Think of it as the reference shelf behind your welcome desk: service times, ministry descriptions, campus addresses, FAQ answers, campaign summaries, and anything else a visitor might reasonably ask. The AI searches these articles semantically—meaning it matches meaning, not just exact keywords—so donors can ask questions naturally and still get relevant answers.

Key Takeaways

• Manual articles give you full control over what the AI knows—craft campaign messaging, pastoral tone guidance, or answers your website does not cover.
• Website import extracts content from your church website automatically—full site crawl (up to 30 pages), single page import, or paste from website when automated crawling is blocked.
• Semantic search means donors can ask questions naturally without exact keywords.
• Categories help you organize content internally (the AI uses article content itself, not category labels).
• Editing a crawled article converts it to manual—future re-imports will not update it.
• One topic per article works better than long multi-topic documents.

Stat Cards and Categories

Three stat cards at the top of the Knowledge Base page summarize your content:

• Total Articles: All articles in the Knowledge Base.
• Manual: Articles you created by hand in the control panel.
• Crawled: Articles imported automatically from your church website.

Categories are optional but recommended for organization. When adding or editing an article, you can assign a category such as “Ministries,” “Service Times,” “Giving,” or “Events.” Categories help you manage content internally; the AI uses article content itself rather than category labels when answering donor questions.

Adding Articles Manually

Manual articles give you full control over exactly what the AI knows. This is the best approach for content you want to craft carefully—campaign messaging, pastoral tone guidance, or answers to questions your website does not cover.

To add a Knowledge Base article manually:

1. Navigate to Church AI Agent → Knowledge Base.
2. Click “Add Article.”
3. Enter a clear Title that describes the topic (for example, “Sunday Service Times” or “Children’s Ministry Overview”).
4. Optionally enter a Category to organize the article.
5. Write the Content in plain language. Include the facts a donor would need: times, locations, contact names, links to relevant pages, and any context that helps the AI answer accurately.
6. Click Save to publish the article to the Knowledge Base.

Keep articles focused. One topic per article works better than a single long document covering everything. If a donor asks about baptism, the AI can pull from a concise “Baptism Information” article more reliably than from a 2,000-word general FAQ.

Importing from Your Website

If your church website already has the information donors need, you do not have to retype it. The Import from Website feature extracts content automatically and adds it to your Knowledge Base.

Three import modes are available:

• Full Site Crawl: Starting from your homepage, the system crawls up to 30 pages, skipping blog posts, calendars, media galleries, and administrative pages. It extracts the main content from each page (removing navigation, footers, and scripts), cleans the text with AI, and generates searchable embeddings so the assistant can reference the content. A full crawl typically takes one to two minutes depending on site size.
• Single Page Import: Provide a specific URL to import just one page. This is ideal for updating a single important page—like your “About Us” or “Plan a Visit” page—without re-crawling the entire site. Single page imports typically complete in five to ten seconds and only replace existing content from that same URL.
• Paste from Website: Copy text directly from your church website and paste it into the Knowledge Base. This option works even when automated crawling is blocked by your hosting provider or firewall. See the dedicated section below for step-by-step instructions.

To import from your website:

1. Navigate to Church AI Agent → Knowledge Base.
2. Click “Import from Website.”
3. Choose Full Site Crawl or Single Page.
4. For a single page import, enter the page URL. For a full crawl, confirm your website homepage URL.
5. Click Start Import and wait for the process to complete. A progress indicator shows the current step.
6. Review the imported articles in the Knowledge Base list. Crawled articles display their source URL for reference.

After importing, scan the articles for accuracy. Website navigation text or outdated event dates occasionally slip through. You can edit any crawled article to correct it.

Paste from Website

If the automated import cannot connect to your church website—which commonly happens when your hosting provider or a security plugin blocks automated requests—the Paste from Website option lets you add content manually without any technical configuration. You simply copy the text from your website in a browser and paste it into the Knowledge Base. The AI automatically cleans the pasted text, removing navigation menus, footer content, sidebars, cookie notices, and other elements that are not part of the main page content.

To use Paste from Website:

1. Navigate to Church AI Agent → Knowledge Base.
2. Click “Import from Website.”
3. Select the “Paste from Website” tab.
4. Open your church website in another browser tab and navigate to the page you want to import (for example, your “About Us” or “Service Times” page).
5. Select all the text on the page (Ctrl+A on Windows, Cmd+A on Mac) and copy it (Ctrl+C or Cmd+C).
6. Return to the Knowledge Base import page and enter a clear Article Title that describes the page content (for example, “About Us” or “Sunday Service Times”).
7. Click into the Page Content textarea and paste the copied text (Ctrl+V or Cmd+V).
8. Click “Import Content.”

The AI processes the pasted text in a few seconds, keeping only the meaningful content and discarding boilerplate. Once complete, the article appears in your Knowledge Base list and is immediately available to the AI assistant. Repeat this process for each page you want to add.

When to use Paste from Website: Use this option whenever the Full Site Crawl or Single Page Import shows a connection error. Common reasons for connection failures include Cloudflare protection, WordPress security plugins (Wordfence, Sucuri), and managed hosting providers (WP Engine, Kinsta, Flywheel, SiteGround) that block automated requests from cloud servers. The Paste from Website option works regardless of your hosting setup because it does not require any server-to-server connection—you are copying the content yourself in your own browser.

Editing and Deleting Articles

To edit an article, click it in the Knowledge Base list, update the title, category, or content, and save. To delete an article, use the delete action on the article’s row or edit page.

Important: When you edit a crawled article, it converts to a manual article. The source URL reference is removed, and future website re-imports will not automatically update that article. If you want the article to stay synced with your website, delete it and re-import that specific page instead of editing it manually.

Use the search bar on the Knowledge Base page to find articles by title, category, or content. This is helpful as your library grows beyond a few dozen articles.

Tips for Building a Strong Knowledge Base

Start with your most common questions. Before importing your entire website, list the ten questions donors ask most often—by phone, email, or in person. Make sure the Knowledge Base covers those thoroughly.

Keep articles current. Outdated service times or old event dates erode donor trust. Schedule a quarterly review of your most important articles, especially after website redesigns or seasonal changes.

One topic per article. Focused articles help the AI find relevant content faster. Instead of one massive FAQ document, create separate articles for service times, giving options, campus directions, and ministry programs.

Review conversations for gaps. Check the Conversations page regularly. If donors are asking questions the AI cannot answer well, add a Knowledge Base article on that topic.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many website pages can I import?

A full site crawl imports up to 30 pages starting from your homepage, skipping blog posts, calendars, media galleries, and administrative pages. For individual pages, use the single page import option with a specific URL. You can run imports multiple times as your website content changes.

What happens when I edit a crawled article?

Editing a crawled article converts it to a manual article. The source URL reference is removed, and future website re-imports will not automatically update that article. If you want the article to stay synced with your website, delete it and re-import that specific page instead.

What should I do if the AI gives an incorrect answer?

First, check whether a Knowledge Base article covers the topic. If the article exists but has outdated information, update it. If no article exists, add one. Review the conversation transcript in the Conversations section to understand exactly what the donor asked and how the AI responded. For persistent issues, contact OnlineGiving.org support at support@onlinegiving.org or call (615) 206-4000.

What if the import cannot connect to my website?

Connection failures during website import are usually caused by your hosting provider or a security plugin blocking automated requests from cloud servers. The most common blockers are Cloudflare (with Bot Fight Mode or Under Attack enabled), WordPress security plugins like Wordfence and Sucuri, and managed hosting providers such as WP Engine, Kinsta, Flywheel, and SiteGround that restrict access from cloud IP addresses. If you see an error such as “Protected by Cloudflare,” “403 Forbidden,” or “Could not connect,” use the Paste from Website option instead. You can always access your own website in a browser, copy the page text, and paste it into the Knowledge Base—this works regardless of any firewall or hosting restrictions.

What does a non-200 error mean?

When you see a message like “Your website returned HTTP 403 instead of 200” or a similar number, it means the website did not respond normally to our automated request. In simple terms: 403 means your site is blocking our access (usually a firewall), 401 means the page requires a login, 404 means the URL was not found, and 500 or higher means your website experienced a temporary server problem. In all of these cases, the Paste from Website option is the easiest solution—open the page yourself in a browser, copy the text, and paste it into the import form.

What is the Paste from Website option and when should I use it?

Paste from Website is the third import mode on the Import from Website page. Instead of crawling your site automatically, you copy the visible text from a page on your church website and paste it directly into the Knowledge Base. The AI cleans the pasted content automatically, removing navigation menus, footer text, and other non-content elements. Use this option whenever the Full Site Crawl or Single Page Import fails to connect, or when you want to import content from a single page quickly without waiting for a full crawl. You can paste one page at a time and repeat the process for each page you want to add to your Knowledge Base.

If you need help building or importing your Knowledge Base, contact OnlineGiving.org support at support@onlinegiving.org or call (615) 206-4000.