In addition to organizing and simplifying your content, there are some powerful ways to enhance your documents to improve retrieval performance. One of the most effective methods is by adding context and metadata.

Let’s start with metadata. Metadata refers to the details about the document itself—things like titles, authors, dates, and topics. Including this information can be extremely valuable because it helps your agent retrieve documents based on these specific identifiers. For example, if a user searches for a topic covered by a certain author, having this metadata embedded allows the AI to pinpoint the correct document faster.

It’s also a great idea to define keywords and topics used throughout your file. At the beginning of a document or section, try providing a concise definition of some commonly used keywords. This glossary can provide a clearer picture of your content and improve the performance of information retrieval.

Next, document summaries. Providing a summary at the start or end of each document can help your agent answer broader, high-level questions. Summaries offer a concise overview of the main points, giving the AI a quick snapshot of the document’s contents.

Adding metadata, summaries, and definitions within your documents gives the LLM a deeper understanding of the content they contain. These enhancements make it easier for your agent to interpret, retrieve, and answer user questions accurately and efficiently.

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