The Art of Technical Writing

HUH?

I sympathize with anyone who?s ever had trouble assembling or configuring a product they?ve purchased because of the technical writing in the owners manual. As a former tech support specialist I?ve spent years interpreting tech-speak into English or just re-writing the material so that people understood the directions.

It?s not polite to bash anyone. The circumstances surrounding each and every technical writing task are unique but the burden shouldn?t be on the consumer.

Some manuals are like following a top end GPS system complete with pictures of the intersections and surrounding buildings.

Other manuals read like secret code that only makes sense after you?ve found the cipher key that cracks the code.

Step By Step

Not only is a step by step approach to technical writing helpful to everyone but a major bonus feature for marketing professionals.

Some manufacturers actually include the steps on the outside of the packaging. Who doesn?t want that? You?ve already read the directions and understood them.

However, just because you?re providing steps doesn?t mean that whoever gets to follow them will arrive at the same conclusion.

Clarity

I have 4 girls and not one of them hears the same set of directions or follows them the same way.

This process:
? Reading
? Comprehending
? Applying
isn?t the same because different people process information based on personality, education and experience.

When you have to design a guide or manual it must be from the perspective of the person who has to process that information.

The Artistic Approach

Unless a variety of conversations have taken place between various people who?ve all tried to use your instructions beforehand, you can expect a few conversations after you?ve published your tech manual.

On the surface it looks more practical than artistic because including feedback before finalizing the book just makes good sense.

What makes for artistic writing of otherwise boring material is how well the information takes away any potential for confusion. Good art takes time to refine; great art takes even more time.

Why It Matters

Most people won?t make a conscious note of the frustrations caused by the operating manual on their new hardware but the brand suffers.

That manual can keep tech support response time short or as in my experience busy re-writing the manual via emails so that customers can get on with their lives.

Any information that describes your product or service reflects on your brand. Since you don?t want your brand to be ambiguous, you don?t want any copy surrounding it to be confusing or frustrating; clear concise copy makes for satisfied customers.

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