As I mentioned in a previous blog post, I’ve often been asked to “do my magic”. But creating effective customer-facing documentation isn’t magic. It starts with asking the right questions and thoughtfully considering the answers.
Why do your customers use your product?
Your customers are trying to accomplish a task. Technical writers put themselves in your customers’ shoes, trying to understand their goals and needs.
Who are your customers? What tasks do they need to perform? What is their level of technical expertise or comfort level?
With enterprise (B2B) software. there are generally different types of users who use your product differently. For example, one client developed workforce management software, which supported self-service by hourly employees at large companies, such as at major retailers. There were four types of employees, each requiring its own documentation:
- Hourly employees had to clock in and out and view their work history and schedules.
- Supervisors wanted to view employee activities and perform some managerial functions.
- Facilities personnel and IT staff installed the hardware on-premises and set up the network devices for the hourly employees and supervisors.
- IT administrators and Human Resources personnel used the Web app to manage and support the solution, including the devices.
There was an additional, non-employee, internal user type — professional services resources who configured and deployed devices for customers.
Each of these five user types had a different level of technical expertise, and required different instructions to successfully accomplish their tasks. Some user types required web-based help, while others required printable PDFs. For example, the hardware installers required a printed template to correctly position it during installation.
To create effective customer-facing documentation, you start by carefully considering the unique requirements of each type of user.