1. Good Writing Tips For Students
2. Writing A Manual For Work
3. Tips On Writing A Good User Manual Pdf
4. Software For User Manual Writing

Nowadays, however, factory-supplied user guides are much more cursory and often in multiple languages, complicating your learning curve. To have a decent user guide is a precious commodity and if you know how to write one, this is a talent in great demand. Feb 09, 2006  How to Write a Manual. Writing an instruction manual may seem like a daunting task, but it's easier than you think! These steps apply to any written instruction, from the very simple (How to Clap) to the intensely complicated (How to Build.

In a previous article, I went over 14 examples of documentation mistakes you might be making. Today, I'm going to show you 10 examples of what makes great end user documentation.

I should clarify that end user documentation does not serve the same purpose as technical documentation, so you shouldn't write them the same way. Technical documentation is meant to teach somebody everything there is to know about a subject, whereas end user documentation is meant to just show somebody the necessary steps to accomplish a task and answer 'How to...' questions.

The examples I show are examples of what makes great end user documentation.

1 - Write great titles

Great end user documentation consists of titles that are specific, and often in the form of performing a task. This not only makes it easier for your end users to find what they are looking for, but it helps you write better articles.

For example, think about how much time it would take to write an article titled 'Contacts' - you wouldn't know where to start. So you create an outline of all the 'Contacts' topics you can think of, take screenshots of the Contacts object, explain all of the menu options, and write a history of the Contacts object - all useless to an end user who just wants to know how to create a partner contact in Salesforce. Instead of going right to the information they need, end users will have to sift through all of the other stuff to find an answer.

If each article has its own, great title, then your end users can quickly answer their own questions by performing a keyword search or by browsing through your table of contents.

HubSpot does a great job writing useful titles, and then demonstrating the workflow using pictures, text, and annotations. Their documentation is a great example of how to write end user/customer documentation.

Tip for writing great titles

To continue the example from above, instead of writing one big article titled 'Contacts' just write a dozen little articles that each answer one specific question:

1. What is a contact?
2. How do we use contacts?
3. How to create customer contacts
4. How to convert a lead into a contact
5. How to create partner contacts
6. How to create an account for a contact
7. How to merge duplicate contacts
8. How to import contacts from Outlook
9. How to import contacts from a CSV file
10. How to add contacts from Gmail using Cirrus
11. How to change the Contacts view
12. How to log a call with a contact

These are so much easier to write, and your end users will find them much more useful because they can quickly search for, and find, answers to their specific questions (end users need specifics). Plus, you can always combine a lot of little articles into a larger workflow and organize them into a chapter or a manual.

2 - Use annotated screenshots

The majority of end user documentation should have screenshots, and those screenshots should include some sort of annotation. Adding an arrow, a circle, or number sequences can make end user documentation completely dummy proof, and save end users from having to figure out what to do.

Even if it seems obvious to you where to click, including a few simple annotations will go a long way in removing confusion.

3 - Use video AND screenshots AND text

If you have the budget, the patience, and the time, you can do what Wistia does - create a video explanation, then include step-by-step instructions underneath the video.

This is a great way to do end user documentation. The video acts as a teacher to explain an overall process and provide some initial training. But after the initial training, end users don't need to watch the entire video again - they just need a quick reminder of what to do. The step-by-step instructions are great for the quick reminder.

4 - Include links to related articles

When you reference another action, product, workflow, or term, it always helps to include a link to the related article. Otherwise, end users waste time searching for what you just referenced.

5 - Easy to browse

if you only have 10-20 articles, then you don't really need to make them easy to browse. It's when you have over 20 or 30 articles that you really want to make a nice Table of Contents - especially if your documentation is online.

When your end users don't quite know what to search for, they can browse your documentation to find an answer. In this example, Metric Insights has organized their manuals into sections, and then each manual is broken up into chapters and articles.

6 - Easy to search

Google has spoiled everybody. When your end users know what they are looking for, they expect to be able to type in a keyword and find an answer. If your documentation isn't searchable, then it's not going to be used very often.

7 - Easy to find

Below is an example of the ScreenSteps integration with Salesforce. It provides links to articles based on which Salesforce tab is open so end users don't have to go very far to find relevant documentation. Plus, it has a keyword search feature so end users can type in their question and search your ScreenSteps documentation for an answer.

The faster end users can answer their own questions, the less time you'll have to spend answering them yourself or showing them where the answers are.

Good Writing Tips For Students

8 - Show the end result

At the end of it all, what is the end user supposed to see? Here, Skuid does a nice job including a screenshot of the end result with a brief explanation to help end users determine whether everything was done correctly.

9 - Show the steps and substeps

Including step numbers makes it easy for end users to follow along and piece together what they are doing. You can also take advantage of sub-steps to make your documentation easier to follow.

10 - Unique URLs for each article

Writing A Manual For Work

If you were to click on this URL - http://help.screensteps.com/m/salesforce/l/211489-add-contextual-help-and-search-in-salesforce you would be taken to the exact article you need to answer your question about how to create a campaign target list. This makes it really easy for you to respond to questions with links to your documentation. Otherwise, you have to say, 'Download this PDF, go to page 47, and on the 3rd paragraph you'll find an answer.'

With a unique URL, you can respond in Chatter, email, in the communities, etc. sending your end users to the exact answer they are looking for.

Why do any of this?

The goal of your end user documentation is to reduce the number of hours you spend explaining workflows, and reduce the number of hours end users spend looking for answers.

If you can remove hurdles your end users have to jump over in order to find answers, they will reference your documentation. And that will create self-sufficient end users who do the job correctly, in less time, and without constantly involving you.

Note: HubSpot, Metric Insights, and Skuid all use ScreenSteps to write great end user documentation.

In your day-to-day work, you might find that there are times when you need to provide a client with documentation that walks them through a process or teaches them how to do something they may be unfamiliar with.

I’ve mentioned before that I view writing skills as vitally important for everyone, in every business, and this is a prime example of why being able to write effectively is so important. If you can’t get the steps and details down on paper in an easy to understand and intuitive way, you will probably spend a great amount of time and frustration handling support requests and fixing things done incorrectly.

Here are seven tips to help you create a comprehensive yet coherent instruction manual.

1. Get out of your own head: When you begin to prepare instructions for processes you know inside and out, you will need to consciously take a step back and approach the material from a new angle. Start at square one by assuming the audience will have zero knowledge of the subject matter.
2. Know the objective: Make sure you know exactly what your manual needs to cover in order to avoid information overload or confusion that can come from too many details. This is especially important when the process is complex or has a lot of different parts.
3. Outline it first: Before jumping in and creating steps, create a high-level outline of what the document will cover, including main and subsections. This will help you make sure your process makes sense and that each section of the manual is consistently structured.
4. Make it easy to understand: Lists are a great way to outline steps for doing something because they can help people move item by item in the way you intend. It’s also a good idea to use a table of contents and make your document searchable, if possible, to further support your step-by-step approach.
5. Be brief: It’s tempting to want to explain everything in fine detail since it’s material you know so well, but stick with only what the recipient needs to know. Focus on using only as many words as necessary to get your point across.
6. Use visual aids: Screenshots, diagrams and even videos are a great way to beef up your manual and make it easier to understand. Keep the formatting of these supporting materials consistent and to the point to avoid overwhelming the reader.
7. Give it a test drive: Or better yet, have someone else who has never seen the material before run through the instructions. Take their feedback and use it to fine tune your manual.

Keep in mind that you may need to review and update the manual periodically, especially if it’s something that focuses on a third-party application or other system you do not control. Plus, with some material, it may also make sense to offer the client a hands-on walk through to ensure your instructions accomplish what they need to accomplish. And keep in mind that learning styles vary, so one client may be able to run with the same instructions that confuse a different client. Being flexible in your format and delivery can help make sure the instructions work for the recipient.

Tips On Writing A Good User Manual Pdf

Do you ever provide clients with written instructions? What advice do you have?

Software For User Manual Writing

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