Writing user-friendly guides is an essential skill for technical support professionals. User-friendly guides help your customers solve problems, learn new features, and use your products or services more effectively. But how can you write user-friendly guides that are clear, concise, and engaging? Here are some tips to help you create better technical documentation.
Before you start writing, you need to understand who your audience is and what they need from your guide. Consider their level of technical knowledge, their goals, their pain points, and their preferred format. For example, if you are writing a guide for beginners, you might want to use simple language, avoid jargon, and provide step-by-step instructions with screenshots. If you are writing a guide for advanced users, you might want to focus on best practices, tips and tricks, and code examples.
Don't try to act like the smartest person in the room. Humans will respond to content they can connect to, not something they need a 4 year degree to comprehend.
Know your audience and tailor your language and explanations accordingly. Use clear and concise language, avoiding jargon or technical terms. Organize information logically with headings, subheadings, and bullet points. Provide step-by-step instructions with labelled or numbered steps. Use visuals to illustrate key points and steps. Highlight critical points with bold text, italics, or different colours. Keep formatting consistent throughout the guide. Test your guide with individuals who represent your target audience. Include interactive elements, FAQs, and troubleshooting tips. - Provide a glossary or definitions section for technical terms. Keep your guide up-to-date and conduct user testing.
Writing technical explanation in layman/ simple language is important , because there will be few who will understand proper technical language but there will be more who will understand the things by simple words and adding screenshot for reference would be more beneficial to understand.
When you are creating a guide, always remember that the main goal is to make the mixed audience of different backgrounds try to achieve something using it. Giving advanced clear directions and not forgetting the small tips about the potential difficulties will help people pass the bridge using your instructions.
Put your feet in others shoes. Recall remember on how we learn, keep in mind and empathise your user is struggling learning new skills.
A good user-friendly guide has a clear and logical structure that helps your readers navigate and find the information they need. Start with an introduction that explains the purpose, scope, and benefits of your guide. Then, divide your guide into sections and sub-sections that cover the main topics and sub-topics. Use headings and subheadings to organize your content and make it easy to scan. Finally, end with a summary or a call to action that reinforces the key points or encourages your readers to take the next steps.
“If you can't explain it to a six year old, you don't understand it yourself.” Albert Einstein It is hard to effectively communicate to the lowest denominator while keeping enough of the technical lexicon to engage the academic/technically minded individual. Give the individuals a good road map to follow before diving into the nuances and details. Dump your details into subsections, glossaries and troubleshooting tables.
Write a guide that somebody w/o IT knowledge can understand. clearly put the steps and as much as possible add screenshot/pictures and mark what is needed to be done.
Having a table of contents can be really helpful depending on the guide. If your guide is online, you could also include anchor points so users can quickly jump to the section they want.
Set clear goals, build a professional profile, strategically expand your network, and share valuable content regularly for success.
In the digital age, it's essential to leverage digital tools to enhance the usability of your guide. Start by creating a clickable table of contents at the beginning, allowing readers to jump to the sections that interest them most. Additionally, use searchable language throughout your guide. When explaining concepts or procedures, think about the keywords your audience might use when searching for help. Incorporate these terms naturally into your content to make it more discoverable via search engines or internal document searches. By implementing these digital aids, you can make your guide not only user-friendly but also easily accessible and searchable.
One of the most important aspects of writing user-friendly guides is to use clear and simple language that your readers can understand and follow. Avoid using complex sentences, passive voice, and vague terms. Instead, use short sentences, active voice, and specific terms. For example, instead of writing "The system will generate a report based on the criteria you entered", write "You can create a report by entering these criteria". Use examples, analogies, and visual aids to illustrate your points and make them more concrete.
Feel free to incorporate screenshots into your guides! Adding visual aids to your learning experience can enhance information retention.
Keep it short and simple. I remember one of my mentor said to me to write clear instructions that even a kid can follow. He taught me to table it out as simple as Step 1>>(instruction)>>screenshot.
I try to remember the old montauge "K.I.S.S.-KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID!" I know we don't necessarily use that word in that context these days, however I have always had a bad habit of going to far or to in depth when explaining things, so I keep a friends advice in the front of my brain anytime I'm trying to communicate with anyone about how to or referencing anytype of resources or etc ....it just comes out more clear and concise if I don't "Larrify" it.
Because technical guides frequently deal with complex subjects, the temptation to use complex terminology can be strong. Clarity and simplicity, however, are critical because they democratize knowledge. They break down barriers, allowing a broader audience to understand technical concepts. Clear and simple language ensures that everyone can benefit, whether your readers are seasoned experts or newcomers to the topic. Technical guides are frequently used as learning resources or as problem-solving tools. Clarity and simplicity expedite these processes. Readers can absorb information faster, and when they run into problems, they can troubleshoot more effectively because the instructions are easy?to follow.
Define your LinkedIn purpose & craft a professional summary, add skills. 1. Network wisely: Connect with industry pros. 2. Share insights: Post valuable content. 3. Engage & grow: Like, comment, and stay active. 4. Learn & adapt: Stay updated, refine your strategy. Success awaits!"
Another way to improve the readability and consistency of your user-friendly guides is to follow some style and formatting guidelines. These guidelines can help you choose the right tone, voice, and grammar for your guides, as well as the appropriate fonts, colors, and layouts. For example, you might want to use a friendly and conversational tone, a second-person voice, and a standard grammar. You might also want to use a sans-serif font, a white background, and a numbered list for your instructions.
Using accessible fonts such as Arial, Calibri, or Open Sans makes your document easier to read, particularly for those with visual impairments. You should also consider offering multiple versions with fonts like Dyslexie that are tailored for users with disabilities to improve accessibility even further. By selecting fonts with accessibility in mind, you can make your guide more user-friendly and welcoming to a wider audience.
Maintaining a consistent format works wonders, especially when several team members are collaborating on various guides, whether independently or collectively.
A strong structure will set a tone, and is a huge benefit if you intend to release multiple guides. Generally, covering an introduction (which includes what this guide will help the user achieve) and a content section broken with different parts. There's no need for your user to read a 500 word article if they only need help with a specific step. Breaking down and keeping it simple is key to retain user attention.
"Follow LinkedIn's style and formatting rules: 1. Professional photo. 2. Clear, concise headline. 3. Detailed summary. 4. Use bullet points for clarity. 5. Add relevant work experience. 6. Use keywords. 7. Keep it error-free. 8. Proofread for consistency. 9. Engage with audience. 10. Share industry-related content."
The final step in writing user-friendly guides is to test and revise them before you publish them. Testing and revising your guides can help you identify and fix any errors, gaps, or ambiguities in your content. You can test your guides by using them yourself, asking a colleague or a friend to review them, or getting feedback from your target audience. You can revise your guides by correcting any mistakes, adding or removing any information, or improving any design elements.
Follow your own guide, step by step. Be very conscious of every time you pull in your own additional context/knowledge and ask yourself, is this something I expect my reader to know?
In the process of testing and revising your user-friendly guides, consider involving someone less technically inclined. This approach can provide valuable insights into whether your content is accessible and understandable to a wider audience. Their feedback can help you bridge potential comprehension gaps and create guides that cater to both technical and non-technical readers, ensuring user-friendliness across the board.
"Test and refine your LinkedIn guides: 1. Share your guide with friends or colleagues. 2. Collect feedback and suggestions. 3. Review for clarity and simplicity. 4. Check for any errors. 5. Revise accordingly to ensure user-friendliness. 6. Continuously improve for better guidance!"
After completing the writing of the guide, do not forget to thoroughly check that each step described works with effect. At the end of the guide it is good to place a troubleshooting list so that with guided and simple block diagram steps one can find a pathway to solving any technical issue.
Include frequently asked questions Create a quick reference guide to include a list of frequently asked questions that will help users to quickly find what they need.
Have multiple people read and test your guide. Choose people from different departments that may or may not deal with the particular issue. Sometimes we get bogged down on writing things that are common sense for us as technicians that we don't take into account that there are people that don't deal with these issues on a day to day basis.
Suggest additional resources, and other articles that may be of interest. Link to additional articles from within your company's Support Portal. Inner linking shows seriousness, and lets the user know that they're covered from all directions.