Sometimes all you need is just one or two illustrations to simplify how users can perform a task easily. Use images and illustrations appropriately If a sub-task contains a large piece of information that may be a challenge to users, you can break it into a list of “chunks.” This is one of the best practices in writing help documents and manuals. This is quite different from creating sub-tasks.
Chunk your textsĭepending on the technical knowledge of your target audience, you may have to break large pieces of information into smaller ones through a process called chunking. For instance: “Choose the second option from the drop-down menu and press Enter.” 5. Your help manual doesn"t have to be boring, so always use the active voice when writing and use the second person pronoun – “You”, “Yours” and “Your.” When asking users to take an action, use the command form of the most relevant verb. Do not assume that users will understand all the simplified technical terms you"ve mentioned: you should create a glossary of technical terms explaining the meaning of each term based on how it was used in the manual. Indicate importance or emphasis via contrasts, colors or shadings.
Tell the users about the product features, and how to use them. Using short sentences and words the users will understand, write a series of steps that instruct the users how to perform each sub-task easily. Start by identifying major tasks, and then break each major task into sub-tasks. Every instruction must be written to help users perform specific tasks. This will make it easier for users to navigate the manual quickly. Make the body easy to readįirst, you"ll have to separate the instructions or procedures from the reference materials. To achieve this, use a consistent format for each section, and introduce every section with a very short summary of the task to be performed. These key sections should never complicate tasks in the manual, they should simplify tasks.
These key sections include front covers, table of content, list of figures and tables, introduction, chapters, appendix, glossary, index and back cover… All these sections may not be relevant in your help manual, so you"ll have to carefully pick the ones that make your help manuals most user-friendly. Great help manuals have several different key sections. If you"re targeting technical experts, your choice of words and tech terms should be different from the ones you"ll use when writing for new product users with little or no tech knowledge. How well do you know your product users? Before you start writing, define your target audience, do some research about their choice of words and level of tech knowledge.
How To Write A Great Help Manual In 8 Easy Steps 1.