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5 Tips for Great Technical Documentation

Great technical writing is all in the eyes of the reader. We all know what great looks and yet, often we are left disappointed.

It is difficult to find great technical writing because most of it is too complicated, too long, or lacks basic grammar. This is unfortunate because, with just a few tweaks, even the worst piece of technical writing could be made excellent.

Here are the top five ways to improve your technical writing skills

5 Tips for Great Technical Documentation

Use the Help of Tools

For technical writers, it is important to have an understanding of the subject matter that they are writing about. They need to know how to write in an engaging and creative way that will keep their audience reading and interested in what they are saying.

That’s why a good technical writer can always benefit from a help authoring tool. These tools take the burden off the writer’s shoulders and make complex things seem much simpler. The help authoring tools are used by technical writers for various purposes such as inserting links to other documents or websites, tailoring the document to their liking, translating, and creating a simple technical document that is easy to skim through.

Always Do a Lot of Research

As a technical writer, you first need to understand the topic that you’re writing about. If you don’t have a basic understanding of the industry or the client, you cannot pass on valuable information to the reader, which is the opposite of what you’re aiming for. There are several steps to writing a good technical document.

The first step is to identify the audience and the purpose of your document. This will help you to decide on which technical style is appropriate.

The second step is to do research, so you have a better understanding of the subject matter. You can use this research in your introduction, or at the end of your document if it doesn't fit with your introduction.

A third step is to plan out what information you need to include in your document, and what order it should be in. This will help you create a table of contents for your document that will make it easier for readers to find the information they are looking for quickly.

Create a Detailed Outline

Technical documents can get pretty detailed, and if you don’t have a previously made outline, you can easily get lost in the process, which will result in repeated information or lack of it. That’s why creating an outline before you proceed with writing is essential, as it’ll act as your guide.

Asking yourself some vital questions will ease out your process:

  • What is the document about?
  • Why is this document important?
  • Who is the audience for this document?
  • What are the goals of this document?
  • What do you want your reader to know or do after reading this document?

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Use Constant Voice

Make sure your voice throughout the document is constant. There are always at least several people involved in reviewing your technical document. Not all of them have the same writing style as you do, and there might be different opinions on the final outcome.

Although their opinions are valuable, technical documents should not read as if they have multiple authors. This can distract the user and make it seem unpolished. Multiple authors can be identified by a variety of spelling and grammar mistakes, as well as excessive verbose sections. The main writer is included in all stages of creating technical documentation. Thus, they should ensure that the technical documents read as though they were written by one person.

Review the Document Multiple Times

By doing frequent reviews of the document while writing and editing, you’re making sure there are no mistakes and the content is easy to understand. By the third review, you’d probably know the document by heart. Thus, you should take a rest and review the document with a fresh pair of eyes.

To make things easier for yourself, separate the review from the editing process. Editing and reviewing at the same time can be exhausting. This also often increases the chance of making mistakes. Fix the grammar and check if the document needs edits, and afterward, do the review.

Bottom Line

Writing a technical document can be stressful and complex. Therefore, if you want the project to be successful, you need to use the help of online tools, create a detailed outline and fill in the blanks with valuable information. With good organization, you’ll be able to meet deadlines and deliver great technical documents every time.

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