Great Abstract Writing: Make Your Product Fit
- Posted by Essays Blog in Essays Blog |
- November 9th, 2009 |
- Comments
OVERVIEW
Most product documentation sounds like their product is the only abstraction in the Person’s life. Much cerebration results in Person confusion and dissatisfaction. This article presents III real-life examples of this attitude, and what should be done to remedy these abject situations. The article concludes with any techniques for the writer.
BACKGROUND
Thither are cardinal important facts that Person Documentation ignores:
1. Your product is a only minor item in your Person’s life
2. Your Person Documentation must help fit your product into the Person’s life
Person Documentation that is written with awareness of these facts results in a better person experience. Here are III examples of where the writers (always incorrectly) cerebration that their product was the only abstraction in the Person’s life.
EXAMPLE 1: Case Cleaner/Protector
Most people know about polishing and perhaps cleaning their leather situation. This cleaner/protector product is meant to clean, protect and beam situation. The instructions simply tell the Person how to apply the product.
What the Person is Old to: I polish my situation with regular climb (or liquid) blacking.
The Problem: If a Person wants to polish his/her situation as advantageously as consume your cleaner/protector, so what order should the polish and the cleaner/protector be old? The instructions merely tell the Person how to apply the cleaner/protector. It’s like the cleaner/protector is the only case product in existence.
Possible Solutions: The the cleaner/protector instructions could have (as appropriate):
* Consume the cleaner/protector instead of your normal blacking.
* Consume the cleaner/protector after you polish the situation with your regular blacking.
* For a deluxe case discourse, consume the cleaner/protector first on the situation. Act a few minutes, so efface any excess with a clean cloth. So polish the situation exploitation your regular blacking, in the accustomed artifact. Finally, consume the cleaner/protector again, but do not contact it off.
These would make for much more effective instructions, and they could easily fit on the package.
EXAMPLE 2: DVD Player didn’t realize that I had a VCR
People buying a DVD player a few years ago were in the following situation. They had a VCR connected to the single recording input of their TV. DVD players’ instructions described how to connect the player to a TV exploitation a recording input. The instructions ignored the situation of how to connect the player if thither already was a VCR connected to the TV ’s only recording input.
What the Person is Old to: The VCR is connected to the only recording input of my old receiver.
The Problem: My new DVD player needs to be connected to the TV’s only recording input. Do I have to buy a change or manually change the DVD player and VCR?
Solution: The writer should provide any tips or instructions how to fix the DVD player in the customer’s real-life situation. These instructions may include how to connect the DVD recording finished the VCR. Or connecting the DVD to the TV’s recording input, and connecting the antenna of the VCR to the antenna input of the TV. Both devices can be connected with no need to buy additional parts. The instructions should mention how. It would improve the Person’s experience in background up the new device. (The instructions should also mention that these methods of connecting the devices would accept a less than optimal picture.)
EXAMPLE 3: A 2 in 1 Shampoo and Conditioner Product
A Person normally shampoos his/her hair and so may consume a abstracted conditioner product. He/she just purchased your product, a 2 in 1 shampoo and conditioner. It has no instructions.
What the Person is Old to: A shampoo is old on the hair and immediately rinsed. A conditioner gets left in the hair for a few minutes, so rinsed.
The Problem: Does this 2 in 1 product get left in the hair, or does it get rinsed out immediately?
The Solution: Provide correct instructions on the package. Or, if it does not matter how long the 2 in 1 product gets left in the hair, so have so. Don’t leave the Person guessing. If the Person craved to guess about something, so they would be reading a novel, not your Person Documentation.
BOTTOM LINE: What to Do for Your Documentation
Examine your product in the light of how it will change the artifact that the Person currently does things. How will it fit into the Person’s life? How does the product fit with other products your Person employs?
Make careful that your Person Documentation helps the Person to effectively fit the product into his/her life. By ignoring the reality of your Person’s situation, you are forcing him/her to solve problems that you could easily solve. If you provide the solutions, so you will create a better product experience for your Person.
Fitting the product into the Person’s life presents the writer with a duty and an opportunity:
* The duty to ease the Person from what he/she previously did to the new product’s situation
* The opportunity to explain your product by exploitation the Person’s experience as a background.