Research
After identifying your audience, you have to find your sources of information and research the topic. (Like we already said, "technical writing" is mostly research, despite its name!)
Good research is based on two types of sources:
External research sources help you quickly build a baseline understanding of a topic - how it works, what it's for and how users typically talk about it.
This broader context makes it easier to navigate internal sources more efficiently. You'll know what to look for in technical specs, what questions to ask SMEs and where gaps in the internal documentation might confuse users.
In short, external research gives you the map - internal sources give you the details.
SMEs are often the most important source of information you will get. An SME can be virtually anyone involved with the topic you are documenting:
- Engineers or developers who built the feature
- Product managers, product owners or business analysts who shaped the requirements
- QA analysts who understand edge cases
- Customer support representatives who hear real user pain points
- Sales or pre-sales representatives who know how the features are described to end-users
Their contributions can be direct or indirect:
- Direct: face-to-face conversations, emails, online meetings and chat
- Indirect: customer/internal demos, specifications, user stories, meeting minutes, test cases
SMEs are busy people in general - follow these guidelines (in this order, as much as possible) to get the most out of their time.
Do as much advance research as possible. Make a list of the already-available materials, read through them and take notes.
If you have access to the product itself, use it. Apply what you learned through your research and see what gaps you find.
Prepare questions for the SME in advance. This will help you organize your thoughts and will make the discussion more structured.
Ask for a meeting or a chat with the SME. Be mindful of their schedule and use the time efficiently. If you set up a meeting with them, send the questions in the meeting invite or an email.
Record the meeting, if needed. Of course, always ask for consent first! A recording is useful especially if it includes a live demo of the product, whiteboard diagramming or verbal explanations of complex processes. If the meeting is in person, you can even take photos of the whiteboard.
Prompt the SME. Even if you sent the list of questions in advance, don't assume the SME will give you all the answers from the start. Experts often have a lot of tacit knowledge - things that "everyone already knows". (Famous last words!) As a representative of the end-users, it's your job to ask follow-up questions and surface this tacit knowledge.
Write down the conclusions. Take the meeting notes as soon as possible and confirm with the SME if you are unsure of something.
Research is never really done, but when you are confident that you are ready to start the first draft, it's time to move on to the next stage:
- Writing. This one seems obvious, but there are some important things to consider if you want to launch something truly professional.
