Changing the Face of Business: Online Documentation
Business is always spoken of in terms of supply and demand. Companies are expected to meet the demands of their customers. Today, customer's demands have gone past 1-800 numbers and weighty instruction manuals. The rapid growth and popularity of the Internet has spawned a generation of consumers who expect to find everything on the Web. As the need for Online documentation increases, so does the input from consumers and creators alike as to what makes online documents useful and valuable. It is important that technical communicators understand the consumer's expectations and provide those needs and wants in the most effective way. The design of Online Documentation must reflect the relationship of consumer and supplier. This paper offers an overview and assessment of relevant research, and suggests studying current effective models that currently exist.
Relevant Research
Louise Rehling offers a rather insightful look into one company's transition from print to online. Her article, "Print to Online: Conflicting Tales of Transition." examines a high-tech service support company and it's move away from print media. She follows the progression from print to CD to website and attempts to highlight the positive and negative aspects of change. Positive results of the transition include decreased expenditure, increased accessibility and reduction of workload (these are the same advantages often listed by other writers). Negatives included a lack of usability (product users were not computer bound), reduction in clarity of important visuals and diagrams, and no significant style change from print to online. In order to combat these problems, the author suggests the following five points:
Evolution is not necessarily progressive
Promises about the future do not do the job today
Quality development requires high level coordination
Success in one medium is relative to what another could achieve
Satisfaction of the user is the number one priority.
Considerations have to be given to the consumer. In Rehling's study, the end users were not sitting in front of a computer while working. When difficulty arose and they needed help, it was inconvenient to move to a PC to find help. The user manual had problems as a print document, and changing it to a digital format did nothing to increase its readability.
This same type of anti-online argument is made by Gene Wilburn and Dave Cohen. Wilburn argues that, "A Document in the Hand is Better Than Two Online." His article is the lament of a user who is used to print manuals. Cohen's article, "Doing Documentation Right is as Easy as 1-2-3" continues in the vein of criticizing current trends of online documentation. He points out that online documentation fails to overcome the problems of printed text.
While the previous articles focus on the problems encountered when shifting to online documentation, others are focusing on the role of the technical communicator in the transition to Internet based materials. In an article entitled "The Challenge of Interactive Technical Communication," Jim Martin expresses the notion that the role of the technical communicator does not change when transitioning to new media. The goal of a technical communicator is to use all available resources to convey information to the audience in the most effective manner. This statement is meant to carry the technical communicator into cyberspace with confidence. The goals do not change from hardcopy to Internet, only the way in which you convey them.
Echoing Martin's assertion, Kenneth W. Volgman discusses the change from printed documents to online documentation in his article, "Instant information access: Redefining the workplace." Within the text, he questions the effectiveness of turning existing printed documents into html files without any consideration of change. He lists steps for creating an effective transition from print to online. The first step he mentions is one that should not be unfamiliar to technical communicators – audience analysis. This is the most crucial step in developing a consumer– supplier relationship.
Trends in Research
There seems to be two schools of thought in discussions of online documentation for business purposes. There are those working to establish standards and guidelines, and those, like Cohen and Wilburn, who are resistant to the surge of the digital world.
Technical communicators who are working to analyze the transition from print to online are pulling from their own experiences in an attempt to aid others. This type of analysis in invaluable to the establishment of norms and standards. They are taking the principles used in creating effective print material and applying them to a new medium. Of course, with a new medium, arrives a new set of obstacles to overcome. We have had years to examine the way readers respond to printed text. Research on the way people use the Internet and how they interface with the information is still relatively new.
Those who critique the use of the Internet as an information source for user manuals, customer service, or general business information seem to be short sighted. They have worked for years using the printed page, and the transition into new territory is understandably scary. Many of the critiques seem to be aimed at the failures of the print medium. Cohen and Wilburn seem to have a complaint with bad writing, be it print or online.
Needed Research
In order to come to terms with the role of the technical communicator in creating online documentation, some consideration should be given to effective models that already exist. By looking at what successful companies are doing online, and studying the various ways they provide information, businesses can better transition into their own online documentation. The Internet is currently being used in a variety of fashions, and each company must determine what it's potential benefits are. Hewlett-Packard's customers have a different set of needs and expectations than the customers for Krispy Kreme Donuts.
Hewlett-Packard and Sony are providing invaluable resources to their customers online. Even companies who don't manufacture high tech equipment or software are expected to provide customer support online. Coca-Cola, Kleenex, and Krispy Kreme Donuts are far from high tech, but even they have recognized the usefulness on providing information on the Internet.
Effective Models
The Coca-Cola Company (www.coke.com) has provided a outstanding web resource to bolster it's customer service. You can buy merchandise, check how the stock is doing, and research the company's environmental policies. If you want to know the company's policy on hydrofluorocarbons and refrigeration just take a look at the FAQ section. Although they do not need to provide user manuals, they do offer a variety of information that is easily accessed at any time.
Kleenex has turned to the Internet as well. Their website, www.kleenex.com, contains product information on their variety of facial tissue. It also offers up a FAQ section, a company history, and a bulletin board of home remedies and other advice for beating the common cold. They have created a useful resource for information about their products and related topics.
Krispy Kreme has also developed a web site for its customers, www.krispykreme.com. Their site provides information on company history, acquiring a franchise, and locating the store nearest you. Does the average Krispy Kreme customer need this information? Maybe not, but the company provides it just in case.
As Coca-Cola, Kleenex, and Krispy Kreme are turning to the Internet as a means of providing customers with information, other companies are using the Internet to provide much more for their customers. The Hewlett-Packard Company (www.hp.com) provides customer support for every product that they manufacture. By following the links for support, a customer can have access to full online user manuals in about four clicks. This type of online documentation is helpful in several areas. It puts the information in a reliable storage area, not on a cluttered bookshelf or storage closet. It acts as its own replacement part - there is no need to replace lost manuals. It also provides useful information for those who have purchased used equipment or are considering buying new.
Sony has taken advantage of the Internet's versatility as well. Their website (www.sony.com) serves as a central location for their many ventures–movies, television, music, and home electronics. Shoppers can skip the stores and buy directly from Sony with access to information about each model.
Conclusions
Technical Communicators can look forward to increased attention to their roles in e-business. The web is fast paced and varied, not only in content, but also in quality. As technical communicators feel out the new medium and learn the dynamics of what effective online documentation entails, the overall process will be flushed out and examined. Guidelines and standards for effective documentation are already being suggested. It is only a manner of time before they are tested and proven.
Works Cited (*Indicates must-reads.)
Cohen, Dave. "Doing Documentation Right is as Easy as 1-2-3." Triangle Business Journal10.52 (1995) : 19.
*Martin, Jim. "The Challenge of Interactive Technical Communication." Technical Communication 44.1 (1995) : 95-98.
*Rehling, Louise. "Print to Online: Conflicting Tales of Transition." Technical Communication 46.1 (1999) : 27-35.
Wilburn, Gene. "A Document in the Hand is Better Than Two Online." Computing Canada 24.13 (1998) : 9.
Volgman, Kenneth W. "Instant information access: Redefining the workplace." IIE Solutions 30.7 (1998) : 36-40.
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