Information Architecture for Technical Documentation

by Bradley Nice, Content Manager at ClickHelp — all-in-one help authoring tool

What is information architecture (IA), and why is it so crucial for technical documentation? Let’s figure this out!

Information architecture is the organization and structure of documentation that allows readers to use it most efficiently. I would say it is the backbone of documentation. The aim is to help the users find information and understand the logical connections between the pieces of information. In other words, the IA is a massive system that includes how you structure and represent information, how users search for what they need. If your IA seems to be easy for your readers, they will use your documentation. If it is not, they will highly likely drop their tasks, find some other source of information, or reach out to support.

If you create IA for your documentation, you should take into consideration the following:

• Your IA should allow you to update documentation. Products and processes tend to change. You will need to renew the information regularly.
• IA presupposes categorization of information. I would say it is close to creating a table of contents and describes what sections you have in your documentation. Make sure your categorization makes sense and is suitable for all your readers.
• Focus on what your readers are looking for. Finally, you are creating your documentation to provide them with information.
• Everything matters: how you structure your content, how you title your articles, what interlinks you have. All that should be clear and logical.

How to improve IA in your documentation:

• Define your audience. Whom are you writing documentation for? That matters a lot. Different categories of readers need different information.
• Define your goal. What is the aim of your documentation: to teach, to inform, etc.?
• Define your content. That makes a great difference, as well, what to include, and what to exclude from your documentation.
• Create taxonomy — categories, hierarchy, navigation structure.

The above-mentioned steps will help you create a clear structure for your docs.

Have a nice day!

Bradley Nice, Content Manager at ClickHelp.com — best online documentation tool for SaaS vendors