How to write an effective Quick Start Guide
Imagine that you want to try out a new product without the help of another person. Naturally, we all expect the product to be easily maneuverable. If that is not an option, you at least expect the product to be accompanied with a simple manual/guide. Your priority is to quickly learn the functionality in a nutshell without having to spend time reading pages after pages that describe every little feature of the product. Basically, what you need is a Quick Start Guide (QSG) that will help you to get things started within a very short period.
Let’s explore a few key attributes a good QSG should have.
The first impression counts
Even though we say not to judge a book by its cover, generally we do not want to go through online material that looks pale and boring. It takes only one tenth of a second to form a first impression about a person, and this applies to online content too.
So, work on your layout, paragraph and heading styling, and shades and make it look catchy so that the reader will be keen on exploring the content.
Know your audience
When writing a QSG, it is quite important to know the audience that you are addressing, so that you can decide the level of detail you can include in the QSG and get rid of the obvious information if you must.
You can choose to explicitly mention the target audience at the beginning of the QSG to help the reader understand the relevance of the content.
Lead by example
Instead of directly giving instructions to perform a particular function, presenting a sample scenario would make it easier for a reader to relate to the functionality.
It will act as a solid foundation when guiding the reader to use the functionality that you are explaining in the QSG.
Keep it short
As the name suggests the readers expect a QSG to be easily graspable in a short period. Thus, keep the instructions simple and short. A QSG is not the place to showcase your vocabulary or ability to compose complex sentences. If you are bound to write verbose sentences, this is not your cup of tea. You MUST write concise sentences so that the QSG will be well received.
Highlight the important content
Make sure to emphasize the important information such as prerequisites, tips, special notes, and warnings with noticeable formatting. Content management tools such as Confluence and mkdocs offer the ability to highlight such content with ease.
A picture is worth a thousand words
Visual aids help your readers to grasp your message/instructions quickly and easily. You can add diagrams and screenshots related to the content.
If possible, embed mini clips with sound that explain the story in brief for the benefit of the audiences that prefer aural learning style.
Easy navigation
If your QSG has several sections, instead having to scroll down, consider structuring them with easy navigation features, e.g., tabs and wizards.
Welcome feedback
Last but not the least, it is a good practice to enable the readers to provide feedback so that you can improve the content accordingly.
Hope this information will assist you with creating QSGs that will increase your customer reach.
