Complete and Thorough Technical Documentation for Businesses

Every piece of analytics and business intelligence work or project should come pre-packaged with robust technical documentation. Clients and partners who work with Analytics Metal already know that we provide technical documentation directly with every project output.

However, this service offering is vital across many disciplines within organizations, not just for data and BI teams who are already working with us. Web developers launching new internal systems need how-to and technical support documents. Mobile app developers need install and user guides. Business owners need frequently asked question sections and knowledge center articles to be developed. Software teams need comprehensive release notes and troubleshooting manuals to be published. HR teams need new employee handbooks and intranet content. Companies in general need documentation of many types for products they sell to consumers and for internal processes and systems.

Technical documentation means many hours of product usage, fact-finding and journey mapping, with rigorous exploration and extreme precision to detail. Organizations should strongly consider hiring professional help that can be solely dedicated to organizing and compiling what will eventually become some of your most important internal assets.

Repeatable Process for Technical Documentation

Our approach for technical documentation projects follows the below five stages:

1. Access to hardware, software, and systems
   The same levels of access that your product or system users will need to engage with your creations are required to properly and thoroughly document steps, flows, and catch edge-cases.
   
   
2. Deep product exploration and usage
   Our goal when working with clients on technical documentation is to leave no stone unturned: Every link, clickable element, and interaction possibility will be thoroughly explored - you can never predict how users will engage with what you have built, making this stage critical.
   
   
3. Complete user-journey mapping
   Shopping carts, account creations, product linking, document upload and management, download procedures and operational flows are recorded and documented.
   
   
4. Documentation beta-testing
   We ask multiple new users to test how well our documentation performs in real-world scenarios, by using our documentation to perform critical tasks or by finding the right answers to their questions. Users can be other Analytics Metal team members or paid users who can report back on how any technical documentation holds up.
   
   
5. Overview and publishing to production
   While we encourage your team to use our technical documents before publishing internally and/or on your website or intranet, we will review our work with you and hand it off to your team in a complete state of readiness.
   
   

Examples of Types of Technical Documentation We Provide

User Instruction and Informational Manuals

Any product requiring user operation, from a toaster to the cockpit of an F-35 Lightning II fighter jet, requires detailed and accurate technical documentation manuals, containing step-by-step operational instructions and additional relevant information.

How-To Usage Guides

Depending on the product or software involved, user guides may need to be developed across user groups, from beginner to expert and from technical user to non-technical user. Everyone who attempts to use your product or software should be able to do so by following up-to-date, clear how-to guides.

Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) Development

Every system ever invented by mankind comes with questions by those unfamiliar with the product or software in question, by those who are learning, and even by expert users looking to research work-arounds or what they might perceive as a bug. Robust FAQs significantly reduce the need for technical support, and can serve as a living and breathing document for additional information.

Application Programming Interface (API) Documentation

Using an API is typically done by someone in IT, someone in web development, engineering, or another technical role (like a business intelligence analyst). Even for these users, advanced technical documentation is required so that your users have a successful and smooth experience interacting with your product or system.

Process Flow Documentation

Detailing what each button does or where each link takes you is only part of the technical documentation process. Proper step-by-step scenario documentation is critical to show your new and existing users how your system works from end-to-end. Process flow documentation also makes for excellent training and tutorial material.

Installation Guides

Never assume your end-users know how to install your software, and never assume your software will be installed on the same hardware (Ex: on Windows machines). If your product needs to be installed or configured by someone, there should be accompanying technical documentation to assist.

Release Note Publishing

The advantage of digital goods, compared to their physical counterparts, is that updates can be developed and downloaded by your users. Accurate release notes, reflecting changes made, improvements, bug and critical error fixes with dates and version history notes ensure your users know what has changed and how those changes affect their usage.

Training Manuals

Training manuals are great for new employees, new users unfamiliar with your product or system, and situations where describing how an industry works or how a peer group interacts with each other needs to be cataloged. Every major industrial and commercial vehicle, for example, comes with significant training manual documentation.

Knowledge Base Articles

Improving your user’s ability to use your product or system is directly correlated with their satisfaction and ultimately the way they view your brand and their likelihood of recommending it to a friend or family member. Developing a knowledge base is becoming more common today versus in years past, as users have now come to expect this level of detail when creating an account or downloading an app.

Troubleshooting Guides

No matter how much research and no matter how many rounds of testing, there will always be scenarios where something unexpected happens. Troubleshooting guides are great for users and developers alike, so both the user and company providing the product or system knows what common failure scenarios occur and how to overcome them.

New Employee Onboarding

There isn’t a more needy group of people needing articulate, detailed, and accurate documentation than new employees joining your company. Surprisingly, few companies have the necessary onboarding guides developed, sending new associates down a more complicated and challenging path than necessary.

Analytics Metal has developed technical documentation for many organizations over the years, inside and outside of analytics and business intelligence. Organizations are sorely lacking and struggling with their technical documentation, potentially costing millions in wasted time, energy, and work hours, and potentially frustrating thousands of new and existing users. We can help your organization with professional and thorough technical documentation, and would love an opportunity to discuss your needs via our Free Consultation process, available to any organization needing support.