What is the Value of Professional Product Support Documentation to your Business?

24 Feb What is the Value of Professional Product Support Documentation to your Business?

Do you know how much money your product support documentation is leaving on the table?

Product documentation often ends up as an afterthought in the development process; often finding itself easily slapped together when done and sent out.

This approach could be limiting your sales or impacting your revenues in a myriad of small ways that eventually add up.

Here are 4 key reasons why it pays to invest in professional documentation.

4 ways your product support documentation is leaving money on the table

1.     Customer service and support

How much time and resources are wasted providing customer support because the supporting documentation was poor? How much more will it cost you to provide extra support because of poorly written documentation? What will the additional costs be to escalate the issue from one level to another?

If a user can rely on your documentation to solve their product issues, then that equals savings for the company. Plus, it is less likely that your customer will give up out of frustration and turn to your competitor.

2.     Building out your product support launch

One thing that must be ready for any successful product launch is user documentation. Both system administrators and end-users will need to have access to documentation to understand the product, how it works, and how to set it up.

For user documentation, it can include any and everything from installation and operation instructions, troubleshooting and repair guidelines, tutorials, technical datasheets, and/or vendor reference materials. All these should translate technical jargon to user-friendly discourse for quick reads, and most importantly, conversions.

Because when a potential user can understand your product, and your team can explain it to them, you are in a better position for a successful product launch.

3.     Shaping your customer narrative

It’s up to you how your customers think and view your products. When you can educate them on why they should care about your product or services, it is easier for you to close the sale.

Your documentation is a significant part of that process.

4.     Onboarding new staff

The onboarding process for new employees comes at a cost. Each day spent training new hires, is another day of lost productivity. Where new employees fail to understand your processes, product, or software, it becomes difficult for them to efficiently support your business.

Your documentation can reduce that cost significantly. Effective documentation reduces the onboarding curve and increases the efficiency and effectiveness of training new staff.

That means fewer business resources tied up in training activity that does not generate a return.

Do you know your hidden documentation costs?

What could be the potential cost to your business of not providing professional documentation?

The full value of professional documentation may be hidden, until you are faced with hefty industry fines and lengthy, expensive litigation(s). But you are certainly leaving money on the table when your clients cannot find or understand your documentation resources.

If you want professional documentation that will support your bottom-line, then it’s time to contact Hunter McKenzie.

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