Reading a book is certainly one way to learn about a process or product. Taking a course is another. But for those who are visual learners, is there a way for technical writing to address their needs? Webinars are one solution.

With webinars, you can engage an audience that’s already used to getting their information from a computer screen. This movement toward showing instead of telling is connecting audiences more fully to the information, and webinars can be used to complement printed documentation.

Everyone learns differently. When the goal is to ensure an audience learns certain pieces of information, the method should take that into consideration.

Benefits of Webinars for Learning

• Show the process as it unfolds – Each step of the process can be shown in the webinar.
• Allow for repeated views – When a webinar is taped, the viewer (or viewers) can watch it over and over.
• Can be broadcast around the world – Webinars can be taped and shown to audiences around the world, or they can be presented at a time when everyone can join in for the video.
• Can be created quickly and easily – With minimal equipment, a webinar can be created for the audience.
• Can allow for question and answer sessions – During live webinars, the instructor can work through questions so the viewers know exactly what they’ve learned and what they still need to learn.

While webinars can’t always replace user documentation, they are another tool to ensure that documentation is about more than just the written word.  Sometimes, people need to see those words in action.

Technical writing can certainly be a process of learning the skills through a course from a university or going to a conference.  But using hypothetical situations isn’t as effective as putting technical writing skills into use.  At Northwestern State University, students are learning about writing technical documentation while building robots.

Surprisingly, the course in which students are learning about technical writing isn’t a technical course or a technology class.  They’re learning in an English class, building their technical writing skills with each step of the robot-making process.

Why does this process work to teach skills?  According to the instructor, Ramey Prince, students learn because:

• It’s a hands-on process – Because students are learning the technical process intimately, they understand not only what to write, but also how to present the information in an effective way.
• Students are relaxed – Unlike learning on the job where there are deadlines and other pressing issues, students get to stay relaxed when learning and they can focus on learning instead of on outside distractions.
• It’s not about the robots, it’s the writing – Even though the robots aren’t necessarily functional, the students still learn about how the robots work, how they function, and how to create a document that works for the reader.

Technology that improves technology. A novel concept?

What are your thoughts? Please leave a comment.

According to Patrice Fanning, chief executive and founder of Technically Write IT, Ireland might be the next leader in technical writing.  

For those looking at the market today, it seems that many countries are positioning themselves for this role, and perhaps Ireland brings up some good points for other countries to consider.

What Makes One Country The One with the ‘Write’ Stuff

Interestingly enough, there are a few things that Patrice raises as strongpoints for offshore technical writers based in Ireland:

• Time zone location
• Inherent communication skills
• English speaking

These ideas do make a lot of sense to those who need technical writing services.  Ideally, the time zone of the user of the documentation and the writer will correlate to create time-sensitive documents.  If the time zones are too far apart, it can cause delays in getting the information out and obstacles in having teleconference meetings.  At the same time, technology and coffee tend to allow technical writers from many time zones to work collaboratively – provided the writers are willing to work on the employer’s time schedule.

Now, it does make sense that writers who are already good at communicating and collecting the right information will help to expedite the technical writing goals.  How one can measure whether someone is a good communicator or not…that’s a little less concrete.

The focus on English speaking for technical writing does come up in documentation, but it’s unclear if this is too broad of a generalization.  After all, not everyone speaks English and not everyone needs their documents in English.

Still, the statement from Patrice does make one wonder – which country, if any, is positioned to become a leader in technical writing?  And does it matter for the market as a whole?

The University of California, Santa Barbara understands the need for technical writing in today’s world. It’s offering a course starting on May 8th called “The Fundamentals of Technical Writing,” to create a starting point for many of today’s new writers.  A solid educational background can help the next generation of technical writers prepare to face the current challenges in disseminating information.

The Academic Approach to Technical Writing.

In this UCSB technical writing course, students will learn about:

• Research reports
• Grant proposals
• Review articles
• Monographs
• Document organization
• Selecting evidence
• Informing audiences
• Persuading readers
• Understanding the audience
• Using references

This class will help students grasp the basics and learn more about how to create useful documentation.  

In the world of instant publication we know as the Internet, it can sometimes be a problem to determine if published information can be trusted.  Too often, information is published without proper research and citations, causing readers to rely on incorrect information.

Formal academic training can help technical writers to extend their research and properly note citations, so users can trust they are finding useful and factual information.

The job hunt is on everyone’s mind – whether you’re looking for work or not.  So, what is the outlook for technical writing jobs?  

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the technical writing job market seems to be growing, and it comes as no surprise to those who already use technical writers in their business.

According to the BLS…

The latest figures posted for technical writers are:

• 2010 Median Pay: $63,280 per year or $30.42 per hour
• Entry-Level Education: Bachelor’s degree
• Work Experience in a Related Occupation: 1 to 5 years
• On-the-job Training: Short-term on-the-job training
• Number of Jobs, 2010: 49,500
• Job Outlook, 2010-20: 17% (About as fast as average)
• Employment Change, 2010-20: +8,500

According to these figures, the technical writing job market is growing about as fast as the average career.  For those looking to hire technical writers, these facts also show that technical writing is a skilled market, one in which the writers have at least a Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited university or college.

With more companies turning to technical writers for support, it becomes clear that traditional writing is becoming more and more specialized. Medical organizations require writers who are familiar with technical writing tools and formats, and information technology companies need writers who can turn technical processes into easy-to-follow user documentation.

While it’s clear that technical writing is a growing career field, what isn’t clear is how this will impact the market as a whole.  Does more technical writing job growth lead to better writing and more available information?

Related topics:
Which Skill Sets are Important for Technical Writers?
Hiring Contract Technical Writers
5 Secrets to Successful Interviewing and Hiring

No matter what type of information you’re trying to relay to an audience, you should realize that every audience is comprised of multiple types of learners.  Some learn with visual cues, others with auditory cues, and others with a combination of these cues and more.  One presentation to a group of learners isn’t going to help you with your educational goals, and it’s also not going to help the audience.  Just as medical patients are told to write down information they learn from their doctors and nurses, putting important information in writing can be a valuable lesson for your company too.

What to Put in Writing

If you’re in a company that doesn’t have an employee handbook or manual, how can you know if you’re doing things by the book?  You can’t.  Companies need to remember that while some people retain the information received at orientation, others need to have another reminder in a manual.

Important medical information should also be something that gets put into writing.  Everyone forgets the facts that a doctor says, and having them in print can help.

Instructions for common processes in a company as well as emergency procedures should also go into writing because when you need to take action, you don’t want to have to think about the steps – or someone else who is unfamiliar with the steps can jump in.

Having information in writing can save lives and help employees stay on track.  It doesn’t sound like much to some, but information is power – and it’s clear why this continues to be a common buzz phrase.

What are your thoughts on the importance of written information? With today’s technology, is the written word still a good way to keep everyone on the same page?

Editor’s Note: This was the feature article in this month’s TechCom Manager newsletter, reprinted here with permission. Click the previous link to subscribe to the newsletter.

by Scott Abel

As a profession, technical communication has a lot to be proud of. Thought leaders in our discipline have developed innovative ways of creating, managing, and delivering information that are in use today at some of the world’s biggest companies, government agencies, and educational institutions. Because of our best practices and lessons learned, it’s not only possible for these organizations to deliver the right information to the right people in the right format and in the right languages (increasingly on myriad mobile computing devices), but it’s also possible for them to do so efficiently and effectively.

And yet, many organizations that employ technical communicators have yet to adopt these new methods (XML, Component Content Management, and Dynamic, Personalized Publishing) despite the many case studies and success stories touting the efficiency gains and sales increases possible when thinking strategically about the way we create, manage, and deliver information to those who need it. Even with the promise of return on investment in relatively short order, many of our ilk are still creating content in the most inefficient and ineffective ways possible.

I believe the primary reason for our inefficiency is that we have never taken a hard look at what we create (deliverables) and how we create it (people, processes, tools) with an eye for eliminating the stumbling blocks and improving our ability to react to new content demands. Add to the mix the fact that many technical communicators (perhaps most) work for small- to medium-sized organizations—firms that often lack the budget, staff, money, and expertise to seriously scrutinize and totally revamp the way they work.

Of course, there are other trouble makers that contribute to our challenges. And one of the most problematic is good intentions. That’s right. When you really screw things up, it’s usually due to someone with good intentions who lacks insight into the ramifications of the choices they make. And, I speak from experience, hindsight providing me with some lessons learned to share with you from my digital bully pulpit.

We do it to ourselves. We set ourselves up for future failure. In the past, I have contributed to this problem by trying to find an innovative way to solve some isolated problems without considering the great impact my decisions have on productivity and the ability for my clients to react quickly to future changes in the market (eBooks, video, mobile computing, social networking). In fact, one of the biggest, dumbest mistakes I have made is encouraging organizations to adopt XML authoring tools to produce the majority of their deliverables. As it turns out, an XML editor is not the best tool to create an instructional video, to build an embeddable slide show, create infographics, push media-rich visual content to the web, or socially enable web content. But, alas, I know better today. And, so do you!

Small- and medium-sized organizations may not have the resources to launch game-changing technical communication projects like the ones you’re likely to see featured at our vendor-sponsored industry conferences. But that doesn’t mean we can’t do a good job at meeting the needs of our customers today and into the future. To do so, we’ll need to think about the approaches we adopt, the standards we support, and the tools we use to get the job done.

Whether selecting a new method (writing structured, minimalist content for reuse), a new standard (topic-based XML spec DITA) or looking for new software to help you reach your goals (XML-enabled authoring tools), it’s critically important to ensure that the tools you select support your needs today—and can do so well into the future.

For example, if I would have steered one of my clients toward an integrated suite of technical communication tools like the Adobe Technical Communication Suite (or a suitable competitor), I would have done them a big favor. As it turns out, three and a half years ago, when they made the move away from Adobe FrameMaker to a straightforward XML authoring tool and a simple component content management system, Facebook wasn’t the dominant platform on Earth; there was no iPad, Galaxy tablet, or Kindle Fire; eBooks were but a whisper; apps existed only on the desktop; and YouTube wasn’t the dominant “how to” search engine. Unfortunately, our choices then don’t support the world we live in today.

As such, my clients were left to weave together a patchwork quilt of technology solutions—a mishmash of software for each new type of media they need to support. It’s a stupid approach that leads to all sorts of inefficiencies. And, it’s not the right approach. It’s only going to make matters worse.

Each technical communicator involved in the content-creation process now has to learn different tools, different commands, and different interfaces. When they need support for the new products, they have to call different vendors, set up different support contracts, and follow different procedures set by each vendor. They have to deal with different pricing and licensing structures, different training materials, and the list goes on and on and on. Oh, and to make them all work together, they’re going have to hire someone to build transforms and other connectors. And, when they’re done, it will kind-of-sorta work better. Kinda. Sorta. Maybe.

Alas, lessons learned are everywhere. You don’t have to pay $2500 to attend a conference to learn that this approach is a stupid one that will cost you big headaches (and lots of extra money) in the end, because I’m giving you this gift for free. When you don’t have the money to totally revamp the way you create, manage and deliver content—and do it right—don’t just flail around looking for individual solutions to each problem that crops up. Do yourself a favor and look at the bigger picture. When you do, you might be surprised that an integrated toolset is an attractive option that will serve you well into the future.

About the Author

Scott Abel is a content-management strategist, structured XML content evangelist, and social networking choreographer whose strengths lie in helping organizations improve the way they author, maintain, and deliver their information assets.

Scott’s blog, The Content Wrangler, is a popular online resource for content professionals with an interest in content management, content standards and content technologies. Scott writes regularly for trade and industry publications, blogs, and newsletters. He also helps produce several industry events, including the Web Content conference series and Intelligent Content Conference with Ann Rockley and The Rockley Group.

He’s also a popular dance music mashup artist, DJ, and music producer who has been spinning since 1982.

More from Scott Abel:
Tapping Into Your Content Goldmine Means Thinking Differently
XML Authoring: Coming to a Desktop Near You
Understanding the Need for Content Quality Management

Medical writing isn’t just for the professionals in the healthcare field.  Patients rely on documentation about their disease and how to care for loved ones in health situations.  With well-written brochures and manuals, the patient can have something to turn to when they’re at home or in a hospital setting, helping them see if they’re on the road to recovery or if they need to check in with their healthcare provider.

Not Just for Nurses

Medical technical writing helps to explain complicated medical situations to patients, allowing them to make informed decisions about their care.  Even though a patient might not understand all of the big words that the doctor might tell him, a well-written information packet can step in to help.  Even if the packet doesn’t answer all of the patient’s questions, it can provide some background information that could lead to additional questions the patient might want to ask when the doctor does finally come to check in and answer questions.

While the Internet is certainly a favored tool for patients who want to learn more about their complicated health issues, the Internet is vast – not to mention rife with inaccurate information – and can become confusing to patients.  Instead, medical writers need to clearly communicate important information to set the stage for a conversation between the patient – now equipped with up-to-date medical information – and doctor.  

Health crises are scary enough without having to decide whether health information is reliable.  This is where medical technical writing can clear things up – or at least make the health information more straightforward and understandable to patients and their families.

More on Medical Writers

Do Medical Writers Change the World?
AMA Manual of Style: Medical Writing 101
Diagnosing the Medical Writer

Once upon a time, James Erwin was writing software manuals in Des Moines, Iowa. An everyday technical writer, he spent his days trying to ensure that information could be easily used and digested by the reader. Until something happened. And that ‘something’ was social networking.

As James Erwin was commenting about a movie online, his comments received so many responses that he got noticed online. He was offered a job writing a screenplay and had to quit his technical writing job. So, the question becomes, can technical writing skills help to foster a career in another field of writing – like script writing?

Technical Writing Parallels to Script Writing

While the answer seems clear from this case history, let’s look at how user documentation and the average script might relate to each other.

• Follows an outline
• Keeps the audience in mind
• Remembers past ‘story’ details
• Provides something to the user – i.e. entertainment, information, etc.

And a script also has numerous formatting issues to which it needs to adhere, depending on the eventual outlet and reader. Technical writing documentation and software manuals also have a structure to which they adhere, helping to create a recognizable format into which the reader can disappear and focus on the information, rather than what it looks like.

Does this mean you might lose your technical writer to Hollywood? Probably not, but you might also want to think about how another type of writer can still fill your tech writing needs.

What are your thoughts on social media and the parallels between script writing, other types of writing and technical writing? We’d love to have your comments.

Registration is now open for the STC (Society for Technical Communication) Summit for 2012. Most technical writers believe it’s the place to be to share ideas, learn about the current industry trends, and network with other writers and companies.

Conference Where and When

Taking place on May 20 – 23, 2012, in Chicago-Rosemont, Illinois, this annual conference will be held at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare, and will include over 80 different sessions, organized into 10 tracks to help you customize your experience to your current needs. There are two reception events included in the schedule, giving ample time for networking and meeting other technical communication professionals.

STC Summit Conference Program

While details are incomplete now, the schedule is expected to include:

Preconference certificate courses
Workshops
Leadership Program
Summit Opening General Session
Welcome Reception
Education sessions
SIG events
STC Annual Business Meeting
Communities Reception
Honors Reception
Honors Banquet—ticketed event
Closing Lunch–ticketed event
Leadership Program Wrap-up
Bonus Sessions

These events will cover all aspects of technical writing, editing, project management, and publication production. Of course, there will be the usual conference exhibition, and Writing Assistance will be there. Right now we have been assigned to booth 109, so come see us if you attend the conference.

The STC website even includes a letter that a prospective attendee can send to their boss in order to convince them of the time away from the office, and the price tag.

Are you heading to the STC Summit this year? Please leave a comment and let us know. And be sure to stop by and see us in the exhibit area. We’ll be in booth 109.

Related article: How to Justify Conference Attendance