How to Test Documentation Usability
Documentation is part of your product, whether it’s hardware or software. The success of your product depends on the user experience. The user experience depends in part on the documentation’s usability.
You can wait until publishing to see whether your documentation solves your users’ problems. However, a much more practical and proactive approach is to test the documentation’s usability before publishing.
Testing documentation usability allows you to know beforehand the extent to which the documentation will help product users achieve their goals. Based on the results of usability testing, you can make appropriate changes to improve documentation usability.
If you’re interested in learning more, watch the video below. Otherwise, skip ahead.
Understanding the Basics
Documentation usability refers to how easy it is for users to use documentation to achieve a goal or purpose.
Even though technical documentation must be accurate, relevant, and up-to-date, the purpose of technical writing and documentation is not to create precise, up-to-date, and relevant documentation.
The purpose of technical writing and documentation is to help users and readers achieve a goal by providing quick, efficient information transfer. Examples of user goals include learning how to solve a problem, understand a concept, or an idea.
In other words, the purpose of technical writing and documentation is usability, and it is essential to conduct usability testing to ensure the documentation meets its intended purpose and enhances the user experience.
What is Documentation Usability – Definition and Purpose
Documentation usability ensures technical documents are easy to use, understand, and navigate. It involves evaluating the effectiveness of technical documents in communicating complex information to end-users.
Through documentation usability testing, technical writers and documentation teams can identify areas of improvement, making the documentation more user-friendly and effective. This systematic process helps in refining the content, structure, and presentation of technical documents, ensuring they meet the needs of their intended audience.
Documentation usability refers to the degree to which technical documents are easy to use, understand, and navigate. It encompasses various aspects, including readability, visual appeal, information architecture, content structure, and content quality.
High documentation usability ensures that technical documents meet the needs of their intended audience, reducing errors and enhancing the overall user experience. By focusing on usability, technical writers can create documents that are not only informative but also accessible and efficient for users.
Why Documentation Usability Testing Matters
A product or documentation released without appropriate testing can not only lead to product failure but also to loss of revenue, reputation, customers, and even lawsuits. Documentation usability testing will not only lead to improvements in the documentation but also contribute to the success of your products, increased customer loyalty and brand value, and business growth. Usability metrics can be used to measure the effectiveness of your documentation.
A team that can include product designers, technical writers, marketers, software developers, and subject matter experts creates documentation. The documentation team has its own perspective, mindset, and point of view: what appeals to the documentation team might not appeal to actual users. Therefore, the main reason to test documentation usability is to ascertain whether the documentation will help actual users.
Documentation Usability Supports Business Growth
Documentation will help users find what they are looking for, understand it, and use it to achieve their goals.
Testing is crucial to ensuring that product documentation remains accurate and user-friendly, especially as products undergo updates. Implementing effective documentation testing strategies can improve documentation clarity and effectiveness for end users.
Your product documentation enables customers to solve problems independently. Documentation with low usability will lead to increased customer support tickets, increasing your customer support costs. By conducting usability testing, you can ensure your documentation is highly usable, helping you keep customer support costs down.
Customers prefer self-service because it takes less time to solve problems on their own. Customers’ self-esteem also gets a boost when they can solve problems on their own. If customers can solve problems on their own, feel good about themselves, and avoid the time and effort involved in going through customer support, they will feel good about you—i.e., your brand. Customers will develop loyalty to your brand, leading to long-term customer retention and increased sales.
Planning Documentation Usability Testing
Planning documentation usability testing involves several steps, including defining the testing goals, identifying the target audience, and selecting the testing methods. It is essential to include stakeholders from various departments, including technical writing, product development, and customer support, to ensure the test scenarios are comprehensive and practical. By carefully planning the usability testing process, organizations can gather valuable insights into how their documentation performs with actual users and identify areas for improvement.
Usability Testing Plan
A usability testing plan is a detailed document that outlines the testing goals, methods, and procedures. It should include the following elements:
- Testing goals: Clearly define the testing objectives, including the specific aspects of documentation usability to be evaluated.
- Target audience: Identify the intended audience for the documentation, including their characteristics, needs, and expectations.
- Testing methods: Select the testing methods, including usability testing, user interviews, and surveys.
- Testing procedures: Outline the testing environment, equipment, and data-collection methods.
- Data analysis: Describe the data analysis methods, including the metrics to be used to evaluate documentation usability.
By following these steps and creating a comprehensive usability testing plan, organizations can ensure their documentation usability testing is effective, efficient, and informative. This structured approach helps systematically identify and address usability issues, leading to improved technical documents that better serve their users. Additionally, incorporating usability testing tools can further enhance the testing process by providing valuable insights and data.
What to Test in Technical Documentation?
Now, let us take a look at the specifics that you can test for your documentation.
A usability test can play a crucial role in identifying areas for improvement in your documentation, ensuring clarity, accessibility, and overall user satisfaction by analyzing the user journey.
1. Content Structure
When users access your product documentation, they are not interested in reading it from start to finish. Instead, they are looking for specific information that will help them resolve an issue or understand a concept or idea.
When testing documentation for content structure, check whether the content is split into appropriate sections, how easy it is to navigate, and if it is searchable. Evaluating the content hierarchy is crucial in this process, as it ensures that information is organized logically. A usability test checklist can be an invaluable tool in this process, helping ensure the documentation meets end users’ needs by facilitating clear, straightforward use of product features.
Split Content into Sections
To make it easy for users to find specific information, you can start by structuring documents so that related information is divided into chapters or sections. Rather than going through the whole document, users can skim the document and read only the section(s) that contain information of interest.
Make it Easy to Navigate
Once you have developed a logical document structure with sections containing related information, the next step is to display the structure in a way that makes it easy for users to find the section containing the information of interest. In other words, you need to make the documentation easy to navigate.
For documentation in the traditional multi-chapter manual format, you can do this by putting a table of contents at the start of the document. Another option is to add an index containing key terms that users can search for.
Make it Searchable
The other thing you must do is make your documentation searchable. Users will search for specific keywords e.g. how to install, how to troubleshoot, firmware upgrade, how to integrate, etc. Making documentation searchable will help users find all sections that contain information of interest.
2. Readability
There is a lot that you can do to improve readability. For this article, we will focus on the active voice, short sentences, medium-length paragraphs, and appropriate vocabulary. Additionally, collecting user feedback is crucial as it provides insights into how real users perceive and interact with the content, helping to identify areas for improvement. A useful metric to consider is the readability score, which measures how easy it is to read the documentation.
Use Active Voice
Most style guides, such as the classic Elements of Style by Strunk and White and the APA Style Guide, recommend using the active voice.
For the active voice, the subject of a sentence is followed by the verb and then the object of the verb. E.g., the programmer wrote the code.
For passive voice, the object of the verb is followed by the verb and then the subject. E.g., the code was written by the programmer.
Even though the passive voice is allowed, the active voice has the advantage of creating direct, clear, and concise sentences.
Avoid Long Sentences
It is an intuitive concept that long sentences are more complex to understand, and short sentences are easier to read and understand.
Consider the following example from a Google technical writing course: “The late 1950s were a key era for programming languages because IBM introduced Fortran in 1957 and John McCarthy introduced Lisp the following year, which gave programmers both an iterative way of solving problems and a recursive way”.
According to the Hemingway app, a popular writing tool, the long sentence has “poor” readability and is suitable for readers with post-graduate level education.
Breaking the long sentence into shorter sentences yields the following result: “The late 1950s were a key era for programming languages. IBM introduced Fortran in 1957. John McCarthy invented Lisp the following year. Consequently, by the late 1950s, programmers could solve problems iteratively or recursively”.
According to the Hemingway app, breaking down a long sentence into multiple short sentences leads to “good” readability, and the text is now suitable for readers with a grade 9 level of education.
Therefore, to improve readability, it is better to use short sentences and focus each sentence on a single idea.
Avoid Too Long or Too Short Paragraphs
Long paragraphs are intimidating and form a dreaded “wall of text” that readers ignore. Readers welcome paragraphs containing three to five sentences. Readers will avoid paragraphs containing more than about seven sentences. Therefore, it is better to divide longer paragraphs into separate paragraphs.
It is also important to avoid paragraphs that are too short. It is not that one-line paragraphs impede readability; instead, they point to a lack of organization. Therefore, seek ways to combine one-sentence paragraphs into cohesive multi-sentence paragraphs or into lists.
Vocabulary
The use of appropriate vocabulary is essential for successful communication. If your audience does not understand the words that you use, then your documentation will lose its utility.
Using complex technical language is appropriate if your audience includes engineers and other users with college degrees.
However, most documentation is written for the layperson. That is why it is better to match the vocabulary to the audience and avoid jargon and complex terminology.
3. Content Quality
Good structure and readability only help if the content is high quality. Standard criteria of content quality for technical documentation include:
- Accuracy: Inaccurate content creates rather than solves problems. Therefore, technical writers and other team members involved in documentation creation must ensure content accuracy.
- Relevance: Content that is accurate but outdated does not help users. Therefore, content must be relevant for today and reflect current research, trends, and information.
- Completeness: The content must include all the information customers need or want about a topic.
- Amount of information: The documentation must have the right amount of information; too much or too little can drive users away.
Conducting a content audit can help identify areas where the documentation may be lacking in these aspects.
Usability testing results play a crucial role in improving content quality by providing insights that guide necessary modifications to ensure clarity and usability for end-users.
4. Visual Appeal
Good content structure, readability, and quality might not be enough for documentation accessibility. Visual appeal, though much more subjective than the other usability criteria, makes a significant difference in how users perceive documentation. Incorporating a well-thought-out visual hierarchy can further enhance the user’s experience by guiding their attention to the most important elements.
There is no point in denying reality: humans are drawn toward aesthetically pleasing objects and make split-second judgments about visual appeal.
To ensure your users value and use the hard work you put into creating documentation, it is worth investing time and effort to design your documentation with high visual appeal.
Using appropriate fonts, font sizes, color schemes, layouts, images, screenshots, and navigation elements can all enhance the visual appeal of your technical documentation. Additionally, utilizing usability testing templates can help ensure that your design choices effectively improve visual appeal and user experience.
How to Test Documentation Usability?
You can use the following three methods to test documentation usability.
Remote usability testing is crucial because it enables identifying usability issues from a distance, using customizable scripts and detailed planning frameworks to streamline the process.
A usability testing report plays a vital role in documenting testing outcomes, analyzing results, and driving necessary iterations for product or website functionality. Introducing a usability testing framework can further enhance the structure and efficiency of your testing process.
Paraphrase Testing
Paraphrase testing focuses on user understanding. If users can repeat your documentation content in their own words, it is a clear indication that they understand it. If readers are unable to paraphrase your content, your documentation team needs to improve it to enhance reading comprehension.
Additionally, user testing plays a crucial role in gathering qualitative feedback from real users, which is vital for shaping product development and usability improvements.
Task-Based Testing
You can use task-based testing to determine how easy it is for users to find and understand information through various user scenarios. This testing method is the most relevant for documentation with instructions such as user manuals, installation manuals, and troubleshooting manuals.
If the results of task-based testing show you that users take a long time to find information, then you need to work on improving navigation and search.
If users can find information but don’t understand it, your documentation team needs to improve content structure, readability, and quality.
Usability tests are also crucial in this context, as they allow adjustments to product documentation, ensuring it effectively meets the needs of its intended audience before a product launch.
Plus-Minus Testing
Dutch researchers Menno de Jong and Peter Jan Schellens devised the plus–minus testing technique. This technique focuses on the documentation as a whole: users are asked to review the entire documentation and make recommendations on content to add and remove.
You can consider the results of the plus-minus testing valuable feedback to review and improve your complete documentation. Additionally, analyzing usability testing results can further guide improvements by providing a methodical approach to understanding user needs and ensuring clarity and usability for end-users.
Creating a Usability Testing Report
A usability testing report serves as a comprehensive summary of the test’s findings, highlighting the product’s or documentation’s strengths and weaknesses. A well-crafted usability testing report not only identifies areas for improvement but also provides actionable recommendations to enhance the user experience.
When writing a usability testing report, it’s essential to keep the following tips in mind to ensure the report is effective and informative:
- The report should be easy to understand, even for those unfamiliar with the product or its documentation. Avoid jargon and overly technical language to ensure the report is accessible to all stakeholders.
- Incorporate screenshots, videos, or diagrams to illustrate the findings. Visual aids can make the report more engaging and help convey complex information more effectively.
- Center the report around the user’s experience. Highlight how users interacted with the documentation and provide recommendations for improving their experience.
- Organize the findings by severity and impact on the user experience. This helps stakeholders understand which issues need immediate attention and which can be addressed later.
- Ensure the report includes clear, actionable recommendations for improving the product or documentation. These recommendations should be specific and feasible, guiding the team on the next steps to take.
By following these tips, you can create a usability testing report that not only documents the findings but also drives meaningful improvements in your technical documentation.
Software and Platforms for Conducting Usability Testing
There are numerous tools available for conducting usability testing, each designed to streamline the process and provide valuable insights. These tools can help you gather user feedback, analyze usability issues, and identify areas for improvement. By leveraging these tools, you can ensure your documentation is user-friendly and practical.
Here are some popular tools for usability testing that can help you conduct tests, collect user feedback, and analyze the results:
- UserTesting: This platform allows you to conduct remote usability testing with real users. It provides video recordings of users interacting with your documentation, along with their feedback and insights.
- TryMata: TryMata offers remote usability testing services, enabling you to gather user feedback and understand how users interact with your documentation. It provides detailed reports and video recordings of user sessions.
- Optimal Workshop: Optimal Workshop provides a suite of usability testing and user research tools, including tree testing, card sorting, and first-click testing. These tools help you evaluate the structure and navigation of your documentation.
- Hotjar: Hotjar offers heat maps, session recordings, and user feedback tools. These features allow you to see how users interact with your documentation and identify usability issues.
These tools not only streamline the usability testing process but also provide actionable insights that can enhance the overall user experience.
Conclusion
Highly usable documentation will improve the customer experience, contributing to the success of your products and your business. Usability testing documentation helps you ascertain how well your document works for the customers who use it.
Documentation usability testing gives you authentic feedback: instead of assuming or guessing, you will learn what works and what does not. Based on documentation usability testing results, your documentation team can make objective decisions about what to keep and what to modify.
FAQs
Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about documentation usability testing:
What is documentation usability testing?
Documentation usability testing is the process of evaluating how easily users can understand, navigate, and use technical documents to achieve their goals. It helps identify areas where the documentation may be unclear or difficult to use, enabling teams to make improvements before publishing.
Why is documentation usability testing important?
Testing documentation usability ensures that the documentation effectively helps users achieve their goals, such as solving a problem or understanding a concept. It reduces user frustration, lowers support costs, and improves overall customer satisfaction by ensuring the documentation is clear, concise, and helpful.
What aspects of documentation are tested during usability testing?
Common aspects tested include content structure, readability, navigation ease, search functionality, and content quality. The goal is to ensure users can quickly find and understand the information they need without confusion or frustration.
What are some methods used for testing documentation usability?
Common methods include paraphrase testing, where users explain the content in their own words to ensure comprehension, task-based testing, where users perform specific tasks using the documentation, and plus-minus testing, where users provide feedback on what content should be added or removed.
How does documentation usability testing benefit a business?
Effective documentation usability testing improves user experience, reduces customer support requests, enhances brand loyalty, and increases the likelihood of long-term customer retention. It also ensures that the product documentation aligns with user needs, contributing to the overall success of the product and business.
What is participant recruitment, and why is it important for usability testing?
Participant recruitment is the process of selecting users who reflect your product’s real target audience. Without the right participants, the feedback you collect may be misleading or irrelevant. A well-defined participant recruitment plan ensures you gather actionable insights from people who closely match your user profile, leading to more accurate, meaningful improvements.
If you are new to technical writing and are looking to break-in, we recommend taking our Technical Writing Certification Course, where you will learn the fundamentals of being a technical writer, how to dominate technical writer interviews, and how to stand out as a technical writing candidate.
