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Blogging as Non-Traditional Support Documentation

Elizabeth
April 01, 2014

Blogging as Non-Traditional Support Documentation

Elizabeth

April 01, 2014
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  1. Readers Can Subscribe • Blogging provides an incremental introduction to

    various topics. • Email updates are occasional prompts to keep learning. • Subscribing to a blog builds knowledge in a gradual and fun way. Tuesday, April 1, 14
  2. Blogging Turns Documentation Into Conversation • Readers can comment, and

    staff can reply. • Readers can use sharing buttons to promote the post. Tuesday, April 1, 14
  3. Blogs Have Authors • Regular readers get to know the

    writers of the blog. • This creates an ongoing relationship between staff and users that is based around creativity and proactive support rather than merely troubleshooting. Tuesday, April 1, 14
  4. More People Can Blog • Not all staff members will

    know how to construct technical documentation, but most can write a blog post. • Creates an opportunity for developers and others to interact with users. Tuesday, April 1, 14
  5. Blogs Can Be a Fresh Start • It’s easier to

    begin a new blog than to overhaul your entire support documentation system. • Blogging lets you experiment. • What you learn from blogging can then be applied to the documentation. Tuesday, April 1, 14
  6. •ZTH Participants: Posted an average of 9.6 times per blog

    •This was about an 89% jump in posting from the previous month for these users •Random sample: Posted an average 0.2 times •Participants voluntarily used shortcodes!! This means that consistent blogging by staff helped those users publish 48 times as often as a control group! Tuesday, April 1, 14
  7. • Blogs promote incremental learning and ongoing engagement. • Blogging

    turns documentation into conversation, and helps you build positive relationships with your users. • Blogging is fun for the whole company! • Blogging is a low-investment, easy fresh start and ongoing “dev site” for experimentation and iteration on your existing support documentation. In Sum: Tuesday, April 1, 14