Documentation is a source of information. It can be written for any purpose.
Tech teams tend to use documentation to explain their code. It can also be written for API and SDK guidelines.
In non-tech teams, it’s commonly used to create a Go-to-market plan or Product Requirements Document.
Why is Documentation Important?
Documentation is used to organize the information you might need in the future. Therefore, you will not need to conduct research when doing the same job later.
Let’s say your marketing team creates a specific type of content regularly. Having the requirements outlined and documenting the rules they apply while creating content makes it easier next time.
Most companies also write a How-To guide, and if your customers are unable to understand that guide, they will get lost or churn no matter how good your product is.
Documentation Types
Documentation can be created depending on the subject. Let’s look at some common document types used by software companies.
Product Vision: The product vision is why you are creating it. Documenting the product vision from the early days ensures that the culture is protected as the company grows.
Product Strategy: A product strategy describes how a company plans to achieve its objectives with its product and how it plans to accomplish them. You can think of it as a document version of a roadmap.
Go to Market Plan: A Go-to-Market Plan guides the execution of your product. It must be carefully planned for the product to succeed.
Persona: Persona is a fictional person created by the product teams. Personas help product teams understand customers’ personalities and needs.
Guideline: A guideline is a document that tells a customer how to use a product. You need to provide detailed information about your product to clarify your customer’s use.
Tips for Better Documentation
- Organize your thoughts before starting to write by planning the structure and categorizing it
- prepare your visual contents
- write as plain as possible
- be user-focused
- ask other team members to review
- and try not to repeat yourself
Producter is a product management tool designed to become customer-driven.
It helps you collect feedback, manage tasks, sharing product updates, creating product docs, and tracking roadmap.
