When it comes to your products, your team members are the experts. They’ve designed them, developed them, and fixed every defect. And they’ve made hundreds, if not thousands, of design choices to benefit your customers. So, why then do so many product experts struggle to document the very products that they live and breathe? Commonly, the answer lies in a concept known as the curse of knowledge.
Symptoms of the Curse of Knowledge
In 1989, economics researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, University of Chicago, and the Institut für Wirtschaftswissenschaften conducted an experimental analysis of what seems like a straightforward hypothesis: in markets, better-informed agents are assumed to make better judgments than less-informed agents. What they found, though, was quite the opposite. Subject matter experts (SMEs) tend to rely on their insider knowledge and biases more often than those less informed. The result is decision making based on their expertise, even when it’s not in their best interest.
Though this study focused on economics, this “curse of knowledge” concept translates to nearly every discipline, including technology and technical writing. Technology SMEs are often tasked to write product documentation. Unfortunately, the curse of knowledge tends to reflect the context gap that exists between your SMEs and your users, and the resulting documentation reflects one of three prominent symptoms.
Talking Down to the Reader
The phrase “ivory tower” is common in technology for a reason: the industry is rife with highly educated experts who know their fields inside and out. And that’s a good thing! However, when writing for beginners or intermediate-level users, many experts overcompensate and overexplain. While they don’t mean anything by it, their writing can sometimes come off as condescending, especially to an audience that has some level of knowledge in your product space.
Skipping Important Details
In sharp contrast to the overexplanation phenomenon, cognitive bias plays heavily into the curse of knowledge, especially in technical writing. Some SMEs, who operate at a level significantly above a beginner-level learner or product user, make assumptions based on their inherent biases and omit important steps or details. From the reader’s perspective, these omissions lead to confusion, frustration, and sometimes, even product abandonment. (See our ‘Hello World’ example in this article.)
Information Overload
And then there’s the “overexcited” SME, the one who wants the reader to know every detail they find exciting and interesting about the product. While that information might be interesting to some, your readers might find themselves sifting through insignificant details to find the information they need. As expected, you’re going to lose some readers before they get to the good parts. You might even see an uptick in support calls asking questions that should be answered through documentation (more details in Handling information overload).
How Technical Writers Banish the Curse of Knowledge
Technical writing exists to bridge the gap between your product and the product users. Whether it’s user manuals, API documentation, product schematics, installation guides, or any other form of technical documentation, it must deliver a clear message at a level that the reader can understand. Technical writers are your communication SMEs who can build that bridge in the most effective and informative way. They produce technical communication excellence in several ways.
Bringing a Fresh Perspective
Technical writers come to your team with fresh eyes and a clean slate, ready to understand your technology. They ask the right questions of your technology SMEs and then lean on their own expertise as writers to organize and communicate that information to your readers.
Understanding the Audience’s Needs
In writing, it’s just as important to understand what the audience needs as it is to understand the technology. Technical writers intentionally focus on the needs of the reader, no matter what their level, and then address those needs as directly as possible.
Writing to the Right Level of Detail
There’s a “Goldilocks” moment that happens when creating technical documentation where the level of information presented is “just right.” The writer neither overexplains nor leaves out important details. They’re able to distill the details that your SMEs provide, choose which are most relevant and essential to the task at hand, and fill in the gaps so that your documentation is both concise and complete. Then, they write it using language that’s most natural for the reader.
Your SMEs are Still the Experts
Like all successful projects, creating excellent technical documentation doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Your technical writers and SMEs must operate as a team. While technical writers focus on technical communication excellence, your SMEs are the information source, the mid-project gut check, and quality control for your final documentation. They should be involved throughout the process to review outlines, provide supporting documentation, give brain dumps, and review all documents for accuracy before publication.
Overcome the Curse of Knowledge with Technical Writing Services
Having trouble creating excellent technical documentation? Expert Support offers services, including:
We also offer consulting services for building technical writing teams and training to improve communications across your organization.
See our technical writing services or contact us to talk about your project needs.