The debate as to whether to make user manuals available to everyone (regardless of them being a customer or not) is one that continues in the software sector. Some companies advocate it as part of a “try before you buy” product marketing strategy; others have concerns as to whether it will adversely affect their sales or their competitive advantage…. Read more »
Category: marketing
Fitting technical documentation into a Social Web strategy
Social Media experts, such as David Armano, of Dachis Corp, are proposing new business measures for assessing the effectiveness of social media marketing. Armano is proposing five key measurement factors: Attention: how many people are clicking on your site, blogs or tweets? Engagement: how much interaction there is between the community and you? Authority: your… Read more »
Where does technical documentation fit into a “Freemium” business model?
This short video by Penny Power explains the Freemium model and how it applies to her business: So where does the Technical Publications department fit into this model? Traditionally, the user documentation has been given away free with a chargeable product. It’s not been chargeable in itself, but people have been required to buy a… Read more »
What’s the point of user documentation, from a marketing perspective?
I was talking to a Documentation Manager earlier in the week, who was telling me she had a new boss – a VP of Marketing. She was having to work for someone who didn’t see the value in user documentation, and she was finding it difficult fighting her corner. The challenge she faces is understanding the… Read more »
What can Technical Authors learn from celebrity chefs and musicians?
We wrote recently about the Attention Economy and the challenges faced by technical publications departments. So what about other business sectors that are facing similar problems – can we learn from them? Andrew Savikas has been looking at some of the ways in which the Publishing industry, aspiring young musicians and celebrity chefs have been… Read more »