Many companies believe that technical writing is better handled in-house. The people who work for a company are better equipped to understand its products and services. A product’s success depends on well-written instructions manuals and other informational materials. It is important that they are written in a way that appeals to the end user.
Many times, people who are experts in a particular industry or product are not well-suited to write instruction manuals. Why? Why? There are many compelling reasons to outsource technical writing to professionals. These are just five of the many reasons to outsource technical writing.
Five Reasons to Outsource Technical Writing Services
- Outsourcing allows employees to remain focused on the most valuable activities. It takes time to complete most technical writing. It doesn’t make economic sense to remove staff from their original job of writing a manual, unless the company has a technical writing team (which most companies don’t). It isn’t worth asking an IT engineer suddenly to become a writer.
- Most organizations cannot afford to hire a team of technical writers. Technical writers are skilled in extracting information from large volumes of data, and then presenting it in an easy-to-use and relevant way for the end user. A full-time position as a technical writer can cost a lot of money, especially when you consider the costs of training, salary, insurance, and development. Outsourcing can save a lot of money if a company launches only one or two products per year.
- A technical writing service provider outside of your organization can help give your documentation a fresh and innovative perspectivewhile fine tuning it for a specific audience. Two other services that are often overlooked but very valuable are editing and review . Many technical writing projects involve interaction with the company’s marketing, product management, quality assurance, development and marketing departments. A few people in these departments have the skills to proofread technical documents for style, grammar and readability. A third party editor reviews the document to ensure consistency and quality.
- It is easy to get lost in the details of an instruction manual. But, a well-written technical guide can have a positive impact on customer loyalty. Customers are more likely to buy again if they have a positive experience, even with something as basic as the instructions. Technical writings should be clear and easy to understand and help customers use the product. An professional technical writer can create user-friendly content that explains how the product works, and not why.
- Outsourcing technical writing services speeds up the process. Technical content writers are more knowledgeable about industry trends and have access to the most recent online documentation tools to help them complete the task faster.
How to find good technical writing services
Technical writing services have years of experience in identifying, screening, and hiring technical writers. They can help you select candidates with a strong technical writing background and who are able quickly to learn about your industry.
Although there are situations where hiring an in-house technical writer is logical, outsourcing technical writing services can be a cost-effective option for organizations that need to produce clear, concise, and usable documentation at a reasonable price.