3 Key Points for Creating Easy-to-Read Business Manuals Explained by Field Representatives!

1. Breaking the Current Situation Where Business Manuals Are "Unread"

Have you ever been handed a manual by your boss or a senior colleague and thought, "I really don't feel like reading this manual..."? Manuals like that tend to be read less and less over time.

When analyzing the causes, manuals generally tend to have the following characteristics.

・The text is densely packed
・Sentences are excessively long
・Lack of visual contrast
・Information is just haphazardly crammed in

Conversely, simply being aware of this can lead to a much more readable manual. To encourage users to utilize the manual, it is important to create a clear manual that makes readers think, "I want to read this," "I can understand this," or "I will give this a try." I can almost hear someone saying, "I already know that!" but when it comes to actually writing a manual yourself, it can be surprisingly difficult.

For all of you, we will explain key points for creating easy-to-read manuals. By putting these points into practice, your company's manuals will be transformed into manuals that are actually "read."

If you would like to see the challenges and initiatives of companies that have actually implemented improvements, please also check the following materials.
[Download Material] How to Proceed with Manual Creation Learned from Other Companies' Cases

2. [Direct from the Pros] Three Key Points to Achieve "Easy-to-Read Business Manuals"

To create easy-to-read manuals that people want to read, the following three points are important.

① Create headings
② Improve the initial visual impression
③ Write from the reader's perspective

① Create headings

Create headings to clearly organize related information. Simply listing text makes it difficult to find the desired information.

Also, make sure to create headings so that the content of the main text is intuitively understandable.

For example, when explaining the procedure for heating using a machine, a heading like "Heating" is less effective than "How to Heat." This is because "Heating" alone does not clarify whether you are explaining the mechanism of heating or the method of heating.

② Improve the initial visual impression

A good visual impression can make the reader think, "This manual looks easy to read." Let's consider the following points.

・Add contrast to the layout
Make the layout more distinct by enlarging the title text and indenting the main text. For supplementary notes and cautions, decide on the icons and styles to use and clearly distinguish them from the main text. For example, when creating manuals in Word or PowerPoint, it is efficient to decide which styles to apply to which information and include them in a template.
However, be careful not to overuse icons or add too many text colors, as this increases the amount of non-content information and makes it harder to read. Avoid excessive decoration.

・Create margins
Make sure to create appropriate margins on the page. When the text is packed tightly, the reader will first think, "This looks difficult to read." By creating margins with a proper balance, the information becomes easier to organize, and it also helps the reader find the necessary information more easily.

・Add visual elements
Use diagrams, images, and other visuals to facilitate understanding. For example, when explaining how to fill out forms, including an actual image of the form with a filled-in example will help readers grasp the content more quickly than text alone.
Also, organizing information in a table format makes the items and explanations clearer and easier to read.

③ Write from the reader's perspective

Here are three points to keep in mind when writing from the reader's perspective.

・Keep sentences concise
Aim to keep sentences concise, limiting each sentence to about 40 to 50 characters. When long sentences continue, readers may feel discouraged, thinking, "Do I have to read this all the way through...?" Also, texts with many kanji characters tend to feel harder to read. A good balance is about 30% kanji to 70% hiragana.

・Write One Idea per Sentence
Make sure to write one idea per sentence. When analyzing long explanations, it is often the case that multiple points are included in a single sentence. Review and check your writing, then split it into multiple sentences or use bullet points to separate the content.

・Explain using words that the reader can understand
It is important to concretely imagine the reader of the manual (their knowledge level, thinking, feelings, etc.) and use content and expressions that align with that. For example, if the manual is for new employees, clearly explain the business overview without using technical terms as much as possible so they can quickly grasp the overall picture of the work. Conversely, if the manual is for veteran employees, focus on writing the necessary information and keep explanations of basic knowledge concise.

Does your current manual meet these points ① to ③?
If you feel there are areas where "this wasn’t done well," please try improving those points. You should be able to enhance your manual into an easy-to-read format that makes readers want to "read it."

If you want to learn more about manuals that make readers want to read them, please also refer to the blogs below.

【Related Articles】
【Manual Creation Basics】What Is an Easy-to-Understand Manual Design?
The Importance of Formatting in Manual Production: From the Perspectives of Readers and Writers

●Case Study: Denso Corporation
【Initiative Case Study】
At Denso Corporation, to enable a wide range of users to immediately use the regional information distribution system they provide, they worked on creating manuals that are even easier to understand than before.

【Result】
We conducted a hearing on the current issues and proposed a structure that strongly focuses not on "what the product creators want to convey," but rather on "what the users want to know."

We also made improvements with a simple design and concrete expressions to ensure readability for a wide range of users, including the elderly. As a result, we were able to reduce inquiries about basic operations, which had been the customers' biggest concern.
Case Study: Denso Corporation

3. How to create easy-to-read manuals even when busy

Even if you understand the necessity of points ① to ③, some of you may feel that actually making improvements seems difficult. Especially, it is tough to proceed with manual improvements alongside your regular work. In such cases, we recommend entrusting the task to experts or using specialized tools.

For those who want to work on ① creating headings and ③ writing from the reader's perspective...

Consult with a manual creation expert.
Since you are investing valuable time, you want to achieve corresponding results.
One efficient approach is to first have an expert create a model manual, and then try creating one in-house afterward.

Human Science has a proven track record of creating numerous manuals since 1985. We are truly a team of professionals in the creation of business manuals. If you have any concerns regarding the creation of business manuals, please feel free to consult us.

Feature 1: Extensive manual production experience, primarily with large and global companies

Human Science has a track record of producing manuals for 243 companies and 3,148 projects, mainly in the manufacturing and IT industries. We have served prestigious clients such as "Docomo Technology Inc.", "Yahoo Corporation", and "Yamaha Corporation".
[Download Material] How to Proceed with Manual Creation Learned from Other Companies' Cases

Feature 2: Research and Analysis by Experienced Consultants - Output

The creation of business manuals is handled by Human Science's proud team of experienced consultants. Skilled consultants propose clearer business manuals based on their extensive experience and the materials provided. It is also possible to create manuals even when no materials are available. The assigned consultant conducts interviews and creates the manual.
[Download Material] Three Approaches Necessary for Manual Creation

Feature 3: Not only do we create manuals, but we also provide support for implementation.

Human Science is also responsible for the important phase of “embedding” following manual creation. For example, even after the manual is created, we continue to update the manual and hold manual creation seminars. By implementing various measures, we approach the process to ensure that the manual becomes established in the workplace.
[Download Material] Tips from Professionals on Creating and Embedding Work Manuals

② For those who want to improve the initial impression at a glance...

Let's make use of tools.
Considering layout and design is a time-consuming task. In this regard, tools come with pre-prepared layout and design templates. This allows the creator to focus on the content of the manual.
Among the many tools available, Human Science recommends "Helpdog Manual" provided by noco Inc. (https://toaster.how/). It enables anyone to easily create manuals that look simple and sophisticated, making readers want to read them.

https://toaster.how/

Additionally, Human Science offers services to support the introduction and adoption for companies using Helpdog.
This service is perfect for those who feel, "I want to introduce it, but I don't know how to upload my existing manuals," or "I have introduced it, but I'm worried whether it will actually be used."

●Case Study: eve autonomy Inc.
eve autonomy Inc. implemented Helpdog to work on improving their product manuals. By creating a model manual and establishing guidelines that summarize rules such as the styles and terminology to be used, they improved the manuals to be easy to understand from the user’s perspective and built a system to maintain the quality of the manuals while managing their operation.
Case Study of eve autonomy Inc.

If you are interested, please feel free to contact us.
Introduction to Helpdog Manual Implementation and Adoption Support Service

Thank you for reading until the end.
I hope this blog serves as a helpful hint for creating easy-to-read manuals.