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Subject:Re: A direct attack on TW? - NOT From:John Posada <john -at- TDANDW -dot- COM> Date:Thu, 23 Jul 1998 15:48:07 -0400
Burke Michael wrote:
>
> All
>
> I wanted to pass on an interesting advertisement that takes a direct
> swipe at a user manual I wrote, and at all user manuals in general.
I don't see this as a swipe at all user manuals. Should I infer that
because someone's software that has nothing to do with mine, or my
industry, or my field, comes with a special keyboard and mine doesn't,
that I am at a disadvantage?
> A recent ad run by one of our competitors directly attacked our product
> because of the existence of a user manual, essentially implying that
> since we supply a manual for out product, then our product must be
> terribly complicated. The manual in question runs a scant 50 pages, 30
> of which are installation instructions, but this is hardly mentioned in
> the ad.
Maybe someone should should examine why you need 30 pages to install and
they don't. Maybe they have a point.
>
> Their product uses a special keyboard which you can use to access the
> various elements of the software. So it doesn't need a manual.
It's your developers who should be concerned...
>
> Our product is intuitive enough that it probably doesn't need a user
> manual, but since we needed to do an install guide, we decided to put
> some interface instructions, as well.
>
> Now I know that this is merely an ad that is running in a magazine aimed
> at a very narrow audience, one that probably doesn't want to read a
> manual (professional pilots). But, should we as TW be concerned about a
> direct attack on a product based on the existence of a manual?
So, if the audience doesn't want to read manuals, and the competition
understands this, addressed the point and came up with a way to make the
users happier by not having a manual, then they seem to have done a
better needs analysis, and have every right to advertise the product
that way.
I know you were looking for a sympathetic ear, but maybe someone should
be asking your developers some hard questions instead.
--
John Posada, Technical Writer (and proud of the title)
The world's premier Internet fax service company: The FaxSav Global
Network
-work http://www.faxsav.com -personal http://www.tdandw.com
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My opinions are mine, and neither you nor my company can take credit for
them.
"One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good
poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few
reasonable words.", Goethe
"Say all you have to say in the fewest possible words, or your reader
will be sure to skip them; and in the plainest possible words or he will
certainly misunderstand them.", John Ruskin
