Are technical documentation services right for my business?

Companies of all sizes produce and process vast amounts of text. Throughout the day every individual involved with an organization is tasked with writing and reading things—whether it’s detailed audits, reports and guides, or correspondence within the company. 

In short, writing is essential for every business.

Specifically, there are certain specialized kinds of writing that are vital to a business’s security and success. One key medium is technical documentation writing. Oftentimes larger businesses with robust resources entrust internal IT and other staff with these tasks.

But sometimes bringing in professional help for technical writing is how you’ll produce the best outcome. After all, these are expert technicians.

Are technical documentation services right for you? Let’s discuss.

 

Are Technical Documentation Services Right for My Business?

Yes, almost certainly.

If your organization uses information technology to store or process data, it’s vulnerable to a wide variety of threats. Anything from improper use of the database to natural disaster to a targeted cyberattack could compromise the integrity of your data. A compromise can lead to major privacy, security, and financial risks for all stakeholders connected to your company.

Technical documentation is one of the key elements of cyberdefense.

A dedicated technical documentation writer applies their wisdom to all writing your company might do. Clear, accurate, and vetted documentation is the foundation of all other cybersecurity measures. It ensures layers of security against vulnerabilities in any and all sectors of the organization. 

If your company’s existing IT and cybersecurity infrastructure is overstretched, the benefits of hiring external technical documentation support include:

• Streamlining workflows
• Saving money on costly attacks
• Protecting your assets more thoroughly
• Enhancing productivity of internal units in other task areas
• Supporting staff who aren’t as experienced in technical documentation

Like all companies you need to dedicate resources to shoring up your defenses and making sure that your data and assets are protected.

Technical documentation is one of the first and most important steps toward that goal.

 

Get Cybersecurity Technical Writing Services today

 

Technical Documentation: Right for All Businesses

Or at least, all businesses can benefit from them.

A business that doesn’t have adequate resources to dedicate to technical writing usually hires external help. One of the reasons is that outsourcing provides benefits to companies of all types and sizes.

A staff dedicated to technical documentation can be repurposed for other tasks, such as research and development. Depending on salaries and the price of the external support, this may increase cost efficiency.

Another main benefit is that external services can provide a “fresh set of eyes.”

Because they operate outside of the internal culture and atmosphere of an organization, technical documentation writers provide an objective, unbiased perspective. As with many cybersecurity practices the benefits of this point of view include:

• Deep insights not evident to internal personnel
• Synergies training and collaborating with internal IT staff
• No compromising incentives for growth within the organization
• No stakes or involvement in internal politics

External support is a great option, even for companies with adequate internal resources.

For efficiency and objectivity technical documentation services are a smart choice for any company with a vested interest in the security of its digital assets.

Let’s discuss what the services actually do.

 

What is Technical Documentation Writing?

Simply put: it’s the most important part within the wider category of technical writing.

Technical documentation is a comprehensive term for writing that compiles information on various objects pertinent to your company. Some of the most common subjects of technical documentation writing include:

• Physical assets – All equipment and physical spaces used by your company
• Human resources – All personnel and their related information, leading into…
• Digital assets – Data of all kinds, including:
  • Records and files
  • Passwords and other credentials
  • Metadata connected to individuals and objects
• Procedures – Detailed logs of actions and behaviors
• Products – All pertinent information about goods and services offered to clients

Technical documentation within these subjects includes:

• Cataloguing
• Describing
• Analyzing
• Defining

As the name implies, it’s simply documentation of various technical aspects related to cybersecurity. But the things documented or catalogued can vary widely. Likewise the methods for documenting different assets and procedures is also subject to change. 

From spreadsheets to reports to manuals, the forms it takes differ. Technical documentation plays a role in nearly every type of technical writing.

Let’s review what those main types are.

 

Types of Technical Writing

Technical writing includes all types of documents and projects that require detailed expertise.

Any texts consisting of in-depth information related to product components and its functionality is at least, in some part, technical. This includes cybersecurity-related documents. Training manuals, legal documents, and white papers fall under the technical umbrella.

Overall the main categories of technical writing include:

• • Policy – Technical writing includes policy documents in an organization. Working together with internal and external legal experts, technical writers draft documents concerning:
    • Rules and regulations
    • Best practices
    • Bylaws

 

• • Regulatory – A facet of technical writing is detailing regulatory requirements your company is mandated to follow. A technical writer can be entrusted to research all relevant specifications and provide evidence that your company is meeting or exceeding standards, such as:
    • HIPAA and other healthcare codes
    • PCI and all financial codes
    • Data privacy laws
    • NERC CIP, etc.

 

• Cybersecurity – One of the most important types of technical writing is cybersecurity. Ensuring that all physical and digital assets are properly catalogued is essential to most businesses. But that’s not all. Technical writing for cybersecurity includes but is not limited to:
  • Technical documentation of all assets and procedures
  • Reports on vulnerabilities and attacks
  • Use manuals and protocols
  • FAQs and assistance

Between these various kinds of technical writing there are areas of overlap. Policy and regulatory documents are part of a comprehensive cyberdefense scheme. And manuals and protocols are also closely linked to policy.

But it’s all technical, which means it’s detailed, complex, and specialized. For technical writing accuracy is key.

Yet technical writing isn’t the only kind of writing that’s necessary for a business. 

 

Business vs. Technical Writing

All organizations, whether businesses or nonprofits, require business writing.

Aside from technical writing, most of the content an organization produces falls under the auspices of business writing. And while there’s crossover between the two, there are important differences between business and technical writing.

The biggest differences involve the purpose and register of each type of writing.

While technical writing involves expertise, business writing aims to boost profit. As such, business writing involves less value-neutral explanation and more goal-driven argumentation. Rather than providing facts, it’s almost always persuading readers to do something, like buy a product or subscribe to a mailing list.

Rather than accuracy, business writing prioritizes qualities and features like:

• Directness
• Accessibility
• Persuasiveness
• Calls to action (CTAs)

A well-written business document is typically less complex and comprehensive than a technical one. But it’s much easier to understand. The language is meant to be accessible to a broader audience. 

There are also important differences between the actual documents written by business writers and technical writers.

Types of Business Writing

Whereas technical writing is usually targeted at specific expert readers, business writing is often written for bigger, more diverse audiences.

Some of the most common and important kinds of business writing include:

• • Internal communications – This category includes the everyday communication that occurs in a business, including but not limited to:
    • Emails
    • Memos
    • Minutes

 

• • Business to Business – Any and all communication with other businesses and organizations a company is seeking to do business with. Documents include:
    • Proposals
    • White papers

 

• Business to Consumer – All communications with and outreach to the public, existing and potential customers. These include:
  • Marketing
  • Advertisements
  • Customer Service

 

Across these different genres, the prevailing convention is directness.

Business writing’s biggest difference from technical writing is that its end goal is already related to maximizing profits. On the other hand, technical writing is oriented toward objectivity.

Business writing also involves technical writing. Any business writing document that includes technical documentation is at least part technical in nature. Whether or not business documents include technical language, they are always informed by technical writing, as internal guidelines are technical by definition.

In addition, there are other forms of writing that don’t fit neatly into either category.

 

Other Writing Needs

Any business looking to increase its profits needs to invest in branding.

Establishing a brand and building brand awareness involves a wide array of communications and outreach efforts. In the past companies had to rely on advertising and word of mouth to do the heavy lifting.

But nowadays the internet has created opportunities for companies to build their brands online. 

Two of the most important kinds of brand-building writing include:

• Blogging – Keeping a regularly updated blog is key to establishing a voice and identity for your company. Your company blog enables you to speak on current events and relevant topics in your industry. It also helps to optimize your search engine optimization (SEO), which increases your overall visibility. A successful blog will:
  • Provide useful guides on how to use your products and services
  • Educate readers on important topics related to your company
• Social Media – Your business’s profile on social media is one of the easiest ways to connect with the public. To get the most out of sites like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram you need to:
  • Post interesting and relatable content
  • Interact in kind and helpful ways with users

These hybrid and miscellaneous types of writing your business creates are at least partially technical. The same goes for more straightforward business writing.

That’s because technical writing informs all writing produced by your business.

 

Benefits of Professional Technical Writing

Since technical writing is part of a business’s internal systems its benefits compound across all writing.

By hiring professionals for your technical documentation you also reap benefits across any and all kinds of writing your company produces. Since there’s crossover, your technical writers will be intimately involved in not just documentation but all business writing projects.

A technical writer is your ticket to quality across the board.

As mentioned above technical writing services provide objectivity and expertise. This streamlines the workflows of many internal teams, including not just IT but also:

• Research and development
• Advertising and marketing
• Human resources
• Sales

Beyond these benefits one of the most important elements of technical documentation services is thorough editing.

 

Editing: More than Proofreading

Writing is a process, and the most important part of that process is editing.

Editing is not just a final revision of a project, although final polishes are a key part of it. Editing involves the ongoing work of envisioning the scope and direction of a piece. A careful technical writer will apply thorough edits throughout the duration of a writing process, including:

• Making careful decisions about length and style
• Ensuring accuracy and accessibility of prose
• Screening for all errors and inconsistencies
• Applying sensitivity filters overseen by legal experts
• Receiving feedback from numerous experts in relevant subject areas

Editing isn’t done alone. Professional technical writers backed by a team of experts work together to ensure that each document is polished and perfect before publishing it.

That’s why you should look to professionals for your technical documentation needs.

 

Technical Writing and Cyberdefenses — RSI Security 

At RSI Security we provide comprehensive cybersecurity and logistics solutions for businesses of all kinds and sizes. Technical writing is a task that requires detailed time-oriented work executed by niche and expert writers. 

To lighten the burden on your staff we offer technical documentation service packages customized to your company’s needs. We understand that technical writing is important to your organization’s overall security and operations. We also know how much time it takes to produce efficient, well-positioned, and branded content. 

To that end we also offer a robust suite of cybersecurity solutions. Whether you’re looking for technical writing or in-depth cyberdefense management and analysis, RSI Security stands ready to assist. 

For your cybersecurity needs contact RSI today!