Being the best product manager you can be is no easy task, and there are numerous disciplines you must concentrate on; whether it's being creative, being technically minded, understanding your customer, or having the mindset that can assist in bringing a product to life, there are numerous disciplines you must concentrate on.
Understanding the significance of your documentation and having full control of how the documentation at each step of the process may be handled will, nevertheless, be one of the most important factors in determining your success. With this in mind, we'll be looking at eight different sorts of documents that you should be paying attention to today.
Documentation of the Product Strategy
everyone involved understands what they're getting into and what their ultimate objectives are. With these clearly stated, you will be able to guarantee that everyone is on the same page, that all teams and departments are working towards the same goals, and that all departments are prioritizing the same things.
Description of the product specification documentation
Because it consolidates all of the information about your app, product, or service into one location, this kind of documentation is critical to success. In this section, you may concentrate on anything, including actual product specifics, feature lists, aesthetic and marketing materials, as well as sales and branding tactics.
Of course, the contents of each of these papers and the priorities may vary based on the sort of product you are developing, but clearly articulating your objectives can aid in bringing everyone together and in getting things organized.
Documentation of the Competitive Analysis
When it comes to your company's success, being one step ahead of your competitors in terms of knowing how their goods and services function is very essential. This is particularly true when it comes to recognizing strengths and weaknesses and acting on them.
In order to be more successful, you must not only analyze the firm but also have a deep understanding of its operations and operations procedures, as well as what it is doing.
Documents of Metrics
"How much are you spending?"
The answers to these questions are very significant when it comes to determining the direction your project is moving in, determining your priorities, and determining what actions you must do in order to reach your objectives.
Documentation for Prototyping
It is inevitable that you will reach a point in your product development project when you will be testing the designs of your ideas and determining which strategy would work best moving ahead. It's likely that you'll also be producing some kind of prototype in order to determine how successful the whole project will be in the long run, as well.
Through the documentation of the whole process, you'll be able to identify and address major areas of concern, as well as audit your process in order to improve and optimize your approach in order to get better outcomes today and in future projects.
Documentation for Prototyping
If you are involved in a product development project, it is unavoidable that you will reach a moment when you will be testing the designs of your ideas and choosing which method would perform best going forward. As part of your project, it's probable that you'll be creating some kind of prototype in order to establish how successful the whole endeavor will be in the long run.
You will be able to identify and resolve important areas of concern as a result of the documenting of the whole process. You will also be able to audit your process in order to enhance and optimize your approach in order to get better results now and in future projects.
Documentation for User Guides and Manuals
There’s a lot of material that you’ll need to think about creating while your product is being created for when it’s finally released to the public and/or your customers to create the best experience possible. Here are a few examples of this kind of documentation:
• Internet-based resources: such as knowledge bases, and help guides
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Instruction manuals for products
• Internal policies and procedures for your company's usage
Here's everything you'll need to think about when it comes to generating documentation for end-users as well as for your workers. In the event that a client contacts your company about a problem with their product, you'll need to ensure that your personnel are trained on how to resolve the issue in the fastest and most efficient way.
Documentation of the User Stories
When designing a product, it's critical to understand the types of clients and end-users with whom you'll be collaborating, as well as how your product will touch their lives and benefit them in a good manner, before moving further.
Documentation for road mapping and projections
By road mapping the project, you'll be able to clearly specify what type of timeframe your project is intended to last for, as well as establish critical milestones with target completion dates to strive for in order to achieve your objectives. This is an excellent document to utilize since it will allow you to ensure that everything is on track, as well as to identify and solve important problem areas before they become a source of concern or worry for anybody.
Final thoughts
As you can see, there are a plethora of different types of documentation that you'll need to consider and prioritize when working on a product as a product manager. Overall, the more organized and in control, you can be during the process, the better your ultimate outcome will be. Docsie has a robust feature set of tools to help you accomplish any task to create uplifting and promising documentation for your clients, stakeholders, and associates. Try Docsie now for free and take a hands-on tour of our platform.