RE: Smart answers and useful answers

[Steven Brown <stevenabrown -at- yahoo -dot- com>]

Joe is exactly right. It's about understanding the
user's needs. In Dan's example, a seemingly simple
question didn't necessarily require an immediate,
one-line response. There's usually an underlying story
to be told, particularly in a situation where the
salespeople are dealing with customers who don't share
their level of expertise.

Dan's story is a good example of terrible customer
service...which is very common these days. The
know-it-all salesman should be fired.

Documentation tie-in: Don't assume your users know
what they're asking for, which I think is particularly
crucial as you organize a document or online help or
as write section headings. Remember, you probably need
to document the tasks the user performs, not the
software directly.

Steven Brown
Technical Writer

--- Joe Malin <jmalin -at- tuvox -dot- com> wrote:

> Mebbe sp#2 didn't understand what you were looking
> for until the last
> moment? Or mebbe he was trying to show off.
> 
> This is why I hate to buy anything at a store. You
> only get confused by
> the people who are trying to help. Online, at least,
> your confusion is
> limited by the amount of information people are
> willing to write down.
> 
> Joe 
> 
> 
> Joe Malin
> Technical Writer
> (408)625-1623
> jmalin -at- tuvox -dot- com 
> www.tuvox.com


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