Procedural documentation is writing that tells the reader how to do something — step-by-step instructions for completing a task. It is the core genre of technical writing: the help article, the installation guide, the recipe, the assembly manual.
Good procedural documentation follows a predictable structure:
- State the goal — what the reader will have accomplished when they finish.
- List prerequisites — what the reader needs before they start (tools, permissions, prior knowledge).
- Number the steps — each step is one action. If a step requires two actions, split it into two steps.
- Start each step with an imperative verb — “Click,” “Open,” “Enter,” “Connect.” The reader is doing something; the instruction should say what to do, not describe what happens.
- Include the expected result — after each significant step, tell the reader what they should see if it worked. This is how they know they’re on track.
The most common failure in procedural documentation is the curse of knowledge: the writer knows the system so well that they skip steps or use terminology the reader doesn’t have. Usability testing — watching someone follow the instructions — reveals these gaps immediately.
Other common failures: steps that are too large (combining multiple actions), steps that lack context (the reader doesn’t know why they’re doing this), and instructions that describe the system instead of telling the reader what to do (“The settings panel contains configuration options” vs. “Open the settings panel and select your time zone”).
Minimalism in documentation — John Carroll’s principle of action-oriented design — argues that procedures should get the reader doing things as quickly as possible, with minimal preamble [@carroll1990].
Related terms
- task analysis — the research method for determining what steps a procedure requires
- minimalism — the documentation philosophy that prioritizes action over explanation
- usability testing — the method for testing whether procedures actually work for readers
- progressive disclosure — revealing complexity gradually rather than all at once
- cognitive load — what well-designed procedures minimize