This document traces the evolution of documentation from early cave paintings and Egyptian scrolls to modern online support sites. It discusses how the needs of documentation have changed over time, from recording early histories and religious texts to distributing scientific discoveries and training people on new technologies. The document notes that today's online support sites face challenges in meeting modern customer needs. Customers often leave sites searching elsewhere for answers or arrive at competitors' sites due to outdated, inaccurate or irrelevant content. The document argues that future support needs adaptive sites that provide personalized, mobile-friendly assistance through search, rich media, user contributions and analytics to improve the customer experience.

1. COMMUNITIES

2. FEATURING
THE EVOLUTION OF
DOCUMENTATION
AND
CUSTOMER
SUPPORT

3. AT WHAT
POINT
DOES D O C U M E N T A T I O N
BECOME
SUPPORT?

4. ANSWER :
WHEN IT’S PART OF A
OF SERVICES
THAT PROVIDE USER
ASSISTANCE FOR A
PRODUCT OR SERVICE

5. FUTURE
First let’s trace the history

6. This is

7. DID You know: some scholars believe cave
paintings documented animal migration
patterns and hunting successes

8. It solved the problem of recording early
history

9. AND
THEN

10. Did you know: Egyptian scribes were high
on the social ladder alongside priests.
WRITTEN CONTENT

11. It solved the problem of documenting
religion and agriculture but was only used
by a few educated people
WRITTEN CONTENT

12. ON
PARCHMENT
DID you KNOW: Parchment allowed the
production of manuscripts which eventually
led to universities

13. ON
PARCHMENT
Which solved the problem of distributing
documentation and making it possible to
educate people on more complex subjects

14. THEN
A MAJOR

15. GUTENBERG’S
PRESS
Did you know: The Press led
to a flood of printed
material in just a few short
decades

16. GUTENBERG’S
PRESS
Which solved the problem of
documenting and distributing
scientific discoveries
through scholarly journals

18. IN
MODERN
TIMES

19. THE FIRST
COOKBOOK
FRENCH
CUISINE
Thus began the first modern day
trend to document repeatable
processes for tradesmen

20. THE FIRST
COOKBOOK
FRENCH
CUISINE
Which solved the problem
of training many people on
how to make things

21. LATER
THAT
CENTURY

22. USER MANUALS
BECAME POPULAR
1950’s the documentation
of technology products trained
people on how to use them

23. USER MANUALS
BECAME POPULAR
1950’s Which solved the problem of
quickly training people on
how to use complicated tools

24. SOON
THE DIGITAL

25. MEDIA
Documentation page counts increased and rich
media was needed to teach people even more
complicated tools

26. MEDIA
Which solved the problem of shipping large
documents at a low cost and added the ability
to use rich media

27. AND
RECENTLY...

28. Static html
documentation that
serves as customer
support

29. Which solved the problem
of updating documentation
and support materials
without the need to
reship updated media

30. SO WHAT IS
N EEDED FO R
TODAY’S

31. RESEARCH STUDY :
TOP CUSTOMER COMPLAINTS ABOUT ONLINE SUPPORT
“I go to Google “If I find the info it’s “There’s not enough
instead” not accurate or is out content here to help
of date” me”

32. NOT WORKING

33. It’s Time for a new approach isn’t it?

34. WHAT’S
THE
PROBLEM

35. TODAY’S
WEB SUPPORT
SITES ARE

36. AS ARE
PDF SITES

37. SO THERE’S
So people leave your Content is not rated Which leads to a
site in search of the and there is no scarcity of content or
answer elsewhere feedback mechanism to irrelevant content
alert you to incomplete
or bad content

38. IT’S LIKE HEARING THE SAME
PRE-RECORDED MESSAGE
OVER AND OVER AGAIN

39. THAT DOESN’T
WORK IN
TODAY’S
ENVIRONMENT

40. WHICH MEANS
Customers call support Customers get upset Less relevant content
agents instead of and leave your site and means lost revenue
solving the problem on potentially arrive on opportunities
your support site your competitor’s site

41. WHY
DOES IT HAVE TO BE

42. WHY
DOES IT HAVE TO BE

43. AND
UN FRIEN LY

46. IT DOESN’T HAVE
TO BE
BECAUSE…

47. SUPPORT HAS
O L VE
E V D
WIT H T H E
TIMES

48. AND HAS
ADAPTED
TO MAR K ET

49. TO
SUPPORT

50. TODAY
SO

51. IN ORDER TO
SATISFY TODAY’S
YOU NEED
SUPPORT SITES...

52. THAT MEET
CHALLENGES

53. WHILE
COSTS AND
REVENUE

54. LIKE SITES FROM

55. OR MORE
SUCCINTLY...

56. THE WEB

57. Search that
learns how to
be better
over time

58. Quick resolutions to customer issues

59. For increased
adoption and
content
contributions

60. Rich media
enables
quicker
learning

61. CURATION
A ALYTICS
AGING

62. How old is our content
across the site?
AGING
Allow content to be
rated by users

63. PDF’S
OR
COMMUNITY

64. EASY
CHOICE
ISN’T IT

65. THE
FUTURE

66. THE
FU URE
T

67. T
I ‘S
PERSONAL

68. & MOBILE
Support on the run
and at your
fingertips

69. Gestural interfaces
to interact with
objects for support
& INSTANT

70. AND
TEACHES
BASED ON YOUR

71. WHILE
CREATING
SUPPORT CURRICULUMS
THE

72. THIS IS
GAME

73. AFTER
ALL

74. SHOULD BE
FRIENDLY

75. THAN YOU
K
MIKE PUTERBAUGH
HAL WENDEL
JESSE RUBIN

76. K
MAR FIDELMAN
MINDTOUCH.COM/BLOG
@markfidelman
Slideshare.net/fidelman