Unlocking New Career Paths: How Content Design Skills can Empower Technical Communicators

Skyline view of Paris with Eiffel Tower in background.

Skill Number 3 in our Skills for Modern Technical Communicators series

Content design, as a skill, is not new, of course. The way it’s defined, and what niche it holds in the wider content world might be, though. I still get many technical authors asking me what the difference is between content design and technical communication.

How does Content Design differ from Technical Communication?

We asked Vinish Garg, Firehead Content Design course author and Content Design Lecturer at JH Joanneum Univeristy of Applied Sciences in Graz, Austria. He wrote a guest post on the Firehead blog on 24 June 2024 about the differences between content design and technical communication.

For this post about skills, I think it’s a good idea to start with definitions of each of these fields to establish our grounding.

What is technical communication? 

Technical communication is the practice of planning, writing, and publishing technical content to provide the right information to the users so that they can learn and understand how to use a product or a service.

“Technical communication is the process of defining, creating and delivering information products of information for use – for the safe, efficient, effective and sustainable use of products (goods, technical systems, software, services).” source tekom

There are technical manuals for digital products such as the Help Center, as well for physical products such as our toasters. The goal of technical communication is to explain how the product works, how the users can use it, and to answer the users’ questions whether during their pre-sales inquiry, or while they are using the product.

What is content design?

The scope of work and the sphere of influence of content design is wider. Content design is planning user-centric content that is evidence based, and serves the organization’s goals, inclusively, and holistically.

It includes the branded content that is part of the website and digital presence for marketing, sales, and support, and the product content for the in-product experience. Some big organisations have content designers working with content strategists and they define the processes and operational frameworks to ensure that both these functions support each other by using their respective skills and expertise.

One of the key principles in content design is user-centricity which means discovery and then synthesis are fundamental to plan the content that the users actually want and need. 

Technical communication serves or reports to customer experience, or to support functions. Sometimes we see them reporting to product marketing too.

Content design reports to product, or sometimes it sits parallel to and outside design and product as an independent function.

How can a technical communicator apply content design skills to their career?

If you are working as a technical communicator and want to move to content design, there are different areas where you can develop your skills, depending on your interest and your strengths.

For example:

  • Discovery: If you love research, designing surveys and research methodologies, speaking to or observing people, and then doing synthesis of the research data.
  • User stories or Job stories: Planning stories for users’ actions, needs, goals, and their intent. There are different methodologies to do that—user stories are one of them.
  • Jobs To Be Done is another framework where you write job stories to plan the content driven interactions for the design work. Check out a visual sample here.
  • Content models: This is getting into the content architecture—identifying what type of content are required, how these are interconnected, building the relationships, supported by your understanding of taxonomy and the metadata of designing content types.
  • Content and design systems: The design systems are around us for a few years now and now we see content as an important part of design systems. Some organisations have set up an independent content system too to support their content design work (example, Intuit).
  • Content metrics: Defining the content success criteria for how well content supports the user’s goals and the organisation’s goals. You can apply these to technical content as well in Help Center and Support Center content so that this content serves as a strategic asset for the organisation. Here’s an example from our Firehead Content Design course.

In the beginning, you can keep the learning scope wide to have a basic understanding of different skills. Once your organisation supports this function and there are multiple content designers to support this practice, you can explore certain areas deeper to strengthen your expertise in that area.

It’s a smart move for technical communicators to embrace content design! Here’s why:

1. Evolving User Expectations: People expect information to be clear, concise, and easy to find – whether it’s a product manual or a website. Content design focuses on user needs and creating a positive experience, which aligns perfectly with the goals of technical communication.

2. Increased Demand for UX Writing: Interfaces are everywhere! Technical communicators with content design skills can apply their expertise to create user-friendly microcopy for apps, websites, and software, making them highly valuable.

3. Content is King: Companies are realising that well-designed content isfundamental for everything from product adoption to customer support. Technical communicators who can create effective, user-centered content will be in high demand.

4. Career Advancement: Adding content design to your skill set can open doors to new roles and opportunities, such as:

  • UX Writer: Crafting clear and concise interface text.
  • Content Strategist: Planning and managing content across different channels.
  • Content Designer: Creating user-centered content for websites and applications.

5. Bridging the Gap: Technical communicators often have a deep understanding of complex topics. Content design helps them present this information in a way that’s engaging and accessible to a wider audience.

In a nutshell, content design skills make technical communicators more versatile, valuable, and future-proof in a world where user experience is paramount.

Useful Reads and Explainers

A few quick references to help you understand content design to start:

Note: See also, our new list of content design resources compiled by Vinish Garg and Firehead.

Books I recommend:

  • Content Design by Sarah Richards.
    This book is considered the bible of content design and is a must-read for anyone interested in the field. It covers the fundamentals of content design, from user research to writing for the web.
  • The Content Fuel Framework: How to Generate Unlimited Story Ideas by Melanie Deziel.
    This book provides a practical framework for generating content ideas that are relevant to your audience and aligned with your business goals.
  • Everybody Writes: Your Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content by Ann Handley.
    This book offers practical advice and tips on writing clear, concise, and engaging content.

For practical advice and in-depth articles:

Nielsen Norman Group
This website is a goldmine of research-based articles on user experience, including a strong focus on content design. They cover topics like writing for the web, information architecture, and content strategy.

Content Design London
This website provides a wealth of resources, from readability guidelines to in-depth articles on content design principles and best practices.

Brain Traffic
This well known website, run by content strategy expert Kristina Halvorson, offers a blog with thought-provoking articles and resources for content strategists and content designers.

For community and discussion:

  • UX Writing Hub
    This website offers a vibrant community forum where you can connect with fellow content designers, ask questions, and share your experiences. They also have a great collection of articles and resources.
  • Content + UX
    This Slack community is a hub for content designers and UX professionals to discuss challenges, share ideas, and learn from each other.

Interested to learn more? Firehead has a course Introduction to Content Design by Vinish Garg that covers everything you need to know to get started in Content Design.

Subscribe to the Firehead Blog for more skills spotlights. Next week, we’ll take a dive into content strategy skills.

Join the Firehead Academy!

We’d love to hear your thoughts, experiences, or questions in the comments section. If you’ve been working in content design, we’d love to talk to you! Get in touch for a chat. If you’re looking for a role, let’s talk about that too.

Firehead: visionaries of potential.

CJ Walker

Related Posts

Call to action

Firehead Resource Kit: Getting Started in Content Design

Have you ever wondered where to even start learning content design principles, let alone applying them? Since our blog post on content design skills, we’ve had lots of questions asking just that. Vinish Garg, Firehead's Introduction to Content Design course…...

7 February 2025
CJ Walker

The Future is Inclusive: Transforming TechComm Through Accessible Design

In today's rapidly evolving digital landscape, effective communication is more than just conveying information—it's about ensuring that everyone can access and understand that information, regardless of their abilities. As professionals in the field of technical communication, it's our responsibility to…...

25 January 2025
CJ Walker