**Product Instructions in the Digital Age**

Dian Li, Tom Cassidy and David Bromilow

*University of Leeds United Kingdom* 

### **1. Introduction**

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Vol.9, No.4, pp. 1-34

Product instructions are guides with the purpose of helping consumers to use products properly when they cannot be communicated through the design of the product itself. They are usually "on the product itself or its packaging or in accompanying materials" (ISO/IEC GUIDE 37, 1995, iv). They perform many different tasks and the good ones benefit both the users and the manufacturers. They should ensure users can operate products properly and safely. For manufacturers, instructions can add value to the products, encourage sales and reduce time for customer service which makes good business sense.

In recent times, products tend to be designed for intuitive use. However, this is not the case for every user and for every product. Thus product instructions are still necessary and have their unique values. For example, many newly developed products are very complex and involve multiple functions, these functions are experimented with only when necessary and when the user guides are available. Thus, instructions for these products have to be carefully prepared if the current trends are to continue.

In this research, the authors investigate problems of product instructions as well as suggest possible explanations for those problems. The study aims to find solutions to enhance the effective and inclusive performance of product instructions in a commercial environment in this digital age. The ideal was to find a method to produce durable product instructions that can be easily accessed, understood, stored and updated for all; meanwhile fulfilling the requirements of being cheap to produce and environmentally friendly.
