Start steps with a verb (command)
Tell users what action they must do
- “Click the button,” “Select an option,” “Save the file”
Use the second person (you) form
- Incorrect: “You click the button” Correct: “Click the button”
- “Add a Password dialog box so that the user can type their password.”
Explain where the action takes place
- “On the File menu, click Save.”
- “In Control Panel, click Change Passwords.”
- OK: “Click Change Passwords in Control Panel.”
Explain what the step does
- “To close your document, click OK.”
- “To magnify your document, on the View menu, click Zoom.”
- OK: “Click OK to close your document.”