Getting Productive with content experience

Content experience matters. We don’t often get a chance to talk openly about our clients and content experience. This time, the good experience came to us AS THE CLIENT, and it was so good that we have to share.

We recently switched operations software—this is the software that we run our business on, sometimes called agency management software. We exited several disparate systems in favor of one centralized platform: Productive. While we were standing the system up, we relied heavily on their documentation and learning aids. We were surprised and delighted to discover helpful, thorough documentation. The contrast with some of the legacy systems was stark.  

Let’s reflect back on Sarah’s hierarchy of content needs to see how this experience measures up.

Content is available

Available content means that information exists, and the person who needs it has access to it.

We can check this box. All of Productive’s content is online in a Help Center, their application links to it, and the content is searchable. Perhaps we could ding them for it ONLY being online, but it’s a SaaS application. If the content’s unavailable, so is the system itself.

In addition to online documentation, Productive also contains in-app quick start training and has recently launched a series of e-learning modules.

Content is accurate

Content should be accurate.

The content we referred to was up to date with the version of the application we were using, and it had flags identifying certain features that were only available at higher subscription tiers.

That said, they provide A LOT of content, which is useful but fairly cumbersome to tackle as a new user. 

Content is appropriate

Appropriate content is delivered in the right language, in the right format, at the right level of complexity.

For our specific use case, the content is appropriate. While the amount of content felt akin to drinking from the fire hose, it was written and organized in an easy-to-understand manner. Topics were fairly contained, but many were lengthy due to screen shots and a mix of conceptual and how-to information. The documentation is well-organized into collections (chapters), and each collection follows a learning progression from the basics to information about very specific features and concepts.

One issue we experienced was regarding terminology. Coming from previous systems, we became familiar with their choice of terms. This system uses a slightly different vocabulary. We had to deprogram ourselves to match what we were looking for with what the system provides. 

Of note, all documentation currently appears to be only in English.

Content is connected

The connected layer is where you add user engagement and social layers.

The content allows for an appropriate amount of engagement. You can rate every topic in the Help Center using emoji. Clicking a sad face prompts a chatbot to ask you for specifics, which are optional. The chatbot is unobtrusively available on every page you visit and in the app, and it is contextually aware of where you are and what you are trying to do. It’s a little creepy but also quite helpful. 

You can also contact a support team member if needed, all through the same interface.

Content is intelligent

The pinnacle is content that isn’t just a static piece of text, but information that can be manipulated for different purposes.

Let’s talk about that chatbot for a minute. 

The chatbot is AI-enabled. It can remix the content from the Help Center to better provide you with the information you need and can generate screenshots with callouts to provide specific guidance. In the current version of the product, there is also a separate AI Assistant panel that can help you do things in the application. (For example, you can ask it to build a report, which is helpful because the report feature is powerful and a bit challenging.) We suspect at some point these two features will become one.

Both the chatbot and the AI Assistant remix content in their responses. If they are actively helping you perform an action in the application, they provide an explanation with links to further reading in addition to providing a usable solution (a custom report, for example).

A few closing remarks

This was the best immersive content experience we’ve had in some time. Perhaps what’s most impressive is that the experience is delivered by a relatively small company, proving that you don’t have to be big to provide a solid content experience. 

The experience was especially nice because we struggled with documentation in our legacy toolset. Their documentation was often inadequate, which led us to “winging it” and then wishing we hadn’t. One vendor used videos as their primary means of documentation, which was very unhelpful. When I look for a specific answer, I don’t want to watch 20 minutes to find the 10 relevant seconds.

The large amount of high-quality documentation from Productive is really what made the content experience shine. Without it, the chatbot and AI Assistant would not be as helpful. Someone laid out a clear strategic approach and executed on it successfully.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, Productive doesn’t know that we’re writing this post. 

<waves to Productive> Thanks for writing great docs!

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