Instructions often give their genre away by their design. They typically include short sentences arranged in numbered lists. The image on the right shows instructions displayed in an IKEA store. Notice the heading tells the reader to expect “3 simple steps.” While you cannot read the text of the instructions, the numbers 1, 2, and 3 stand out at the top of three columns of text. There is no question that you are looking at instructions.

Use the strategies below to use document design to make your instructions easy to identify at a glance. 

Apply These Strategies to Your Project

• Use standard margins (generally 1") on all sides of your document. Keep your paper to letter size (8.5" by 11").
• Choose a font size that is large enough to read without magnification.
• Avoid fonts in all caps, since they decrease readability. See the LinkedIn Learning video “Avoid All Caps and Underlined Text” (6m 23s) for more information.
• Arrange your text so that it uses flush left, ragged right alignment. See LinkedIn Learning videos “Favor flush-left, ragged-right body text” (4m 14s), and the article “F-Shaped Pattern For Reading Web Content” by Jakob Nielsen.
• Apply the design principles of Contrast, Repetition, Alignment, and Proximity (CRAP) to improve your document design. See CRAP Design Principles.
• Structure your document so the information is well-organized and easy to navigate. In Markel & Selber, see “Paragraph Length” in Chapter 9 (p. 210) and “Guidelines: Dividing Long Paragraphs” (p. 211). See the LinkedIn Learning videos Managing Paragraph Lengths (3m 20s) and Create Information-Rich Signposts (5m 22s).
• Add strong headings and subheadings to your document, if appropriate. In Markel & Selber, see “Writing Clear, Informative Headings” in Chapter 9 (pp. 199–201), “Guidelines: Revising Headings” also in Chapter 9 (pp. 201–202).
• Apply this design advice from the textbook to your draft:
  • Guidelines: Designing Easy-To-Read Text, on p. 292
  • Using Color Effectively, on pp. 309–312
  • GUIDELINES: Designing Clear, Attractive Pages on p. 577
  • Planning for Safety, starting on pp. 578–580
• Integrate images smoothly in your documents and include appropriate labels and documentation for all images. See Chapter 12 of Markel and Selber’s Technical Communication, “Creating Graphics.” To learn about the tools available in your word processor, watch one of the following videos, both from LinkedIn Learning:
  • Format text around images (4m 24s), from Google Docs: Formatting in Depth
  • Add and customize graphics in a document (9m 28s), from Word Tips Weekly
  • Add visuals to a technical report (9m 0s), from Technical Writing: Reports

Photo credit: ikea - sleep instructions by Chris Dlugosz on Flickr, used under a CC-BY 2.0 license.