There’s a reason writing amplifies the abilities of software companies, and it’s not (just) the marketing. 

I’ve previously put forward the idea that great writing is an extension of the product, in which I talk about documentation and brand voice. I neglected to mention a key factor:

Most people don’t know what to do with your software.

They haven’t even started to get confused yet; they don’t know what they don’t know about your software. 

One of the best examples illustrating this is Basecamp, which currently describes itself as “project management software.” It is! So a prospective buyer will understand Basecamp can help it manage projects—and they already use Slack and Asana, so they politely close the tab and go back to whatever they were doing.

Then one day, they start seeing a Basecamp partner criticizing Slack’s need for presence, or the nimbleness of its team, and they start thinking. Or they read Shape Up, a guide which describes Basecamp’s methodology and project management process (using Basecamp), and they’re really thinking. (Shape Up is effectively a really long branded tutorial.)

Now, the prospective buyer has an idea of not only what the software is about, but what to actually do with it and why they might want to choose it instead of the industry standard or the status quo.