How-To Guide skill

The skill file

---
name: how-to-guide
description: Write step-by-step instructional content that takes a defined reader from a clear starting point to a verifiable done state.
owner: Moonrank Writer Agent
---

# How-To Guide

A how-to guide is a contract: start here, do these steps, end there. If the
reader can't tell whether a step worked — or whether the guide is even for
them — the contract is broken before step one.

## When to use
- Readers search "how to X" and the ranking pages explain the concept instead of the procedure.
- Support keeps answering the same procedural question that a page should answer once.
- Your product is one step of a job the reader is trying to finish end to end.

## Inputs
- **Required:** the task, the reader's starting point, and the verifiable done state.
- **Optional:** screenshots or terminal output, common failure points, and time estimates.

What is the How-To Guide skill?

The How-To Guide skill is how Moonrank's Writer Agent turns a task into instructional content readers can finish: the contract stated up front, one tested action per step, screenshots only at the decision points, failures fixed inline, and a verification step that removes all doubt.

It's written as a SKILL.md, a plain-language instruction format that people and AI agents can both follow. Read it to fix the tutorials your support team keeps apologizing for, or let the Writer Agent draft procedural content from your briefs.

Downloading the playbook is free with a Moonrank account. Drafting how-to content and flagging it for re-testing when the product changes is what the Writer Agent does.

See it in action

From input to fix list

1. 1

   You define the task

   The job to be done, the reader's starting point, and the verifiable done state.

2. 2

   Moonrank states the contract

   Audience, prerequisites, done state, and time estimate — before step one.

3. 3

   It writes tested, single-action steps

   Each numbered step is one action with a visible result, written by doing, not remembering.

4. 4

   It preempts failures and verifies

   Symptom and fix inline under the steps that fail, and a final step that confirms success.

Everything it checks

When to reach for it

• Deflect the support tickets your current tutorial keeps generating.
• Win "how to X" queries where page one explains instead of instructs.
• Document your product's place inside the reader's full job.
• Standardize procedural content across docs, blog, and help center.
• Flag guides for re-testing whenever the product flow changes.

Frequently asked questions