Document the decision, not every click.
Useful help explains what a choice changes. Put the reason beside the control, and keep the long instructions for when they are needed.
“Choose an option from the menu, then press Continue.”
That may be an accurate instruction. It has not helped anyone choose the option.
Imagine a small pattern-drawing tool with two print settings: “Fit to page” and “Actual size.” The person making a paper template needs to know whether the printed shape will keep its intended dimensions. Knowing where to click is only part of the task.
For this hypothetical tool, I would put a short explanation beside the choice. “Fit to page” can change the printed scale to fit the available area. “Actual size” aims to preserve the intended scale, but a shape larger than the printable area needs a clear handling rule.
The explanation should describe the behavior that has actually been implemented. If the tool splits a large pattern across several sheets, explain how those sheets fit together. If it cannot print the whole shape at the requested scale, say that rather than leaving the printer to reveal the limit.
Help someone choose
A menu label can identify the option. The help needs to explain when it is useful and what someone gives up by choosing it.
For a decorative sketch, fitting the whole drawing onto one page might be exactly right. For a template used to cut a material, changing the scale could defeat the purpose. Neither setting is universally better. The right answer comes from what the person plans to do with the paper.
Use a small example where words alone are not enough. A diagram showing a shape fitting onto one page beside the same shape divided across sheets would teach the difference. A decorative screenshot of the print dialog would not necessarily do that.
Keep the explanation available at the point of choice. A person who skipped the introductory tour should not have to find it again before printing. Avoid relying on a tooltip that only appears when someone hovers precisely over a small icon.
Keep the essential consequence in view and offer more detail nearby. Some people will need help with printer settings; others will only need to know which option preserves the scale. Neither needs a wall of instructions before they can begin.
Leave room to check the result
The imaginary pattern tool could include a labelled reference square in the printout so someone can measure the output before cutting. That would be a proposed check, not a guarantee that every printer respects the requested dimensions.
The help should say what to compare and what a mismatch means. “Check the printout” is a weaker instruction than explaining which dimension to measure and where to look if the scale differs.
Review the help with a person trying to finish the task, not merely proofread the sentences. Give them a reason to print at a particular scale and see whether the explanation supports that decision. If they still ask what the two options do, the missing piece may be in the explanation rather than the menu.
A useful help page earns its space by answering a real uncertainty. Someone making a template needs to understand the size of the thing they will hold, not receive a narrated tour of the Continue button.