How to Use Titles and Subheadings to Group Similar Kinds of Procedural Tasks

Here is an example of how NOT to use a title when writing procedural steps:

[TITLE] Follow these instructions:

Calculate the exact amount of patent fee you need to pay to the United States Patent and Trademark Office by using the PF calculator.
Itemize the fees for each individual application by using Form I.
Convert all foreign currency to United States dollars.
Obtain a cashier’s or certified check, Treasury note, national banknotes, or United States Postal Service money order for the amount calculated previously.
Make sure the checks and money orders are made payable to the Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
If the payment is made from a country other than the United States, make sure that it is payable and immediately negotiable in the United States for the full amount of the fee required.
If you are mailing the check, make sure the letter is registered with the United States Postal Service.
If using a credit card, specify the amount to be charged to the credit card and such other information as is necessary to process the charge.
For amounts over twenty-five dollars, apply directly to the Director’s Office for a refund.
If the amount is less than twenty-five dollars, apply to PRT Office instead.
When applying for a refund, always include your name, last name, address, phone number, email address, the date of original payment, and the amount paid rounded up to the next dollar. For example, round up $134.67 to $135.
Make sure you provide the banking information necessary for making refunds by electronic funds transfer; or instruct the Office that refunds are to be credited to a deposit account.
Make sure you file your refund request within two years from the date the fee was paid.

So what’s wrong with the above list?

1) The title is not descriptive at all: it does not describe what the steps that follow are all about.
2) The steps themselves are too long and too dense to make immediate sense. We need to break them down into chunks that are easier to read, understand, and remember. We should use subheadings for that purpose.

Here is a better way to present the same information:

[TITLE] How to Pay the Patent Fees and Get a Refund

[SUBHEADING 1] To pay the fees in advance

Calculate the exact amount of patent fee you need to pay to the United States Patent and Trademark Office by using the PF calculator.
Itemize the fees for each individual application by using Form I.

[SUBHEADING 2] To select the correct payment method

Convert all foreign currency to United States dollars.
Obtain a cashier’s or certified check, Treasury note, national banknotes, or United States Postal Service money order for the amount calculated previously.
Make sure the checks and money orders are made payable to the Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
If the payment is made from a country other than the United States, make sure that it is payable and immediately negotiable in the United States for the full amount of the fee required.
If you are mailing the check, make sure the letter is registered with the United States Postal Service.
If using a credit card, specify the amount to be charged to the credit card and such other information as is necessary to process the charge.

[SUBHEADING 3] To get a refund

For amounts over twenty-five dollars, apply directly to the Director’s Office for a refund.
If the amount is less than twenty-five dollars, apply to PRT Office instead.
When applying for a refund, always include your name, last name, address, phone number, email address, the date of original payment, and the amount paid rounded up to the next dollar. For example, round up $134.67 to $135.
Make sure you provide the banking information necessary for making refunds by electronic funds transfer; or instruct the Office that refunds are to be credited to a deposit account.
Make sure you file your refund request within two years from the date the fee was paid.

Conclusion:

Now the title clearly describes what the steps are about. The subheadings make it a much easier read since they chunk the steps into groups of related tasks.