How to write a White Paper | Write White Papers

Why is it better to write a white paper that is relevant to the problem your customer has than about selling a product? The most common time a customer wants to buy a product is when they need to solve a problem. The other day I was at my son's home, and while I was waiting for him to arrive I took a gander at his toolbox. Now, this toolbox has about ten drawers (it is a large toolbox) and so I began to pull open each drawer to see what was there.

Much to my surprise there was at least one tape measure, and sometimes two or three, in almost every drawer! For the life of me I couldn't understand why he needed so many tape measures! My son explained that the tape measures break, and when he is out shopping instead of having a list of what he needs he simply tries to remember what he needs. So, he breaks a tape measure, forgets about the ones in other drawers, and buys yet another tape measure! Aren't we all somewhat like that?

But this story demonstrates my point - buying another tape measure occurs because he is trying to solve a problem! So, when you write a white paper you should write about solving a problem, not about the tool you want to sell to solve that problem! Again, write a white paper that is relevant to the problem your customer has rather than about a product you want to sell.

When you advertise problem solving information like this you will get the kind of response you need, and at the same time build your reputation as a source of quality information instead of being "just another peddler." Done right, you also gain permission from potential customers to communicate with them in the future. This is why you want to write a white paper that is relevant to your customers problem.

Want to explode your business? Get a copy of the Definitive Guide on White Papers for yourself and see!

Thinking about how to write a white paper can seem like a dreary chore, something that you need to do, but you dont' know where to start or what to write about. You know it can help your business, you need to outsmart and out market your competitors, but you just can't get started.

Well, there may be times when you need a 15-20 page white paper, but for the most part people won't read anything that long. One of the people I work with can take three hours to tell me about an issue that can be solved in ten minutes! He drives me and everyone else nuts - we just don't need that much information to make a decision and solve the problem!

The same is true for your customers. If you can't get it done in a 1-2 page white paper, consider breaking it down into smaller papers, each addressing a specific issue, and then implement a follow up system that continues to lead your customer along so they take the next logical step. You can use an email auto responder program to keep your customer moving towards that final step - making a purchase, calling you or simply asking you a question.

The most effective white papers, however, are short little guides or reference tools that solve problems and that people will keep handy for reference in the future. This is the magic formula for success, and it doesn't take long to put into place.

All you really need to do is give a person some knowledge that enables them to DO something. Your white paper should be action oriented, not theoretical. The best way to write a white paper is to make a list of 5 or 6 things you want your customer to know how to do after they read your white paper. Just tell them how to solve their problem.

Think about it this way: when you do something good for someone you are making a deposit into their 'emotional bank account.' When you ask them to do something for you, you make a withdrawal from that same 'emotional bank account.' So the goal is to use a white paper to make a deposit before you make a withdrawal, all the time with useful problem solving information.

You will find that this is much more effective than traditional advertising because it builds trust between you and your customer in ways no other advertising medium can.

At the same time your white paper is helping your customer to solve his problem your way, not someone else's. Think about how powerful this is. Learn more by taking a short course on writing White Papers.

The one thing that is most important for the success of any white paper is - THE TITLE! If your title is not interesting no one will read your white paper. It needs to be concise, to the point and descriptive of what the reader will find when they start reading your white paper. It will not matter if your white paper is well written if no one ever reads it.

In white paper writing for example, if your title is something like "The Realities of Mid-Market Business Enterprises" can you tell what it is about? What benefit would someone gain from reading such an article? This type of title is vague and provides the reader no incentive to read it.

Titles should not contain technical jargon which only confuses your customer and conveys no benefit for reading the paper. Remember, customers only care about their needs and themselves, and the problem they need to solve. Some esoteric white paper title that doesn't deliver a reason to read the article will result in no one reading it.

One of the best ways to understand this is to think about popular book titles that you can find on the New York Times Bestseller list. How about "The 4-Hour Workweek" 'Because life isn't all about work'. Try this one: "Debt Cures "They" don't want you to know about" 'How the credit industry is rigged against you.' These titles pull you in, arouse your curiosity, and make you want to find out more.

You know that if the title of a book doesn't get attention no one will pick it up, let alone read it. For example "How to ..." is a powerful formula for getting people to read your white paper. Take note that subtitles are very important as well - they should be carefully crafted in order to create a lot of curiosity and to further increase the desire to read the white paper. You can use the same technique on your own white papers as well.

When you are writing your title imagine that your budget only allows you to write a single line classified ad in the back of a newspaper with nothing but a title plus the following words 'for more information call (800) 555-0000. Would this ad, in and by itself, make the telephone ring?

Try an example like this: "What doctors know about cancer cures that you don't" - for more information call (800) 555-cancer. Would that pass the test? You betcha! So as you think about your title try and make it as compelling as you possibly can, and work on those subtitles as well.

So take your time and figure out how to get someone to read your white paper by creating a great title rather than worrying about the details in your paper. If no one reads it they won't matter anyway.

Blow your competition off the planet with your very own White Papers!

When you are writing your white paper remember that people make their buying decisions on emotion, not logic. It is well known that a lot of purchases are impulse purchases, made when the customer sees something they think they need or want, not whether it really makes sense. Think about the current foreclosure housing problem in the US - most of these folks should never have purchased those homes in the first place.

For sure logic has its place - after all we have to justify what we purchased based upon emotion, right? But does this apply to business to business (B2B) purchases as well? You bet. A lot of people will advise you to write your white paper filled with facts and figures, and they would be dead wrong.

Oh, there is a place for that kind of writing. For example, instruction manuals and company handbooks need to be dry and filled with dull but important facts and rules, but your white paper had better be written using emotion, not logic.

The way to start writing your white paper is to start with the conversation that is inside your reader's head right now. Someone who is starting to read your white paper needs to solve a problem - what are they worried about, what are they trying to accomplish, what do they need and why do they need it? Reinforce the conversation in their head and then tell them even more problems they will have if they don't consider everything, particullarly ones they may not have thought about yet.

You need to figure out what your customer likes, what they hate, what worries them and what disaster they dread. Tell them a horror story of what could happen if its appropriate.

Be sure to include a call to action at the end - not to purchase your product but to take the next step in the buying process like an evaluation of their problem, or a strategy review or a phone consultation.

We are talking about using emotion not hype, about balancing the sales message with facts in order to build a persuasive paper that people can't stop reading.

Shout your competition out of the game with the Definitive Guide to Writing White Papers.

Today customers have more choices than ever before, and they are being pursued by a lot of different sales people. Their email box is filled with offers and solicitations, quick fixes and golden opportunities. Customers lock their doors, put gate keepers in place to fend off the unwanted, and delete hundreds of email daily.

If you have a better product or new technology or a superior solution for any kind of business problem you are faced with a tough challenge getting your message out and bringing the customers in. The marketplace is incredibly crowded and getting someone to read your white paper is a real challenge.

No one will ever read your white paper unless the title and the promotion grab their attention and strike a nerve. This is why promoting your white paper is vitally important, more important than even the content. So, how do you promote your white paper?

There are many ways to promote it including the following:

Purchasing web traffic on search engines
Sending out an email blast to your customer list
A press realease to publications in your field
Mailing out postcards
Advertise in print
Setting up joint ventures with compatible vendors.

If you use the right formula for writing a press release for your white paper it is three times more likely to be seen in a trade magazine than a regular product release.

If you devote a significant portion of your advertising budget to promoting white papers it will go a lot further than branding advertising or image advertising.

Two quick choices:

• The Definitive Guide to Writing & Promoting Your White Paper by Perry Marshall
  
• 5 Lessons on How to Write a White Paper.
  

Please submit a Site Review for this site to
The Isle of Squid