Best Practices: Creating a Successful White Paper Program
Best Practices: Creating a Successful White Paper Program
Technology companies around the globe use white papers to educate buyers on solving business problems.
But too much of a good thing creates a backlash: prospects complain about being inundated with mediocre
messages that hype rather than solve problems. How is a company to stand out from its competitors?
Decision makers don’t want sales pitches, they want expert advice about the products they buy, and that’s
what a well-crafted white paper should provide. Companies that make exceptional use of storytelling in white
papers will succeed. Companies that under-deliver by focusing on product details instead of customer needs
will not.
Benefits of a White Paper Program
A white paper program is a curriculum of organizational elements and best practices that support companies in
delivering a schedule of targeted, well-written white papers over a period of time.
A well-executed program provides several clear benefits to technology companies. Through a series of
planned papers, a program helps differentiate a company’s approach to technology, positions the company as
a thought leader, clearly defines the benefits of proprietary solutions to prospects and investors, and enhances
credibility among business leaders and decision makers.
A successful white paper program equips authors with the tools they need to craft stories that garner top line
attention and support marketing departments with the creative messaging that attracts prospects and keeps
them engaged. Here are the benefits of a well-executed white paper program:
• Reduce time commitment of authors and content providers
• Increase storytelling capabilities and educational value of the papers
• Provide best practices that ensure successful papers
• Deliver more effective calls-to-action
• Improve marketing capabilities of the papers
• Increase readership with well-designed documents
• Highlight the collective intelligence of an organization
White Paper Program Best Practices
White papers are ideal sales tools for communicating the advantages of complex, technology products and
services. A robust white paper program can be used to serialize papers for technical and business decisionmaking
audiences, as well as users. Careful planning of a white paper program generates more fulfilling
documents for both authors and readers. Here are some best practices to guide the development of a
successful white paper program:
Simplify the research process – researching a topic can be one of the most time-consuming and
cumbersome procedures in the white paper writing process. Laser-focus the research practice and shorten the
timeline.
Create persuasive storylines – one of the biggest challenges for an author is creating a solid, persuasive
thread that keeps the reader interested and anxious to turn the next page. Engage readers by showing them
that you feel their pain. Look for fresh perspectives and communicate them with persuasive and compelling
content.
Compose a compelling title – a strong title attracts more readers than a basic description. For example,
“Five things computer hackers don’t want you to know” is far more intriguing than “PC Security Measures.”
Build credibility with case studies – many business executives are skeptical of the average white paper.
However, including case studies in a white paper can add incredible value if they are powerfully and succinctly
written.
Deliver what your reader really wants – day after day your prospects are bombarded with so many
marketing messages that they simply stop listening. Readers want different things: some want to be educated
about new technologies or platforms, others may want to know if you can solve their problem. A well-written
white paper accomplishes both by delivering a clear message in the language of the readers.
Manage your time – any successful person has a million things to do and only a few hours in which to do
them. But there are time-proven ways that authors can manage their time so that the important things always
get done—and done well.
Capture skim readers – most readers skim your paper before making the commitment to read it. There are
tips that make a paper more enticing to skim and therefore more readable. Strong headlines, subheads,
bullets and captions are a few ways to provide readers with valuable information at a glance.
Exercise restraint – prospects today look to white papers for insights and education, not sales pitches. When
companies ignore these expectations, they lose credibility and valuable sales opportunities.
3-30-3 rule – grab your reader’s interest in the first three seconds; that’s how long you have to show them that
you have something meaningful to say. If they stay for the initial glance, you may have another 30 seconds to
make your point. If they're still with you, the final three minutes are to convince the reader that you have the
right solution.
Create irresistible calls to action – when it comes to a great white paper, the last thing you write is just as
important as the first thing. Learn how to write a powerful call to action that gets prospects to pick up the
phone and call.
Avoid deadly design mistakes – design plays an essential role in the success of any white paper. Before a
prospect begins reading your paper, they judge its value by its appearance and attention to detail. Graphics,
tables and charts can make your papers more accessible and more interesting.
Collaborative Process
The collaborative process is key to a positive outcome in any working relationship. When developing a white
paper program it is essential that all parties – content specialists and writers – understand and support this
process. Professional technology marketing writers can either assist an organization’s in-house authors in
writing more compelling papers, or they can develop the papers for you. Either way, here are the steps in the
collaborative process:
• Outline Process: Writers work with content specialists/key internal stakeholders to create a clear,
concise white paper outline.
• Content and Research Process: Writers work with an organization’s internal experts to collect the
content necessary to fulfill the underlying theme of the paper.
• Writing Process: Writers work with an organization’s experts to streamline the writing process and
create the first draft for review.
• Revision Process: Writers work with an organization’s internal experts to speed the revision time and
get papers completed sooner.
• Promotion Process: Writers work with your marketing team to develop promotional copy and deliver
creative ideas to help increase the readership and improve response rates.
Creative Team
Many professional technology marketing firms take a team approach to white paper development. Rather than
depend upon a single writer, they support an organization’s authors with a team of writers and creative experts
who provide every aspect of successful white paper production.
• Creative Director: Manages the entire program, including assignment of resources, development of
schedule, and adherence to best practices.
• Project Manager: Dedicated point-of-contact for authors, content specialists and marketing staff.
Responsibilities include maintaining the schedule and work flow; supporting the writing team; managing
the research and writing process; coordinating document review; and more.
• Writing Team: A team of writers and editors who work to ensure technical accuracy, storytelling strength
and continuity within the document.
• Design Team: Add value to white paper design and readership.
Program Summary
A final and important element of a White Paper Program is manageability. The first step in assuring
manageability is selecting an experienced team of technology writers who bring added value to the project and
can manage the creative process for you. For example, experienced writers understand the technology sales
cycle and can offer suggestions that an organization’s content specialists may overlook. A team of writers
offers far greater breadth and depth than a single writer. If that team includes a project manager, it will not only
bring added value to the White Paper Program, but they will also relieve your marketing staff of the burden of
managing and executing the program so you can devote more energy to planning, enhancing brand identity,
preparing for new product launches, and driving prospects through the sales funnel.
The creation of a robust white paper program adds immense value to an organization’s white paper
development and distribution efforts. Creating a roadmap for a 6-month or year-long program provides content
specialists, authors and marketing managers with a unified approach that enhances the collective intelligence
of an organization’s authors and experts, increases executives’ position as a global thought leaders, and offers
promotional capabilities that will increase readership and response from prospects and clients. The ultimate
success of a White Paper Program depends on selecting the right team of writers that complements your
internal team, supports your marketing efforts and helps to manage the process from beginning to end.
Best Practices Creating a Successful White Paper Program - To learn more about this author, visit John Gillett's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
Best Practices: Creating Successful White Paper Programs
Technology companies around the globe use white papers to educate buyers on solving business problems.
But too much of a good thing creates a backlash: prospects complain about being inundated with mediocre
messages that hype rather than solve problems. How is a company to stand out from its competitors?
Decision makers don’t want sales pitches, they want expert advice about the products they buy, and that’s
what a well-crafted white paper should provide. Companies that make exceptional use of storytelling in white
papers will succeed. Companies that under-deliver by focusing on product details instead of customer needs
will not.
Benefits of a White Paper Program
A white paper program is a curriculum of organizational elements and best practices that support companies in
delivering a schedule of targeted, well-written white papers over a period of time.
A well-executed program provides several clear benefits to technology companies. Through a series of
planned papers, a program helps differentiate a company’s approach to technology, positions the company as
a thought leader, clearly defines the benefits of proprietary solutions to prospects and investors, and enhances
credibility among business leaders and decision makers.
A successful white paper program equips authors with the tools they need to craft stories that garner top line
attention and support marketing departments with the creative messaging that attracts prospects and keeps
them engaged. Here are the benefits of a well-executed white paper program:
• Reduce time commitment of authors and content providers
• Increase storytelling capabilities and educational value of the papers
• Provide best practices that ensure successful papers
• Deliver more effective calls-to-action
• Improve marketing capabilities of the papers
• Increase readership with well-designed documents
• Highlight the collective intelligence of an organization
White Paper Program Best Practices
White papers are ideal sales tools for communicating the advantages of complex, technology products and
services. A robust white paper program can be used to serialize papers for technical and business decisionmaking
audiences, as well as users. Careful planning of a white paper program generates more fulfilling
documents for both authors and readers. Here are some best practices to guide the development of a
successful white paper program:
Simplify the research process – researching a topic can be one of the most time-consuming and
cumbersome procedures in the white paper writing process. Laser-focus the research practice and shorten the
timeline.
Create persuasive storylines – one of the biggest challenges for an author is creating a solid, persuasive
thread that keeps the reader interested and anxious to turn the next page. Engage readers by showing them
that you feel their pain. Look for fresh perspectives and communicate them with persuasive and compelling
content.
Compose a compelling title – a strong title attracts more readers than a basic description. For example,
“Five things computer hackers don’t want you to know” is far more intriguing than “PC Security Measures.”
Build credibility with case studies – many business executives are skeptical of the average white paper.
However, including case studies in a white paper can add incredible value if they are powerfully and succinctly
written.
Deliver what your reader really wants – day after day your prospects are bombarded with so many
marketing messages that they simply stop listening. Readers want different things: some want to be educated
about new technologies or platforms, others may want to know if you can solve their problem. A well-written
white paper accomplishes both by delivering a clear message in the language of the readers.
Manage your time – any successful person has a million things to do and only a few hours in which to do
them. But there are time-proven ways that authors can manage their time so that the important things always
get done—and done well.
Capture skim readers – most readers skim your paper before making the commitment to read it. There are
tips that make a paper more enticing to skim and therefore more readable. Strong headlines, subheads,
bullets and captions are a few ways to provide readers with valuable information at a glance.
Exercise restraint – prospects today look to white papers for insights and education, not sales pitches. When
companies ignore these expectations, they lose credibility and valuable sales opportunities.
3-30-3 rule – grab your reader’s interest in the first three seconds; that’s how long you have to show them that
you have something meaningful to say. If they stay for the initial glance, you may have another 30 seconds to
make your point. If they're still with you, the final three minutes are to convince the reader that you have the
right solution.
Create irresistible calls to action – when it comes to a great white paper, the last thing you write is just as
important as the first thing. Learn how to write a powerful call to action that gets prospects to pick up the
phone and call.
Avoid deadly design mistakes – design plays an essential role in the success of any white paper. Before a
prospect begins reading your paper, they judge its value by its appearance and attention to detail. Graphics,
tables and charts can make your papers more accessible and more interesting.
Collaborative Process
The collaborative process is key to a positive outcome in any working relationship. When developing a white
paper program it is essential that all parties – content specialists and writers – understand and support this
process. Professional technology marketing writers can either assist an organization’s in-house authors in
writing more compelling papers, or they can develop the papers for you. Either way, here are the steps in the
collaborative process:
• Outline Process: Writers work with content specialists/key internal stakeholders to create a clear,
concise white paper outline.
• Content and Research Process: Writers work with an organization’s internal experts to collect the
content necessary to fulfill the underlying theme of the paper.
• Writing Process: Writers work with an organization’s experts to streamline the writing process and
create the first draft for review.
• Revision Process: Writers work with an organization’s internal experts to speed the revision time and
get papers completed sooner.
• Promotion Process: Writers work with your marketing team to develop promotional copy and deliver
creative ideas to help increase the readership and improve response rates.
Creative Team
Many professional technology marketing firms take a team approach to white paper development. Rather than
depend upon a single writer, they support an organization’s authors with a team of writers and creative experts
who provide every aspect of successful white paper production.
• Creative Director: Manages the entire program, including assignment of resources, development of
schedule, and adherence to best practices.
• Project Manager: Dedicated point-of-contact for authors, content specialists and marketing staff.
Responsibilities include maintaining the schedule and work flow; supporting the writing team; managing
the research and writing process; coordinating document review; and more.
• Writing Team: A team of writers and editors who work to ensure technical accuracy, storytelling strength
and continuity within the document.
• Design Team: Add value to white paper design and readership.
Program Summary
A final and important element of a White Paper Program is manageability. The first step in assuring
manageability is selecting an experienced team of technology writers who bring added value to the project and
can manage the creative process for you. For example, experienced writers understand the technology sales
cycle and can offer suggestions that an organization’s content specialists may overlook. A team of writers
offers far greater breadth and depth than a single writer. If that team includes a project manager, it will not only
bring added value to the White Paper Program, but they will also relieve your marketing staff of the burden of
managing and executing the program so you can devote more energy to planning, enhancing brand identity,
preparing for new product launches, and driving prospects through the sales funnel.
The creation of a robust white paper program adds immense value to an organization’s white paper
development and distribution efforts. Creating a roadmap for a 6-month or year-long program provides content
specialists, authors and marketing managers with a unified approach that enhances the collective intelligence
of an organization’s authors and experts, increases executives’ position as a global thought leaders, and offers
promotional capabilities that will increase readership and response from prospects and clients. The ultimate
success of a White Paper Program depends on selecting the right team of writers that complements your
internal team, supports your marketing efforts and helps to manage the process from beginning to end.
Best Practices Creating a Successful White Paper Program - To learn more about this author, visit John Gillett's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 | |
 |
No article feedback found. |
| |
Leave Your Feedback |
 | |
| |||
Dianne CramptonDianne Crampton is an executive leadership coach, team culture consultant, author and president of TIGERS Success Series, Inc. Dianne has been helping CEO's and Executives connect their employees to their core values and goals for over 20 years using the trademarked TIGERS team culture process, which stands for trust, interdependence, genuineness, empathy, risk and success. To download a free white paper on behaviors that build strong teams and behaviors that will predictably tear them down go here. Dianne's contribution to the 2010 Pfeiffer Consulting Journal (an imprint of John Wiley and Sons Publishers) entitled TIGERS Hearted Teams is available in November 2009. Her new book TIGERS Among Us: 5 Winning Business Team Cultures And Why, Three Creeks Publishing will release in March 2010. To receive publishing discounts, subscribe to the free TigerTracks Newsletter here. - Visit Dianne Crampton's Website |
|||
John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
|||
Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
|||
John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
|||
Staging DivaDebra Gould, aka The Staging Diva®, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. Gould has trained over 1000 Staging Diva Graduates worldwide to start staging businesses. Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since then she has staged hundreds of homes in addition to teaching home staging training. Gould is the author of several home staging resources including a series of popular ebooks made up of a Design Guide, Color Guide and Portfolio Guide. For more information about Debra Gould visit stagingdiva.com. - Visit Staging Diva's Website |
|||
Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
|||
Kim CastleWith nearly two decades in the advertising and design business, with clients like Domino's Pizza, General Motors, Direct TV, Pedigree, Wolfgang Puck, Higher Octave Music, Hollywood Celebrity Products, Disney, and Paramount, as well as thousands of entrepreneurs around the world define, structure, communicate, and position their business for greater profits, BrandU(R) co-creators Kim Castle and W. Vito Montone discovered that entrepreneurs could experience the same power that big brands command for a fraction of the cost with the world's only process-based results-drive Integral approach to business creation. BrandU(R) is helping entrepreneurs grow with the power of extreme clarity from idea...to brand...to market(TM) and helping one million entrepreneurs become successful and whole so that they can make a difference in the world. Are you one of them? If you want to experience clarity all the way to the bank(TM), get started now at http://www.brandu.com. - Visit Kim Castle's Website |
|||
Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. We specialize in internet consulting & internet marketing. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
|||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. | |||
 | |
|  |
Subscribe to John's articles
 | |
|
|  |
 | |
|
| |
 | |||||||
|
 | ||
 |
||
|
||
|
||
|
| ||
 |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
|
|
 |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
|
|
 |
"Learn straight from Evan how you can Make a Full Time Income (And More) from a Website"
Click Here To Learn More |
|
|
|
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
|
|
 Increase Sales Performance Improvement Plan Network More Effectively Networking Impacts Income Take the Lead |
|
 | ||
 |
Top 50 Franchising Blogs
Top 50 Franchising Blogs | |
 |
Top 50 Social Media Blogs
Top 50 Social Media Blogs | |
| ||
 | ||||
| ||||
|
| ||||
| ||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
Email us your ideas on how to make our website more valuable! Thank you Sharon from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for your suggestions to make the newsletter look like the website and profile younger entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez and Sean Combs!
|
|
|
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||