Energize a Boring White Paper

PAPER - 3D colored type on white background with design elementCall me a snoop, but when I’m at a technology conference listening to a speaker, I glance around at what other people are doing on their laptops. I swear to you I am not looking for

intellectual property, which is a good thing because I wouldn’t find any anyway. While the speaker drones on, people are typing emails, checking their Twitter feed, and reading news sites. I’m pretty sure I saw one top analyst sneak onto a recipe site.

And that’s happening when people are trying to look polite and attentive. So when your white paper comes over the transom, how are your would-be readers going to react? They don’t need to be polite to their email, so will they scan your headline and make a run to the recipe site? You hope not.

White papers are not cheap to write. Even when you write them in-house, you still devote a staff person to the research and writing. Don’t forget the interviews with the subject matter experts. Then you have the designer, the media placement people, the marketing campaign people, and even the salespeople. You need your white papers to sell. So why in the world should you take all this time to write a boring white paper?

No Pulitzer’s Here

Granted, a good white paper isn’t going to be up for Pulitzer Prize. They’re factual and logical, they’re aimed at an IT audience, and they’re talking about technology and not the latest celebrity breakup. But white papers equally do not get prizes for incredibly dull.

Build your white paper from these beautiful bones to grab and keep interest:

  1. Your reader must care about the topic. You can’t control individual readers, but you can promote the heck out of your paper and make sure it appears in your prospects’ favorite channels.
  2. You need a good headline. You don’t have to be uber-clever, that strategy can backfire with IT audiences. But don’t put them to sleep either in the first six words.
  3. You need a good opening. This is a great place to sketch the problem that your prospect probably has. If you are speaking to your prospects’ pain points, they’ll listen. They’ll read on. Create a compelling thesis statement by telling them that there is a solution to this big problem, and they’re going to find it in this paper.
  4. Clarify your points. When I went to Fuller Seminary about 1 million years ago, the Presbyterian preaching professors drilled into you that each sermon needed a strong intro, an inspiring conclusion, and 3 clear points in the middle. Plus never go longer than 20 minutes. White papers aren’t sermons, but the best ones present a distinct set of supporting points. 3 to 5 is ideal, each supporting and expanding your thesis statement. You are creating a logical progression of thought leading to your conclusion and call to action.
  5. Speaking of which, write a strong conclusion. Now sum up your sub points and map them to your thesis, conclude how right you are, and how very smart your customers are going to be by taking a specific action. Call a number, email someone specific, or best of all follow a link to a landing page specific to this white paper.

Adding Some Skin

In addition to this working skeleton of a persuasive essay, you’re going to want to add to some skin to the mix. By the way, I apologize for the autopsy-like imagery. Apparently, I watched one too many NCIS episodes.

  • Visual interest. I’m a writer, not a designer, but so much content is flowing through marketing channels that your white paper needs to stand out. A good headline will help immensely, and so will solid design. Note that I did not say flashy. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with flashy except when the visual elements overwhelm the written message. This might be fine in fashion marketing, but is not be fine with an IT readership. Use clear and interesting design elements to draw attention to the paper in general, and to your main points and evidence in specific.
  • Tell stories. Yes, stories. Even in a white paper — perhaps especially in a white paper — you want your readers to picture your technology in their environment, solving their problems and making their professional lives worth living. But if you don’t communicate that happy story to them, they might not get it at all. Don’t give them that chance. Tell stories that demonstrate how serious their challenge is, and what a risk they’re running by not solving it. (Admittedly you don’t have to go all the way to “and everybody dies,” which is the story summary for every tragic opera ever written.) Tell the truth about the very real risk they are running by not adopting a solution like yours. Then tell the story of how your solution works and how it greatly benefits your customers.

Your white papers must be clear and be logical. They also need to be interesting. And that means excellent flow, visual interest, and good stories that stick to their ribs. Or rather stick in their memory… once again, sorry for watching all that NCIS.

 

Christine Taylor may be too smart-alecky for her own good, but she writes a mean white paper. Talk to her today at 760-954-1807 or email her at christine@christineltaylor.com.

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