Saturday, August 4, 2012

Strategies for Converting White Papers Successfully

By Don Contreras


These days your white papers will be expected to land leads and conversions. This is an awful lot to ask of a document that was not invented with the intention of making sales. Yet that is where we are at the present, but much is known about giving your market what it needs. Content is still the name of the game and what helps make your marketing efforts successful. Do not ignore how you go about packaging your white paper's content. This is how mistakes get made. Use the following tips to help increase the conversions your white papers produce.

White papers have had a place in business for a really long time and that isn't going to change. But so many changes have happened to the business world and the general pace of business itself. The point is that we are all pushed for time and in lots of different ways, all of which is reflected in the changes in white papers. This is a consideration that you need to face when you are writing yours. A lot of the pro white paper writers responded to these time shortages by employing a much friendlier user format. The older format was simply solid text from beginning to end with some important images like data tables and graphs. It's okay to keep using the critical images but you need to ensure that your content is easier to read/skim and then understand.

Work hard to truly "get" your audience so that you can employ newer strategies. One clearly new approach is the use of story, but you must be completely sure this is appropriate. Not every market is open to the use of story as a mechanism for starting a white paper. When they are written properly for marketing materials, stories feel universal and are one of the most effective tools you have in your arsenal. When you truly believe that your white paper will be assisted by the story approach, put together an outline and get your client to give his approval for it. You can always change things later if your client does not like the things you have done to the story or how it feels in the paper.

Being comfortable is very important when doing white papers. It will modify the approach that you use in some way or another. You have a lot of freedom if you know a lot about the topic you are writing on. If you don't know how to do these, there are many templates that can help you. If you use a certain template, make sure that it fits your niche audience in someway. Although it may seem like a cookie-cutter approach, you still need to have skills. Different markets and audiences will always be encountered. A technical audience will be very critical about the content that you provide. They are looking for something that is going to move them intellectually, which is why you need to do a great job.

There is no detail too small for your attention in your white papers. A finished white paper is generally pretty short, it is rare to exceed ten pages. So a client and business market will not miss that much. Always remember, though, that your success will be determined not just by the easy digestiveness of your content but how easy it is for other people to understand.




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