Whitepapers are pretty common in the business world. But they’re also pretty confusing. Writing them takes a lot of work and dedication, so many businesses just don’t bother to publish them. But whitepapers have tons of benefits. Let’s take a look at what a whitepaper is and how you can write one for your business.
What Is A Whitepaper?
A whitepaper is an in-depth, informational report on a topic. It’s kind of like the in-depth school report you never got to write on the topic or product you’re most passionate about. A whitepaper dives into great detail on a problem that needs to be solved and the best solution to the problem. Most rely heavily on statistics and technical language to prove how that solution works in the real world.
For a marketer, a whitepaper is an opportunity to give all the nitty-gritty details of their business solution to readers. It usually contains a robust background on a topic or industry and some problem that needs to be solved. It then dives into the details of how your specific product or solution addresses that problem.
Say you want to explain how your business increased its sales by starting up a YouTube channel. You could go into all the data supporting the use of YouTube/video, lay out all your sales numbers, and explain how YouTube changed your specific business’s results.
What Is The Purpose of A Whitepaper?
In the most general terms, the purpose of a whitepaper is to convince the reader of the superior quality of a particular solution to a problem and the authority of a certain business in the industry. A marketer with a new email marketing solution will write a whitepaper addressing the issues with email marketing and explaining why their solution solves those issues in the best possible way.
Whitepapers are designed to make a particular business or group an authority on a topic. When you write a whitepaper, you’re trying to prove with data and details that you are the best out there and you have the answers to a specific problem in your industry.
But that’s not all whitepapers can do. In addition to offering a persuasive and informational message, a whitepaper can also be used to generate leads. Most whitepapers require at least an email address–if someone truly wants to read a whitepaper, they’ll have to give your business their email so you can send them the paper and further communicate with them.
What Is The Difference Between A Whitepaper And An EBook?
An eBook is similar to a whitepaper in a lot of ways–it’s long, in-depth, and usually requires an email to access. However, there are a couple of big differences between eBooks and whitepapers.
The main difference is in style. An eBook is created to be an overview on a very broad topic while a whitepaper has a narrower focus.
An eBook might be called “The History And Uses of SEO” or “How To Become A Successful Marketer.” A whitepaper would probably have a name more like an academic report: “How Using SEO Best Practices Increased Our Conversion Rate” or “The Importance of A Drip Campaign To Today’s Marketer.”
EBooks are interactive and entertaining. They can have a sales pitch or two inviting readers to purchase or try a product. Whitepapers are meant to inform. They don’t offer sales pitches or calls to action. They’re all about the data. Whitepapers establish authority in a specific area of expertise, but don’t necessarily try to sell anything.
How To Write A Whitepaper
Whitepapers are usually pretty long–at least 2,500 words in length and 5 or more pages. They work like an eBook, but with more statistics and research. If you want to write a whitepaper, you’re going to need to take a lot of time–at least a few weeks, possibly a few months.
Here are the basic steps to writing up a whitepaper:
- Identify a topic. Consider why your audience would read this whitepaper–why do they need to know about your solution? What pain point will drive them to dig into the details?
- Do your research. This will take time. You want to have plenty of stats and data to back up what you’re saying.
- Create an outline. Include a history and background of your topic, the research and statistics that back up your claims, and how your solution works. You probably also want to include a section that takes a look into the future of your topic and what may or may not change.
- Write your paper! Dig deep into that research and create a body based on the outline you’ve designed.
- Include lots of imagery. Even for people who love the nitty-gritty, graphs and charts are super helpful. Make sure you include plenty to flesh out the data you’re representing.
- Use a second eye–maybe a third. Get an editor or two to look over the whitepaper for any obvious typos or other errors.
- Tidy up the design. A whitepaper can be hard to read, but you want to make it as easy as possible. Use white space and carefully calculated coloring and formatting to make your paper visually appealing.
Writing a whitepaper is hard work. Fortunately, they’re also super beneficial. Whitepapers are a method to connect with your audience. Not only do people willingly give their email addresses for a solid whitepaper, but they’ll also learn everything there is to know about your product. A whitepaper is a great way to build solid relationships with the people who love what you do.