{"id":31384,"date":"2021-05-27T15:10:55","date_gmt":"2021-05-27T19:10:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crowdcontent.com\/blog\/?p=31384"},"modified":"2024-04-25T10:35:23","modified_gmt":"2024-04-25T10:35:23","slug":"thought-leadership-central-how-to-write-a-white-paper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crowdcontent.com\/blog\/content-marketing\/thought-leadership-central-how-to-write-a-white-paper\/","title":{"rendered":"Thought Leadership Central: How to Write a White Paper"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Comprehensive marketing strategies include many different types of optimized content. Sales funnels often begin with social media ads, pay-per-click ads and other types of microcontent. Advertorials \u2014 ads disguised as regular articles \u2014 drive traffic to landing pages; blog posts do the same thing. Then you have long-form editorials and white papers<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But what are white papers, and why are they important \u2014 and are they better than orange papers? We’re kidding about that last part: orange papers aren’t really a thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this post, we’ll talk about why white papers should be part of your SEO strategy<\/a>. Then, we’ll teach you how to write a white paper. Let’s go.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t

\n\n\t\t\tSales funnels often begin with social media ads, pay-per-click ads and other types of microcontent<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tClick to Tweet<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\n\n

What is a White Paper?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In a nutshell, white papers are special reports \u2014 they’re concise, authoritative guides about complicated topics. They’re meant to inform readers or help readers make decisions, and they provide the publishing organization’s unique viewpoint on the subject at hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Generally speaking, white papers are pretty short. Most contemporary white papers are between 3,000 and 5,000 words long \u2014 about the length of a regular editorial \u2014 with the most important information written on the first page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“If you don’t get to the point on page one, you can forget about influencing any significant decisions.”<\/em> ~ John Kilpatrick – Greenfield Advisors<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"John-Kilpatrick-Quote\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Interestingly, the very first white papers definitely weren’t<\/em> short. Coined in Britain about a century ago, the term “white paper” first appeared in 1922. The Churchill White Paper<\/a> incorporated nine documents and a memorandum, so it read more like a book. Its name came, quite simply, from the color of the cover.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t

\n\n\t\t\tDid you know that the very first white papers definitely weren’t short?<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tClick to Tweet<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\n\n

One common characteristic of white papers is they’re often packaged as PDFs complete with appealing visuals that help communicate key points. They can serve as powerful lead magnets that many marketers use for mid-funnel conversions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why White Papers Matter<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps more than any other type of sales funnel content<\/a>, white papers present opportunities for thought leadership. If you’ve done your own research, you can use it to prove the points you make; if possible, incorporate other data as well, to showcase widespread support for your idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In short, white papers are great mid-funnel content that let you help your customers while demonstrating your brand’s unique authority in your field.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t

\n\n\t\t\tWhite papers are great mid-funnel content that let you help your customers while demonstrating your brand’s unique authority in your field.<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tClick to Tweet<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\n\n

Articles and blog posts live on your site, so they’re readily available to anyone. White papers are a little different: they’re essentially premium content. Most organizations turn them into downloadable PDFs \u2014 visitors have to provide email addresses and other information to receive download links.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When they’re put behind a “download wall” like this, white papers make a great email collection tool (AKA lead magnets).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Used as part of your sales funnel, collecting emails from people who download your white papers lets your grow your email list of mid-funnel prospects that you can market to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In time, you can use that list to create a segmented email marketing campaign \u2014 and segmented campaigns generate a great click-through rate. These campaigns can help nudge your leads further down the funnel towards conversions.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t

\n\n\t\t\tCreating a segmented email marketing campaign can help nudge leads towards conversion!<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tClick to Tweet<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\n\n

White papers take a little more time to research and write than regular articles, so they often cost more per word. And, you’ll likely spend more time designing the final product. Having said that, these multi-purpose documents provide a great return on investment, so they’re worth the extra outlay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“A good white paper helps decision makers make smarter decisions. A white paper should provide new knowledge and new insights that are not available anywhere else.”<\/em> ~ Mark Kantrowitz, Savingforcollege.com<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Copy-of-Stoney-deGeyter_Quote_FB-IG\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How They Help Your Sales Team<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sales people ultimately want to help their leads make the best buying decision to solve the challenges they face. As marketers, creating white papers provides sales people with a powerful resource they can share with their leads to help them learn more about the challenges they face, and hopefully how your solution can help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That’s called sales enablement and it’s very valuable for your company.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t

\n\n\t\t\tCreating white papers provides sales people with a powerful resource they can share with their leads.<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tClick to Tweet<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\n\n

Types of White Paper<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

White papers are an essential part of any successful sales funnel. There are three main types of sales and marketing-centric white papers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n