Identify the Need That Only Your Product Can Best Fill
If you are in the business of selling to other businesses, chances are you could benefit from the use of white papers. White papers are like a research project. They are not meant to be “salesy” or “pitchy”, but rather they use fact and logic to promote a product or service.
Unlike sales brochures, white papers are very technical. They are built on facts, not emotions. There should be no hype and they should be unbiased.
Potential readers of the white paper may include professionals from many different areas of the company. From sales reps, IT and technicians, to executives at the top of the decision-making chain, these documents may typically be passed around to inform interested parties who will be involved in the buying process.
There are several basic components of white papers
- Title: You can lose your potential reader right at the start if the headline doesn’t captivate him and draw him in. It needs to be specific enough to let him know that it contains the information he’s looking for, but also intriguing enough to let him know that he might learn something new.
- Executive Summary: Quite honestly, this may be the only section that gets read. Busy professionals need to determine fairly quickly if a document is going to be worth their time and effort. Give them the high-level details right up front.
- Background Information on the Problem: Describe the landscape of your industry. Identify the unmet need or the problem that needs to be solved. Explain why, to date, nothing currently on the market has filled these gaps.
- Offer the Solution: Use details to explain how the problem can be solved. Discuss the features and specifications of the ideal solution.
- Expected Results: Include facts and figures. You may have testimonials that you can add here as further proof of your claims. Tables and diagrams, when done well, can be very powerful.
- Summary: Clearly outline benefits of the available solution, in simple terms, bringing your research project to a logical close.
- A Call-To-Action (CTA): Tell your reader what you want her to do next. Whether it be requesting more information, setting up a consultation or requesting a demonstration, don’t leave your reader hanging.
The last page of a white paper may be reserved for specific information on your company and product. At this point, if the white paper has done its job, it will leave the reader with the assurance that there is an answer to their problem. Your product may very well be the best solution. You should provide contact information, links to websites, or even make special offers or provide discounts to those taking the next step in the sale process.