As content marketing continues to enjoy its rise in popularity, white papers have entered the digital marketing mix. If you want to get your business noticed, establishing yourself as a thought leader in your industry might just be the right approach.
A white paper can be an effective content marketing tool for small businesses. Not only can it help establish your brand with existing customers but it also offers the potential of introducing your business to a whole host of new prospects.
But to achieve its full potential, your white paper needs to include valuable content and for that to happen you need to think about what’s important to your audience. Once written you then have to think about where you’re going to promote your white paper. Get these two things right and you will have yourself an extremely powerful lead generation tool.
White papers offer the potential to:
- Build trust and credibility
- Establish you as a thought leader
- Generate new leads and opportunities
It’s important to set a clear objective from the start. Know exactly what your business wants to both communicate and achieve by producing a white paper. Whilst educating your audience about your product or service is important, avoid the hard sell. Remember to write from the perspective of the reader, how do product features benefit the reader, address their needs and offer solutions.
Avoid being too casual in your writing (remember you want to be seen as a thought leader not a thought follower!) but at the same time you don’t want to be too formal and lose your reader either. Strike a balance by writing as if you’re talking to your best friend or trusted colleague so that you use the language your audience uses.
You need to make your white paper easy to read and ensure your messages focus on your reader. Avoid long sentences and paragraphs and use bullet points to draw attention to key parts of your content or to highlight benefits. Infographics are also an effective way to illustrate research findings as these are often shared through blogs and social media.
Make sure any claims are backed by research and attribute any references to the source. At the end of the day, it is quality over quantity. There is no particular word count for an effective white paper; you just need to ensure you’re providing quality information.
Tips for Promoting Your White Papers
There’s nothing wrong with your white paper design including a bit of subtle branding and Kwik Kopy can also help with effective content marketing techniques and the right promotional strategies. Tips for getting your white paper read include:
- Sending your customers and intended audience an email about it
- Promoting your white paper on your social media channels
- Write a blog post referencing it
- Promote it on your website – include a widget on web pages that is linked to your white paper sign up page.
White Papers for Your Business
Kwik Kopy has produced three white papers which we think will be of interest to you and your business. Download your FREE QR Code, 3D Printing and Augmented Reality white papers.
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