Digital White Papers
Don’t know what a white paper is? Need more information about how to create one? Here’s a guide on how you can get started with creating digital white papers for your business.
What is a white paper?
First, let's establish exactly what white papers are and why they can be an extremely useful tool for your business.
A white paper is a report or guide that has an in-depth, detailed focus on a particular topic. Its purpose is to shed light on a specific subject and help readers understand it better. It’s typically a long piece of writing that can be displayed in eBook format.
White papers are often used to demonstrate a company’s industry expertise. It conveys to your potential readers that you know your stuff and you can be trusted. It’s also known to be good for generating more leads for your business as readers are typically more inclined to exchange their details (e.g. email, name etc.) for a white paper, in comparison to other documents such as reports, infographics and newsletters.
In addition, white papers are a beneficial tool when it comes to content marketing. Content marketing encompasses the writing of blogs, articles, landing page copy, newsletters etc. It’s highly recommended that white papers should also be included within your content marketing strategy.
How to write a white paper
Here’s the nitty gritty bit - how to actually write a white paper to achieve optimal results and benefits…
1. Have a clear-cut plan
It’s vital that you know exactly what you’re going to write, and that you’ve chosen a topic that fits well with your brand and industry.
It’s important that what you’re writing is in accordance with the topic/subject you know best! This demonstrates to your future readers that you're a specialist in a specific sphere - and you’re not branching out of your comfort zone - and all this makes you appear that much more trustworthy.
Plan out the topic you want to dissect and split it up into small sections. Moreover, ensure that you have all the information you need before you start writing.
2. Make your introduction impeccable
Your introduction is the first thing people will read - make it stand out and word it in a way that’s captivating. This is definitely the most vital part of your whole white paper - the make or break moment (where your readers decide to continue reading or to stop wasting their time).
3. It’s in the details
Ensure that everything you write is written with the utmost detail, depth and useful information as possible. This is the time to “over-explain” concepts and delve deeper into the topic you're writing about. Give as much information as possible to your readers and show them how much you really know.
4. Mention your brand
Of course, white papers are created for you to indirectly promote your brand. Mention the name of your company and what you do - but don’t go overboard. Your white paper should provide readers with valuable information that can help them with a particular problem they’re encountering - your white paper should ultimately assist them in solving their problem.
However, it’s still important that they know who exactly is assisting them, so they remember to come back to you later when they’re in the buying process of their customer journey.
5. Keep it professional
Be extremely formal and professional when writing your white paper. It’s crucial that you structure your sentences logically and use specific jargon, relevant to your topic. This point should be the key takeaway from this list of tips on how to write a white paper.
How to publish a white paper
Once you have your white paper’s content ready, in PDF format, it’s easy to transform it into an engaging, interactive and digital format that your readers will LOVE! Afterall, who wants to just scroll through enormous chunks of text when they can flip the pages of a digital white paper - like they would a traditional book.
Here are the steps to publishing a digital white paper:
1. Upload your PDF file to Paperturn’s white paper creator.
2. Wait a few minutes while the PDF file is transformed into a digital white paper.
3. Customize your new digital white paper to match your brand’s identity and colors.
4. Add links, images and videos to further engage your audience and keep their attention.
5. You can also set up a lead capture form feature to ensure that you generate leads from your white paper that you can then target via email for your marketing campaigns.
6. In addition, you can also make your white paper private so that only those whom you give login details to can actually access it.
7. You can add newsflash icons to give your readers extra information e.g. “Find out more about [insert company name] here.” You can also add a link to redirect your viewers to your own website.
8. You can also track the performance of your online white paper with ease by using our built-in statistics tool, or our Google Analytics integration 4 to give you further insights into your white paper’s performance.
Now that you know how to publish your white paper, what are you waiting for? Create a free trial with us and see for yourself how our platform will not only upgrade your presentation but also your overall functionality.
Want to learn more about how you can transform your PDF white papers into digital, interactive documents - make sure to contact us!