1. Content:

Computer World, The Tolly Group, and IDG did a survey of 2,000 white paper readers to find out what they liked. People uniformly said they want a non-salesy tone. Readers want in-depth, detailed information that addresses how a product or service addresses a specific problem.

2. Length:

Anything less than two pages is pretty unconvincing. You can go from 2-3 pages up to about 50 pages; but, something in the 12- 18 page zone works best.

3. Outline - See the bottom of this document for a rough outline.

3.5 Format:

HTML is your best option. It requires no downloads or browser plugins, and you can easily enhance your presentation with images, diagrams, etc. PDF is your second best bet. The winning recipe for web layout is the same as print: 1/3 text, 1/3 pictures or diagrams, and 1/3 whitespace. Most senior executives begin losing their close vision > age 45. So don't skimp on font size.

4. Usage:

79% of IT professionals say they read white papers and case studies before making a critical buying decision. 93% indicated they pass such materials along to others in their company. The quality of the white paper you offer is a DIRECT indication of the quality of product/service you offer. Make it the best you possibly can.

4. Ease of Access

Make your white papers as easy as possible to download. When you make people fill out forms to obtain white papers, the attrition rate is enormous. Many sites' registration forms are poorly engineered and have a very high failure rate. In other words, when prospects submit a completed registration form they get an error message instead of gaining the ability to download your white paper. If you insist on requiring visitors to fill out a registration form, test it frequently. Consider making completing the form optional -- if they don't fill it in correctly or completely, let them download the paper anyway.

5. Marketing the Paper Outside Your Site

Don't rely on people stumbling over your white paper when they come to your site. It doesn't happen often enough. Establish hotlinks to your white paper from news and informational Web sites that your target audience already visits. You can also buy banners and/or sponsored links to your white paper.

6. Organization

Utilize the "inverted pyramid" of newspaper writing. Include a one paragraph executive summary, a one or two-page overview, and THEN get down to the gory details. Remember, most executives reading your paper won't go beyond the first page or two. Senior Exec's won't go past the Executive Summary.

7. Security

Your competitors will have a copy of your whitepaper within minutes of your posting it on the web. Consequently you should carefully decide which, if any details NOT to include.

8. Credibility

Several things make a white paper credible. One is avoiding hyperbole, such as "revolutionary, next-generation, best of breed, cutting edge, etc." If your product really IS any of these things, knowledgeable buyers will quickly recognize that fact. State what assumptions and beliefs your firm made in taking the approach that it did. Realistically state SOME of the limitations this particular approach entails. While not building a case for your competitors' approaches, acknowledging some of the strengths of competing approaches will make the benefits you claim for YOUR approach that much more credible. Customers prefer to do business with firms they trust, and a credible white paper offers you a chance to build that trust.

9. Inform, Educate, Entertain.

When a prospect picks up a whitepaper they are in effect saying, "Teach me what I need to know to make a good decision. This requires that you educate them about the issues involved. But nobody likes a boring professor, or someone that talks down to them. A great class is one in which you learn, you laugh, and you come away seeing things in completely new ways. Ditto for a whitepaper.

10. Writing Style

More than anything, a white paper needs to be highly readable. Hire and pay a professional writer to make sure it is. Explain acronyms the first time you use them, or include a glossary. State underlying beliefs or assumptions. Test your whitepaper on a spouse or someone else NOT in your industry. Clarify anything they can't understand, then test it again on someone else. A good whitepaper should leave even a non-expert convinced that your firm's approach is the only one that makes sense.

Here's a typical outline:

* Executive Summary -- A less-than-one-page overview of what the paper is about. State the purpose of the paper. Readers frequently read only the summary of white papers, so include enough "teasers" to encourage them to read the rest.

* The Problem/Issue -- Two-to-three paragraphs describing the problem with some background. Be straightforward and succinct.

* How Your Product Works&endash; This section helps the reader to understand the product's application to the problem. What's your methodology? This and the following section are the heart of the white paper.

* How Your Product Solves the Problem &endash; Describe how using the product solves the problem. Give supporting evidence of how the product solves the problem, and why it is the best solution.

* Conclusion -- A summary of why your product or service is the best solution to the problem. No more than two paragraphs.

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