Tech writers, consider writing B2B content
Technical writing today is a sea of uncertainty. For tech writers fighting for jobs, it’s like trying to stay afloat in a turbulent sea. And there’s blood in the water, with too many fish fighting over too little food. That’s called a “red ocean.” How did tech writing get this way? All this uncertainty flows from a…
Read More7 habits of highly effective white paper marketers
One of my favorite self-help books is 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. First published in 1989, it has sold an estimated 25 million copies in 38 languages. I still try to follow its guidelines in my own life. With apologies, I’ve applied the 7 habits to the act of marketing with highly…
Read MoreHow to create a white paper mashup
What if you need a white paper that’s more than just one flavor? As you know, I believe there are three main “flavors” of white papers. Vanilla: A backgrounder zooms in on a certain product or service. Ideal for prospects doing a technical evaluation near end of the sales funnel. Chocolate: A problem/solution zooms out to show an industry-wide problem…
Read MoreHow to avoid "marketing-speak"
Acme Software provides best-in-breed solutions that enable seamless integration with enterprise Web 2.0 platforms… Do your white papers say something like that? How about your website? If so, wake up! You’re subjecting prospects to deathly dull “marketing-speak.” Marketing-speak is that flabby layer of nice, polite, meaningless fog that obscures the truth in so much content…
Read More10 ways to be a good SME
This article from guest contributor Janice King offers a new perspective on how to create high-quality marketing materials by putting together a subject matter expert and a writer. Keep these tips in mind if you provide subject knowledge or share a writer with the engineers and other experts in your company. Have you ever been a SME? As…
Read More"Cheat sheets" for white papers: a new format for you?
As a B2B marketer, you’re likely under pressure to empower your sales team with great content. Are your sales reps asking for something “short” they can hand out at a meeting or e-mail to prospects? Your reps may believe customers don’t want to read lengthy pieces and would prefer something shorter they can quickly skim. This…
Read MoreTo get clients, learn how to call a moose
“Where do you find clients?” I get the same question almost every week. But I don’t have a ready answer. That’s like asking a hunter where he got that moose he just bagged. What are you going to do? Run off to the very same spot in the woods, and expect to get another moose?…
Read MoreTips on using stock photos in white papers
Want to use a photo to spice up a white paper? But not sure where to find one, or how to use it? The best source for stock photos remains iStockPhoto.com. This site hosts close to 10 million photos, plus graphics, music and video clips. Most of this content is royalty-free, meaning you can buy a photo and use it…
Read More9 ways to break through writer’s block
You know how they always show writers in Hollywood movies? Crumpling up sheet after sheet of paper, and tossing them at a trash can? It just doesn’t happen like that in real life. At least it shouldn’t, when you’re writing white papers. Maybe novelists, poets or screenwriters can suffer from writer’s block.…
Read MoreWriters: Five strategies for finding white paper clients
Are you a writer looking for white paper clients? Here are five high-level strategies for finding them when you’re just starting out. Some of these efforts can take days or weeks to implement, but the payoff is worth it. Of course, you already know the three simple questions that show whether any company needs white papers. Right?…
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