White Paper Writing
8 tips for tech writers keen to write white papers
Can technical writers do white papers? If you’re like most tech writers, you’ve watched from the sidelines as your company publishes white papers. Perhaps you’ve been asked to review a white paper or two. So why can’t you write white papers yourself? The truth is, you can. Technical writing makes an excellent background for doing…
Read MoreHow to create a white paper style guide, in 60 minutes or less
A good style guide can boost consistency, settle arguments, and save time. If your company or client has a style guide, follow it. If not, you can help them develop one. Fast. Unlike what you may expect, you don’t need to sink days into creating a style guide. Here are two quick methods I learned…
Read MoreYou asked: How do I write in a crisp, clear, conversational style?
The best white papers are written in a crisp, clear, sparkling style. Those papers stand out like a refreshing drink of pure water in a sea of dreck. Some people ask how to achieve that level of clarity. —”How do you write briefly in a friendly and conversational way?” —”What if you were taught to…
Read MoreWho do you trust for a white paper source?
White paper writers often ask me, “What makes a good source?” Especially in an era of “fake news” and “alternative facts”?! Deliberate falsehoods are spread by many sources today. Those include social media chatbots, agents of foreign governments, clickbait creators, conspiracy theorists—not to mention vendors lying about their products. With all this misinformation, a recent…
Read MoreTips on using dictation software to write
Whether you’re a marketer or a writer, you need to get text out of your mind, onto your screen, and into a file several times a day. Most people do that by typing. If you’re fast, you might get 60 words a minute. But you can talk 2.5 times that fast, at something like 150…
Read More12 steps to great white paper project management
A white paper project is a complex undertaking, with many moving parts. Here are 12 steps to an effective white paper project. We created each of these steps after going through a painful experience with a white paper that went off the rails A few were never even completed, despite my best efforts. So consider…
Read MoreCrossing the chasm with effective white papers
This is a tale of two white papers, and the companies that planned them. It shows how an effective marketing strategy can help you to create an effective white paper. And it shows how an ineffective marketing strategy can hinder your best efforts to create a good white paper. Along the way, we’ll review a few…
Read MoreWill artificial intelligence replace white paper writers?
Have you seen all the articles about how artificial intelligence (AI) is now doing creative projects? According to some, AI is already busy composing music, making paintings, and writing poetry. And this article in Forbes.com tells how software is now writing content. This type of software even has an acronym: NLG for Natural Language Generation. (And…
Read MoreWhite papers and… the polar vortex?!
If you live in the Midwest, the Pacific Northwest or Canada, you probably experienced a tough winter. Snow fell like crazy and the temperatures plummeted. Cars didn’t start, flights and trains were cancelled, meetings were postponed. Even mail wasn’t delivered in some places. Niagara Falls froze over, as shown above. That’s rare. And some notable…
Read More5 questions about branded original research white papers
Ever heard of branded original research? It’s an up-and-coming type of content marketing. To create it, a brand surveys their audience to develop content for prospective customers. And, unlike some space trip to Mars, it’s not far-fetched fiction. Branded original research is a hot format that’s becoming increasingly popular for marketing managers across industries. What…
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