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White Paper World 48: September 27, 2024

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Quick tip: Think outside the list This just in: The enshittification of everything What I’m reading: The Canceling of the American Mind 6.5-minute read. 11-minute listen: Quick tip: Think outside the list 2-minute read. In an earlier tip, I described how to write better lists. But sometimes a list isn’t the best approach. Sometimes recasting a…

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Quick tip: Make every bullet count

photo of a row of bullets

There’s nothing like a set of bullets to make a list easy to scan. But are your bulleted lists as sharp as they could be? Here are four tips to help make every bullet count. Tip 1: Order bullets for quick scanning It’s obvious how to arrange a set of bullets, right? You put the…

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Quick tip: Fix a draft white paper that’s too long

one draft too long, one just right

So you’ve written a draft white paper, but it’s way too long. Now your reviewers and your sponsor are complaining. So can you shorten a draft that’s way too long? Yes, you can. And here are five practical tips how. What’s too long, anyway? Technical people may read a white paper 30 or 40 pages…

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Quick tip: How to layer information for multiple audiences

multi-layer rainbow cake to signify layering information in a white paper

Ideally you can create one white paper for every segment of your target audience. But what if you can’t swing that? What if for some reason—time, money, or whatever—you need to reach more than one audience with the same white paper? In another article, I described how to “clone” one basic document for various segments…

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You asked: Is copywriting different from content writing?

That’s a great question. Here’s my answer, some lively comments, and some updated comments I posted after musing on this some more. I was fortunate to learn my craft writing for traditional magazines. From 1985 to today, I wrote close to 1,000 magazine articles, mainly about technology, for everyone from accountants to woodworkers. One thing…

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Quick tip: Use AI to make a Mini-Me

Dr Evil and Mini-Me

Remember the Austin Powers spy spoof movies? And the ones where supervillain Dr. Evil had a miniature clone of himself, called Mini-Me? Mini-Me dressed the same, talked the same, and shared many of the same silly tics as Dr. Evil. But he was a whole lot shorter. This is how to think about the executive…

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White Paper World 42: June 14, 2024

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Quick tip: Use AI for tech support Big idea: How to de-position the competition [includes case studies] Just for fun: All the papers of the rainbow 3 minute read. 18:30 minute listen (includes Big Idea): Quick tip: Use AI for tech support 1:15 minute read Do you ever have software headaches? Or some new gadget…

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