Reason #9 – Wrong Voice Would a salesman use the same presentation script when speaking to a group of engineers, a group of accountants, and the board of executives? Of course not, so why would white papers be any different? A white paper is written for a specific audience and … Continue reading
Reason #8 – Wrong Situation My daughter works at the local movie theater. In training, they taught her to up-sell at the concession stand. But even a teenager selling popcorn at the movie theater doesn’t try to up-sell the customer before that customer even approaches the concessions counter. There are … Continue reading
Reason #7 – Inappropriate Format White papers are are documents meant for a specific target audience. Trying to force a single white paper to do the job of many isn’t going to work out well. A white paper handed to an individual must match that reader’s expectation. The sweet spot … Continue reading
Reason #6 – Wrong Length Many people fear white papers “because they are long documents.” But, is that really true? How long is too long? The answer to that questions depends a lot upon just who you are, and your role in a purchase. Are you an engineer trying to … Continue reading
Unfocused White papers represent a significant investment in terms of time, effort, and indeed, money. While some companies recognize this as a necessary cost of doing business, others aren’t so trusting of the process. Often, there is pressure to get as much out of the document as possible, particularly when … Continue reading
Reason #4 – Lack of Commitment Nothing hampers the ability to create a successful white paper more than the inability to make the necessary resources available. It’s like any other project, there has to be buy-in from all levels. Resources can mean a lot of things. Here are a few … Continue reading
Why do White Papers Fail? Reason #3 – Sitting Idle If you hire an engineer, you pay that person to do a job. Whether it’s designing something new, solving a crisis, or simply keeping production running smoothly, the engineer has to be on the job to get things done. What … Continue reading