What is a White Paper?

A white paper is a 6-12 page marketing document, written to a specific Ideal Reader, on a topic that is chosen by the Entrepreneur to advance her specific business goals.

The white paper is the best possible incarnation of the “Free Report“ that many businesses use in their marketing!

Question: If you are currently using a Free Report, are you getting the results you want?

A white paper focuses on an  “Ideal Reader’s” problems and how to solve them.

Through a paper, your business serves the Ideal Reader (and by extension many many of your “ideal clients”) by giving value that the reader can take away and implement.  You also serve your business by presenting a strong Call to Action and Offer, inviting the reader, via a combination of education and subtle persuasion, to take a next step with your business.

Why 6-12 pages?

Less than 6 pages is not enough space to adequately develop the problems and lay out the solutions in a way that resonates with the reader. The reader wonders what is missing and why he wasted his time reading. OR WORSE, the reader feels “SOLD TO” and not happy about it.

More than 12 pages leaves the reader feeling overwhelmed.

The “golden” length for a paper right now is 8-10 pages.

This is enough space to engage the reader with layers of empathy (for his problems), interest, expertise, and credibility, all of which serve to subtly persuade that you are too valuable of an Entrepreneur NOT to work with.

At the same time, 8-10 pages is not overwhelming for someone to assimilate. The more golden your content, the easier it is for your ideal clients to connect with you on multiple levels!

Over the next few posts, I will focus on some key elements that must be in a white paper for it to give maximum value to your business and those you want to connect with through your business.