How to Write a White Paper

chillibreeze writer — Shaloo Saxena

Before we get into who can write a white paper and what qualifies to be an effective white paper, let's try to get a basic understanding of what a white paper is and why it exists. A white paper is a techno-marketing document that usually describes a product or a technology in the context of its benefits and problem solving for the target audience. Sometimes, a white paper is used as a sales and marketing document. However, that is not the primary and sole purpose of a white paper. A white paper, in general, aims at addressing a prospective customer's queries and apprehensions about a product/technology, brings out its benefits, and helps the audience make a decision.

A white paper writer should have the right mix of writing capabilities, understanding of the target audience, and technical know how of the base technology or product it focuses on.

While writing a white paper, pay special attention to the title of the white paper. The title sets the relevance and usefulness of the white paper for the audience. Sometimes, the title even encourages a reader to select your white paper from the list of many. To come up with an attention grabbing title, phrase the title around the benefits that the audience will drive from the product/technology. And lastly, you can always try adding a little punch in your title.

Once the title has grabbed the reader's attention, the story doesn't end there. You need to retain this attention to ensure that your white paper is read till the end. Here are some suggestions and tips to write an effective white paper.

As a writer, I know how difficult it is to write that first page! Agree with me? But with experience, I have learnt, its always helpful to clearly lay out the scope, target audience, and objectives for the white paper to get over that "difficult first page" syndrome. Considering the criticality of the first page for readers, do not try to come up with an impressive first page in the first run. Rather, keep improving your first page as you move ahead.

Prepare the outline of the white paper before you start putting in content. Without an outline, there's a possibility of losing direction and logical sequence. A white paper usually starts with an overview of what it covers and then moves on to the problem being faced by readers. Once the problem is stated, you can introduce the product/technology as a solution with a brief explanation of its features and/or architecture and special attention to its benefits. Finally, you should lay emphasis on how the product/technology should be considered better than the other available products.

Write clear, concise, simple, and understandable sentences to convey your message clearly. There is absolutely no scope for ambiguity while writing a technical document such as a white paper.

Be clear about your audience's entry level. Once you know the entry level, you would be able to ascertain whether the audience would know a term or a concept or you need to define it for them. Identifying the target audience is also important for you because different audiences would like to read different details in your white paper. For instance, the top management might be interested in the cost benefits that the product/technology offers, where as a technical engineer would look for technical details such as its architecture and platforms that it supports.

Retain the focus on the technology that you are discussing in the white paper. Instead of describing everything about the technology or product in the white paper, include only those details which would be beneficial for the readers to know. For instance, a reader would be more interested in knowing about the benefits of the product/technology in consideration rather than its features.

Instead of getting into a story telling mode, write short, to the point, and precise white papers.

And finally, its always better to get your paper reviewed to eliminate the language errors and also to get a second opinion about the paper.

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—About our writer:

Shaloo says, "I have been writing for technical audience for over 9 years. My strong belief in the power of writing helps me take up any project with great passion and the responsibility to meet reader's objectives and expectations. Going forward, I aspire to diversify my
writing and reach out to a broader spectrum of audience."

How to Write a White Paper

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