For B to B companies, “white papers” are one of the marketing methods to increase sales. In order to conduct sales activities efficiently, it is important to have many customers
download
a white paper, but many company representatives do not know how to create one in the first place or are worried about whether it is really effective for their company. It seems so.
In this article, we will explain the meaning and purpose of creating a white paper, as well as the steps to create one and how to encourage downloads.
What does a white paper mean?
White papers are becoming increasingly important in today’s world, where face-to-face sales activities have been limited to a certain extent due to the coronavirus pandemic, making it difficult to generate new potential customers. What is the significance of creating a white paper for the sales activities of a B to B company? Let’s understand the overview below.
Origin of white paper
A white paper
was originally an official document from the government, and was meant to be a report to inform the public about political and economic situations. It is said that the name came from the British name “white paper” because the cover of the document was white. In Japan, the “Economic White Paper” is famous.
Meaning of white paper
The meaning of a white paper as a marketing tool is “product/service materials” created for efficient lead acquisition and customer development.
This is a marketing measure in which a process is set up to require customer information such as company name, email address, and phone number to be entered when a white paper is downloaded over the Internet, and a sales representative then follows up on the process.
Information on prospective customers that was previously cultivated and obtained through face-to-face meetings such as seminars and exhibitions can now be obtained from the website, and companies can now provide necessary information to prospective customers who have begun considering the introduction of products and services. The feature is that it can be provided immediately.
Purpose of creating a white paper
There are three main purposes for companies to create white papers:
Acquiring leads As mentioned above, typical websites ask you to enter information such as company name, attributes, email address, and phone number when downloading a white paper. The purpose is to obtain information on prospective customers who are interested in your company by providing a white paper, and to follow up with them. There is also the advantage of being able to carry out efficient sales activities, including acquiring leads, while increasing your company’s visibility and popularity.
Building a relationship of trust One of the important objectives is to build a relationship with potential customers using the downloaded white paper as an opportunity. For customers who are in the early stages of wanting to learn more about your product or service, you need to form a “connection” with them before the final deal is concluded.
The advantage of a white paper is that you can build a relationship of trust at an appropriate distance without rushing to sell. We will carry out sales activities to maintain continuous connections with customers while maintaining a certain distance, such as sending further information about our company and notifications of seminars to the email address obtained when downloading.
Of course, you can strengthen your relationships by providing your company’s white paper to customers who are in the process of negotiating a deal or to existing customers who have already purchased another product or service.
One of the purposes is to support the final decision-making up to the conclusion of a business negotiation by providing detailed information that can help resolve concerns and issues to customers discovered by downloading white papers that encourage decision-making. The customer selection period differs depending on the need for the product/service and the stage of interest, but we can increase the closing rate by gauging purchase intent based on what kind of white paper they have downloaded, etc., and closing at the optimal timing. Aim for.
How to make a white paper
What steps should you take to create a white paper that will be effective for your business? Check out the detailed process and key points below.
How to create a white paper ① Set the theme
Set the theme for your white paper from among the value your company can provide to your customers. First, let’s break down the solutions to the problems and issues faced by our customers into steps. The key is to prepare multiple white papers for each stage and have your customers download the most appropriate material depending on their situation.
How to create a white paper ② Decide on the target
Once you’ve decided on a theme, it’s time to narrow down and clarify the target audience for your white paper. Avoid obscuring the point, meaning, and direction by broadening your target.
How to create a white paper ③ Create a composition plan
Once you have decided on the theme and target of your white paper, create a structure that will provide the readers with the information they need and lead to results.
Cover/Title/Table of Contents An attractive title with a clear meaning will attract the interest of the target audience. It is also important to create a cover that has a visual twist that makes people want to read it, and display it on the download page. We aim to increase the number of downloads by providing a cover, title, and table of contents that summarize what information can be obtained from the white paper.
Raising and analyzing issues Encourage customers who have downloaded the white paper to be aware of issues and issues. The key is to raise and analyze the customer’s concerns and concerns, and to gain a clear understanding.
After posing the problem-solving methods, strategies, case studies, and problems, we propose specific solutions. It is effective to present objective and easy-to-understand measures as a strategy. It is a good idea to use numbers in tables and graphs, give examples, etc. to expand your image of the solution. It is important to be conscious of how to create products that will gain empathy and satisfaction from customers.
Solutions and introduction examples of our products and services We clearly express our products and services that lead to solutions for customers’ problems. Let’s emphasize your superiority with numerical data, including implementation examples and track records of improvements, and cost performance, for the issues you investigated in the problem statement. The point of a white paper is to clarify the characteristics of your company in order to differentiate yourself from other companies.
Contact Information For customers considering products and services, information about the company they are inquiring about is important. General information (company name, address, telephone number, representative name, date of founding, business details, etc.) is listed so that you can understand at a glance what kind of company your company is, so inquiries can be made smoothly. Make sure to also set up a link (URL, etc.) to the department in charge.
What are the points to note in the white paper?
There are three points to note in the white paper that will affect your company’s sales:
don’t use technical terms
If the text is difficult to convey the necessary information, the download will be meaningless for customers who were expecting more detailed information. Having to check technical terms every time you read a white paper can be stressful, and there is a risk that your company’s brand image itself will deteriorate as a company that cannot be expected to respond in a friendly manner. In addition to being conscious of the number of pages that are easy to read, the arrangement of figures and text, and storytelling (creating a story that is easy to imagine), there are also important things to keep in mind, such as using words that anyone can understand and adding annotations to difficult-to-understand words. The key is to improve the quality of the paper.
Don’t oversell
In an effort to emphasize the great features of your company’s products and services, you may end up creating a white paper that has strong elements of pushiness and sales pitching. Position your company’s white paper as “objective proposal material for problem-solving,” and try to create it in a way that leaves a good impression on customers who download it.
Update outdated information
If you leave a white paper with outdated numerical data, etc. of your company, you may end up giving incorrect information to customers who are considering comparing your company with other companies. It is important to deeply understand that downloaded white papers cannot be modified, and to provide information that will earn customers’ trust.
How can I download the white paper?
Once you have created something original based on the meaning of the white paper and the steps to create it, the first thing to do is to post it on your company’s website so that people can download it.
Posting on your own service site (mainly a site that has a sales role) or corporate site (mainly a site that introduces your company and business content) basically requires no advertising costs, and various companies can use it. We do it as a marketing method.
However, SEO measures are required for the site where the white paper is posted. If a site has a low number of accesses, it is likely that the number of downloads will not increase. It can be said that it is essential to take measures to attract customers to the site where you publish.
It is also effective to approach your customers by posting them in your company’s e-mail newsletter. Increasing the number of customers who see the information in your white paper is the key to getting it downloaded a lot.
In order to further increase the number of downloads, you will need to pay a certain amount of advertising fees, but you may want to consider posting your content on external media. There are various advertising fees, including those calculated based on the number of downloads and those that are set based on a guaranteed number of ads. If you are unable to increase the number of downloads just by posting your content in-house, one option may be to post it in other media that fits your budget.
summary
In today’s increasingly online world, white papers can be used as a powerful marketing tool if you put some thought into it. First of all, it is important to understand the meaning and necessity and have the target companies download the white paper. Aim to create high-quality content that ultimately inspires a call to action.