Why White Papers Make Good Content Marketing

A white paper is a persuasive, authoritative report on a specific topic; as a rule, they present a problem and provide a solution. Think of white papers as illustrated magazine articles that inform more, entertain little, and keep the reader hooked for a longer timespan. They are meant for people who seek information beyond browsing through the day’s headlines.

Understandably, not every digital marketing team has the luxury of high-quality white papers but they should insist on having a few to drive their content marketing efforts. If getting a white paper done within your current setup seems impossible, consider content-sharing. Many research firms are now ready to share professionally executed white papers that can bring in more website traffic, social shares, and sales queries.

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Key attributes of a successful white paper are accuracy, authority, and the ability to attract your targeted audience.

Attracting the Audience

Lead generation is often the result of stimulating curiosity or grabbing attention. Many downloaded white papers might not be read entirely, but they still help to fuel lead generation.

The information provided in a white paper should be molded in a more sellable, sales-oriented form. This means using more headlines and subheadings along with lots of pictorials, such as graphs, infographics, and charts. Images containing easy-to-interpret data are much more interesting than text-only documents and are instantly more shareable on social media.

White papers tend to be audience-specific; they seldom find relevance for a broader consumer segment. You need to promote your veterinary practice's white papers in a focused way after deciding what type of readers are likely to be drawn to it.

Maintaining the Standards

A white paper that does not read as though it was written by an industry veteran—with some contemporary flair—and loaded with graphically substantiated data is unlikely to make an impact. As a result, any effort to create reader baits within the content might look like a rude sales pitch. Ensure the content does not sound like regular, lifestyle articles. From indexing to quoting references, it is imperative that a white paper stands its ground and is confident about the numbers and trends it cites.

Naren Arulrajah is president and CEO of Ekwa Marketing, a complete internet marketing company that focuses on SEO, social media, marketing education, and the online reputations of veterinarians/practice owners. With a team of 180+ full time marketers, we help practice owners who know where they want to go, get there by dominating their market and growing their business significantly year after year. If you have questions about marketing your practice online, call 855-598-3320 to speak one-on-one with Naren.