With more and more businesses realising that good content is what influences purchasing decisions, white papers form an integral part of a B2B online marketing strategy.

According to the Content Marketing Institute, 80% of B2B companies have a content marketing plan. And, of the different types of content used, many of your potential customers trust comprehensive and detailed white papers to help them make a decision.

The term ‘white paper’ is a hot topic these days, but what exactly is a white paper, and who should use them?

A white paper is an in-depth persuasive document, between five and eight pages, that describes specific problems and how to solve them. Michael Stelzner calls them a crossbreed of a magazine article and a brochure. They merge your understated and subtle marketing messages with an informative article to educate your readers on the complexities and solutions of the problem so they can make an informed decision.

There are business white papers, describing business problems and solutions. Technical white papers, used in the technology industry and medical industry, incorporate a lot of technical detail and jargon specific to the target audience. And there is the popular hybrid white paper, which is a combination of business and technical details in different sections, something for everyone

Whew! White papers are really just detailed documents containing research, statistics, solutions and other information to help your readers gain clarity and get through the maze of choices they have when it comes to buying complicated or high-priced products and services. Things such as software systems, consulting services, corporate training programs or specialised equipment.

White papers are useful when there are two or more people involved in the buying decision – a common scenario in most large B2B companies – and they need to justify and show due diligence to the ultimate decision maker. Often a buying committee will do thorough research, make a decision, and then need to show the reasons and supporting material that brought about that decision. A white paper is valuable any time during the sales cycle, from the formal evaluation, to the final buying decision.

Companies also use white papers as lead generation tools – bait pieces, if you will. Prospective customers can request a white paper after being sent to a landing page or clicking through from an ad or email, in exchange for their email address and some other details. The fact that they showed an interest in your white paper makes them a qualified lead, and a potential customer.

Everyone, from workers, through purchasing managers, and up to the CEO or business owner reads white papers, and they are regularly shared and passed around between people, often going viral within the company. For that reason, your white papers need to be clear and logical to a wide audience, and explain the problems and solutions from varying perspectives.

A well-written white paper should contain almost all the information required to make a decision, and it should break down any complex ideas into clear, easily digestible concepts that anyone can understand.

Your potential customers have busy, stressful lives. They don’t need the headache of researching and reading hundreds of pages of material trying to find a solution to a problem they may not even be able to define, let alone solve. If they can come to your website, read your polished, persuasive white paper and make an informed choice without information overload, then you’ll have a grateful and loyal customer for a long time to come.

Quite simply, when properly done, a white paper is one of the best marketing pieces you can use to steer prospective buyers through the decision making process and toward your product or service as the solution.

As a content marketing piece, a digital white paper can be customised any way that suits, and updated regularly to make it a living document. That makes it one of the most valuable and lasting investments in your B2B marketing strategy.

 

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The purpose of a company’s website is to attract visitors, engage them and help them find what they’re looking for. No one stumbles upon your website unless they’re looking for something, more specifically, they’re looking for a solution to a problem they have.

Everyone loves a good story, especially a good story with characters they can relate to. People learn through stories and, in the spirit of ‘show don’t tell’, the best way to show people the benefits of your product or service is to tell them stories of people who had a similar problem. People who solved their problem with your product or service. People just like them.

This is where case studies come in. Like customer testimonials but longer and more in-depth, case studies captivate your readers and use social proof to convince them of the value of what you have to offer. Potential customers can ease their concerns and skepticism by reading about the ways other people used the product or service and how it enhanced their lives.

A well-written case study can:

• Show a more human side to your company. Case studies show that your company is more than profits and bottom lines. They present real life stories of real people, and prove that your company is concerned about their customers’ welfare.

• Establish credibility. A case study is an actual account of how a customer benefitted from your product or service. Because the customer is happy to go public with their story and let you quote them, it immediately reinforces your integrity and credibility.

• Prove that your product or service does what it claims. A case study includes specific information about the results that were achieved. Quoting statistics goes a long way to providing the evidence potential customers need to help them make a purchasing decision.

• Provide exclusive content. Every case study is different. It’s the story of how your product or service delivered results for one customer. That means your website will have unique content that can’t be copied by the competition.

• Highlight the features and benefits of your product or service. Telling a success story also means elaborating on all the features and benefits, and gives potential customers insight on how best to use your product or service. Case studies can go into much greater detail than what’s on your sales page.

• Increase your exposure and following. An engaging and helpful case study is likely to be shared on social media. Your company is exposed to a wider audience, effectively increasing your marketing efforts.

A good copywriter can act on your company’s behalf and interview your client quickly, efficiently and courteously to obtain the right information.  They will then craft the ideal case study using a particular structure to ensure the story captivates and educates your readers.

The best case studies weave information, customer quotes, and detailed real-world results and data into an entertaining, easy-to-read story that will convince your potential customers they’re in the right place after all.

 

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For many people, the week between Christmas and the new year is a time to rest, relax, get over the Christmas festivities, spend time with friends and family, and get ready to usher in the New Year with the best of intentions.

This is one of my favourite times of every year.

I call this week The Magic Week, because I always get so much done and it’s the perfect time to get the old year sewn up, and prepare for the new year to come.

While most people are chilling out – especially since it’s summer here in Australia – and thinking about their new year resolutions, I’m hard at work finishing the current year and planning for the new one.

And I know I’m not the only one doing this.

Successful go-getters everywhere are doing the same thing.

Many regard the last day of the year as something to get through and endure. They’ve had enough of the old year and they’re eager to start a new year full of promise and potential.

The first day of a new year seems more important than the last day of the old year. After all, you only get one first day every year. But isn’t that true of every day in the year? You only get one of each date every year. You’ll have to wait a full year before that date comes around again – think birthdays and Christmas.

I like the last day of the old year. It gives me a chance to reflect and see where to best make changes in the next year.

But I also like the first day of a new year. There’s nothing quite like seeing 1/01 on your computer clock. Just seeing it there suggests new beginnings and trying a little bit harder in everything you do. It oozes possibility.

I know this gets said, in some form, at the start of every new year, but this one feels different. It feels magical, more so than any other year. They all feel special but this one, I feel, will flow and reveal itself in the most promising and surprising way.

Perhaps it’s just the delightful summer temperatures we’re having. This time of year is, more often than not, stiflingly hot and oppressive. Not many Australians would say January is their favourite time of the year, weatherwise.

But this year is different.

Perhaps it’s because my Magic Week went so smoothly and easily, with that delicious flow we all wish would happen more often.

Perhaps it’s because 2016 is a leap year. We have an extra day to shine.

Perhaps it’s a combination of all those and a few other conditions thrown in for good measure.

Or maybe it’s written in the stars that 2016 will be a year to remember, with the perfect storm of conditions, opportunities and energy to make it the most productive and memorable year ever.

It’s just a feeling, but it’s feelings, and the energy behind them, that can transform into magnificent and life-altering experiences.

And who would say no, thank you to something like that?

So to all my friends, family and clients – and to my future clients, you’ll know who you are soon enough – I wish you a most prosperous new year and may every day be filled with magic, and beauty, and wonderful events and encounters.

We have 366 days this year to make it count. Let’s get to it.

Goodbye 2015 – Helloooo there 2016.

 

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When you get praise from two of America’s A-list copywriters, you know you’re on the right track.

And when they tell you they like your ‘clear and punchy’ writing style, you know all those years of study were worth it, especially when that’s what you were aiming for.

These days I regard the A-list copywriters the way I used to regard the stars of the music industry. To me, they’re rock stars, and they do what they do for love, not just money. But, unlike many of those rock stars I used to worship, these people are friendly, approachable and more than willing to help out those of us who aspire to excellence but aren’t there yet.

The writers of the world have gotten a bad reputation for being brooding, angsty, bad-tempered hermits, perhaps because of all those brooding, angsty writers from early last century.

In my experience, most writers belong to one big happy family. Each one willing to step up and help those further down the ladder. There’s no competition because we all understand what it’s like to be a writer, all the joys, quirks and challenges.

Having waxed lyrical about my profession and my peers, this post is about the ‘clear and punchy’ writing style I’ve honed over the years.

Almost everyone has read (or had to listen to) something so long, convoluted and full of ‘fluff’ that it became an endurance event. The whole thing could have been cut to half its size and still said what it had to say. It was full of repetition and excess words, the opposite of ‘clear and punchy’, and a chore to read.

To me, life is too short to spend time looking for the meaning in such works. I just stop reading. It may well have good information to share but I’ll never know because it was buried in filler.

Many people feel the same way, so if your writing is overlong and rambling, it won’t be read. And on the WWW, that’s not what you want. You want to engage people and keep them reading so they’ll heed your call-to-action.

Having said that, I sometimes have the opposite problem. I cut so many words from my pieces that the meaning isn’t clear or, even worse, it’s ambiguous.

Many years ago one of my mentors told me to ‘avoid ambiguity at all costs.’

And it’s true. You don’t want your reader to think anything other than what you intended. Always read your work and if there’s any chance it could be misconstrued or taken to mean something else, or even confusing, then change it so your meaning is clear.

I’d go one step further and add, ‘avoid mediocrity at all costs.’

Whether it’s fiction or non-fiction, one of the cardinal sins of writing is the use of adverbs. Arggg! Those mostly useless, and over-used, words ending in –ly that are often used to add extra meaning but seldom do.

If you feel the need to use an adverb with a verb to give it more clarity then you’re using the wrong verb. Try using a better verb and you won’t need anything more.

So instead of, ‘The man walked slowly.’ Try, ‘The man strolled.’ Or, ‘The man ambled.’

The same goes for, ‘She smiled happily.’ Try instead, ‘She grinned.’ Or, ‘She beamed.’

Get creative. There are plenty of words in the English language. Find one more suitable and make your writing sizzle.

And while we’re talking about sizzling writing, how about wheeling out some of those exciting adjectives we have at our disposal.

Instead of the bland, boring adjectives that mediocre writers use, try words like lachrymose, obtuse, nefarious, caustic, cerulean or garrulous. Just don’t overdo the more obscure words, you don’t want your reader spending more time consulting a dictionary than reading your work.

You want your writing to be expressive and convey the right meaning using as few words as possible. So don’t use words like really, very, awfully, totally or any other word that tries to convey the degree of the adjective. It’s ok to say, ‘I am happy.’ We get it. You could also be delighted or ecstatic.

Once you’ve done all that go through your work and remove every word that isn’t working hard to get your point across. In some cases that could be half the words you’ve written. We just want to read what you have to say. We don’t need to read hundreds of superfluous words with no meaning. Please be mindful that we are busy and have lots to do.

Use these tips and your writing will be tight, clear and punchy. You’ll get your ideas across without waffling on and your work is more likely to be read to the end.

After all, everyone has great ideas and the rest of us want to know about them, just make it quick, could you?

 

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Drag out the pumpkins, skeletons, fake blood and spiderwebs and step away from the air-conditioner,  it’s Halloween.

Not such a big deal here in Australia. And I’m sure that has nothing to do with it being spring and the pumpkin plants are just getting started. There are pumpkins in the shops, though obviously not fresh, this season’s pumpkins.

I wrote a piece this time last year about the difference in attitudes regarding Halloween in Australia and America.

And I have to report that this year, Australia still doesn’t really care.

Sure, Halloween gains a few more fans every year, mostly parents bowing to pressure from their kids, but it’ll never have the following it does in America.

We’re Australian, not American. If it were ever going to be big here, it would have already happened.

There’s a big resistance to all things American. We’ve seen what’s happened to you guys and we’re determined not to make the same mistakes.

If anything it’s just another excuse for the retail and hospitality industries to bump up revenue before the big Christmas spendfest.

Right now it’s the day before Halloween and the temperature is 35 degrees (95F). Even the most die-hard Halloween fans are feeling less than inspired to dress up and beg for a sugar fix.

I know it’s only one night of the year but trawling the streets, knocking on the doors of strangers, and eating your bodyweight in sugar can’t be the safest or healthiest thing for anyone to do.

But handing out raw nuts and sliced vegetables to the trick-or-treaters wouldn’t have the same appeal. Blame society for that one.

Halloween seems to be more popular in small towns further out from the major metropolis. Possibly because in smaller communities everyone can get involved, and it gives the locals a social event to attend. In a place where social events are limited, it’s up to the townsfolk to get inventive.

In other words, the kids can have fun with their friends and enjoy sugar highs, while the parents can get together later and have a few drinks. Everyone wins.

In my town of 400 people, with many living on isolated properties, it’s nice to look forward to dressing up and coming into town to socialise. Isn’t that what builds friendships and keeps communities together?

And who doesn’t love to dress up and look silly?

The proprietors of our local pub, our one and only, have devised a way to protect non-participants of Halloween from hordes of unruly kids knocking on their doors.

If you want to join in the fun, and are happy to receive door-knockers and donate sugar in attractive colours and shapes, you register at the pub and receive a sign for your house welcoming the party-goers.

Trick-or-treaters are only to knock on the doors of houses displaying this sign.

When the door-knocking is over, participants can return their sign to the pub and receive a free drink. Again, everyone wins.

Kudos for the enterprising pub owners. They’ve drummed up business for themselves and brought the community closer together.

It’s what makes living out here so great. It would be nothing without these tough, resourceful people.

I still don’t see pumpkin pie ever catching on though. It’s a cultural thing.

Happy Halloween to everyone who cares. And to the resistance … Bah humbug!

 

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Why is it that no matter how accomplished some women are they can still feel like frauds?

Despite the apparent equality of the sexes now, many women feel as if they need to work harder and achieve more to keep up with their male counterparts.

And despite their academic achievements, high status and position in the workplace, high-achieving women are still suffering from imposter syndrome.

Much of this may have its roots in our upbringing. To be a high achiever usually means you grew up in the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s when women were still regarded – although not openly – as, shall we say, not quite the way men are. Perhaps a little too emotional, scatter-brained or off-with-the-fairies.

Many women were told they were the pretty or sociable one in the family and they shouldn’t expect to be clever as well. After all, if you were a beauty you couldn’t be very intelligent. Smart girls were always the plain ones.

To prove this just wasn’t true many women overcompensated with high level education and corporate jobs. Of course, they didn’t do it just to prove a point. They did it because they could and they wanted to.

But, even after all the work, and all the evidence, some women still feel like they’ve fooled everyone and worry they’ll be found out some day.

Common sense would tell you after years of being successful it must be you and not a mistake on someone else’s part – or a series of mistakes – but, unlike men, women have trouble coming to terms with their own excellence.

How do you tell if you or someone you know has imposter syndrome?

If you have it you’ll know, you’ll feel it and stress about it regularly. If someone you know has it, you’ll see the signs such as:

• Perfectionism – which leads to procrastination because everything has to be just right, and never is.
• Fear of criticism – another major cause of procrastination.
• Judging others, and particularly themselves, by very high standards.
• Always having to prove their value – even when their value is clear to everyone.
• Thinking they should be able to do it all – and feeling surprised and inadequate when they can’t.
• Unable to relax until everything is done – we’ve all seen the perfect host who’s too busy to have any fun at her own party.
• The never-ending to-do list – which is always being added to.
• Being a people pleaser – putting others first and always trying to gain approval.

High-achieving men can also show the same symptoms but to a much lesser extent. They tend to be more laid back and have more belief in themselves. Another upbringing issue?

Or perhaps they grew up with more expectation of their own merits.

As the next generation of girls grow up and become successful, let’s hope we’ve finally put the less-intelligent-than men myth to rest and these young women can accept the fact that being beautiful and accomplished are not mutually exclusive. They can do and be anything they want, and they never need to feel inferior to anyone.

 

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Humans are the only living things with any perception of time.

In fact, time is a man-made construct to create reference points so we can make sense of the passing of ‘time’. It only exists in our minds.

Imagine having a conversation with someone about the past or the future without having a reference point to focus on. No one would understand which particular point in time you were talking about.

Strolls down memory lane would be meaningless, was that last week or last year? And meetings and appointments in the future would be a nightmare, no one would know when to arrive.

Our idea of time is a way to organise our lives better. Being organised doesn’t constrain us, it gives us more freedom.

Yet how many of us really spend all of our time wisely?

We think we have an unlimited supply of it because it’s impossible for us to think so far into the future. It’s a case of ‘I’m young, I’ve got plenty of time.’

As we get older it just becomes, ‘I’ll do that later, I’ve got plenty of time.’

However, time, for us, is a finite resource. And no matter who we are, we all have the same 24 hours in a day. The only variation is the number of days we have.

It’s said that procrastination is the thief of time, but time passes regardless of how you use it. As ingenious as we are, and as much as we like to control our environment, we cannot manipulate time, nor can we make or find time.

Time just is, and time does its own thing, it has no concern for anything.

Take care of the minutes and the hours will take care of themselves.

Life is a series of small chunks of time. The unallocated chunks aren’t always consecutive. If you use what’s available to get the necessary things done, you’ll free up more time to use as you please – downtime isn’t a dirty word.

Many think they can’t do anything useful with small amounts of time.

• Those few minutes before the meeting starts.
• The time spent commuting to and from work.
• Waiting in line, waiting in waiting rooms, and waiting in general.

All those minutes add up and they can be put to good use, especially now with smart phones and other electronic devices.

Use these small gifts of time to learn something new, organise your day, record your thoughts or new ideas. Don’t underestimate what you can do in one minute, two minutes, five minutes.

I’m not talking about multi-tasking, just the times when you’re not doing anything else.

Start taking note of how long it takes to do small but necessary tasks. Household chores, getting organised, preparing for bigger tasks. They all add up to a more productive day and you’ll be surprised how little time each one takes.

I always used the excuse that I couldn’t get anything significant done in those tiny pockets of leftover time because by the time I got my head in the game it was over. And that’s true.

You need a big block of time to accomplish a more detailed and comprehensive job, but there are plenty of little jobs just as important that fit nicely into those small blocks of time.

If you time it well they can help you get your mindset ready for more focused attention.

And when you have a nice, big slab of time to work on your big project, you’ll spend more of it doing the important work, because you’ll have already sorted out the little details.

Aren’t you clever?

 

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When I’m doing my research and general reading I often come across a quote that gives me one of those aha or ohhh moments.

They resonate so deeply with me I write them down so I don’t forget, usually on a piece of scrap paper or whatever is on hand at the time.

Over the years these bits of paper have started cluttering up my desk, so the last time I was de-cluttering like a ninja I thought it best to record them all in a document.

Some of these quotes might resonate with you too, so here they are, in no particular order, all together for the first time.

All but two are unattributed, I apologise for that. None of these quotes are mine but all of them are relevant and meaningful to me.

 

Those who matter don’t mind, and those who mind don’t matter.

 

Do or do not. There is no try ~ Yoda

 

Energy and persistence conquer all.

 

The money is where the fear is.

 

Luck happens when preparation meets opportunity.

 

Opportunity only dances with those already on the dance floor.

 

Life is to be enjoyed, not endured.

 

Fear kills more people than death does. Death kills you just once, fear will kill you over and over.

 

The quality of your life is in direct proportion to the number of uncomfortable situations you readily put yourself in.

 

Impossible is not a fact, it’s an opinion.

 

Being an entrepreneur means living a few years of your life like most people won’t, so you can live the rest of your life like most people can’t.

 

Happy people are those who are creating something. Bored people are those who consume much and produce nothing.

 

If you don’t control your day, your day will control you.

 

He who helps someone up the hill can’t help but get to the top himself.

 

Within each of us there is a silence, a silence as vast as the universe. And when we experience that silence we remember who we are ~ Gunilla Norris

 

The years teach us much the days never knew.

 

Wealth is the ability to fully experience life.

 

Our lives are a collection of days, so what we do on a daily basis defines who we are.

 

Where you’ve been has no bearing on where you can still go.

 

Most of humanity has eyes so caked shut with the dust of deception that they will never see the truth, no matter who tries to show it to them.

 

Miles and miles of time …

 

There are many things that are hard to define, such as love, beauty and quality. But you recognise them by the symptoms they produce within you.

 

What matters is not what you’ve lost, but what you have left.

 

Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.

 

Don’t keep living the same year over and over and calling it a life.

 

Feelings are like children, you don’t want them driving the car but you don’t want to stuff them in the trunk either.

 

In the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.

 

And my favourite, perhaps because a dear friend of mine once used it to describe me:

Mind of steel, heart of gold (aww shucks).

 

Please, feel free to add your favourite quotes in the comments below.

 

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There’s no need to remind anyone how busy life is these days.

We all have to-do lists longer than our arms, places to be, people to see, or is that places to see and people to be? To each his own …

Everyone wants his or her mind chock full of useful information but no one wants to spend the time to get it. We rush through our required reading, turning a pleasant read into a scanning frenzy to find the good stuff and move on.

This propensity to take shortcuts has even crept into our writing. In fact, it’s now so prevalent most of us don’t even notice, including me.

Oh yeah, I’ve noticed our attention span is getting smaller (less than that of a goldfish, apparently).

And I’ve noticed words are being omitted from blog posts and articles.  The ‘I’ or ‘I’ve’ at the beginning of the sentence was the first to go. I went shopping last week … became Went shopping last week…

Then other words started to disappear. It doesn’t matter … became Doesn’t matter … and Do you understand? is now just Understand?

And on it goes …

I’m as guilty of this as the next person, and speech is even worse.

What I didn’t realise is it’s now become so normal you only notice it when you read something that doesn’t leave out words.

I don’t mean copy that’s full of superfluous words just tripping all over themselves and screaming for a good editor, or copy so clumsily-worded that it takes forever to get to the point or worse, doesn’t at all. If you’ve been reading online for any length of time you’ll know what I mean.

I was recently reading an article that included every word it should have. It didn’t make its point any clearer, good writing does that with or without every word, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and it took me a while to figure out why.

It was invigorating to read something with no words missing.

Even allowing for fast readers who skip the unnecessary words like and and the it just seemed nicer to read it. Perhaps it was the effort the writer had made by including every word, which made him/her stand out from the crowd – to me anyway. Perhaps it was because this is how good writing used to be.

Or maybe it was easier on my brain because the meaning was clear.

I don’t know. But I do know I appreciated reading it just a smidge more than I would had it omitted the usual words at the beginning of sentences.

Of course there are no missing words in formal documents like legal or business papers, and college theses, as well as magazine and newspaper articles, but I’m referring to the everyday online reading most of us do.

My point is not that we’re all dispensing with strict rules of writing structure (some of them should have been dispensed with before they were allowed to ruin our English classes).

After all, many other languages leave the pronouns out and the meaning is inferred from the context.

I’m all for making life easier and saving time, but sometimes it’s just nice to read something written with care and consideration for the English language. In this hurly-burly existence we’ve created for ourselves, reading a well-crafted piece of writing (that uses all the words it needs to convey meaning and not one word more) is akin to an unexpected shoulder massage or finding a $50 note on the street, and that certainly grabs attention.

Something to think about …

 

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