White Paper Pundit

The other day, a Twitter follower named “@TechValidate” issued a ReTweet on a blog post that I submitted to the Savvy B2B Marketing website called, “Three Tips to Engage the ‘Short Attention’ White Paper Reader“. The ReTweet message read as follows:

While I certainly appreciate all ReTweets of my blog posts, I’d like to clarify TechValidate’s ReTweet message and what I meant with my original blog post.

First, the expression that I have coined, “Short Attention Marketing” (SAM) refers to the use of visual aids in a white paper that engage time and attention challenged business readers. These elements create an incentive to read larger, more detailed portions of white paper content. SAM applies elements such as summaries, callouts, bullets, graphics, and page layout design to engage time-challenged decision makers who would otherwise pass on reading a ‘text-only’ white paper that had nothing more than left flush paragraphs.

SAM is an alternative to what I see in today’s business market where limited budgets have created an explosion of short white papers, often from two to four pages in length. Due to their limited size, these short white papers are solely focused on the solution and its attributes/benefits. As a result, they contribute to the complaint that most executives have with today’s white papers, namely that they are more akin to overt sales brochures than educationally-oriented white papers.

To fulfill the goal of a true white paper, marketers must dedicate at least six to eight pages to this educational process. A well-written white paper walks the reader through a detailed presentation of a business situation: From industry dynamics, to specific business problems, to how the advocated solution solves those challenges, and the benefits gained from its implementation. To accomplish this, marketers must devote the time and expense associated with producing an adequate number of pages that thoroughly tell this story to a target audience.

So to clarify TechValidate’s ReTweet message, the path to a better white paper isn’t producing shorter content. Instead it is about how to integrate visual elements that create an incentive for today’s short attention decision maker to read larger white papers. By applying SAM principles, white paper marketers can produce larger, more effective, educationally-focused white papers that allow the reader to quickly determine if it will address their business needs and be worth the investment of their valuable and limited reading time.

The principles of Short Attention Marketing (SAM) are addressed in my upcoming book, “Crafting White Paper 2.0: Designing Information for Today’s Time and Attention-Challenged Business Reader, which will be available in November. Details on how to purchase the book, will be available soon on this blog and my monthly newsletter, “Short Attention Marketing Tips“.

In the interim, you can download my white paper on this subject, “Ensuring that Your White Papers Appeal to Busy Executive Readers“.

Thank you for your interest and keep sending me your thoughts and ReTweet messages.

This entry was posted on Monday, October 26th, 2009 at 9:43 am and is filed under Design & Format, WP Examples, WP Marketing, WP Opinions, short attention marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.