White papers versus blog posts
by Gordon Graham, That White Paper Guy
Most people can tell the difference between a white paper and a blog post.
For starters, one is longer, and the other is shorter.
Beyond that, a good white paper is based on established facts and logical arguments, like a well-researched article in an industry journal.
But a blog post can be sheer opinion, or even a rant, more like a letter to the editor.
This table sums up some of the key differences.
|
Blog Post |
White Paper |
Focus |
One person's opinion |
New solution to an old problem, or benefits of a product or service |
Message |
Here's what I think about that |
Here's how our product or service can benefit you |
Length |
~400 to 800 words |
~3,000 to 5,000 words |
Production values |
Online, often text-only |
PDF, often good design and color graphics |
Lifespan |
a few months, then outdated |
1 to 2 years, then refresh |
Time to do |
1 to 3 hours |
4 to 12 weeks |
Effort |
Easy, anyone can do one |
Difficult, takes years to master |
When to use |
Anytime, depends on contents |
Early in the sales cycle |
Why to use |
To engage prospects, customers, partners |
To generate leads, build mindshare |
Offline analogy |
Letter to the editor |
Well-researched article in industry journal |
How to use white papers AND blog posts together
A good white paper contains enough ideas to fuel several blog posts.
In fact, here is the best way to use both together:
- Publish an effective white paper.
- Extract one key idea to blog about.
- At the end of the blog, point to the landing page for the full white paper.
- Repeat steps 2-3 to cover all the key ideas in the white paper.
This uses the SEO power of your blog to build visibiity and downloads for your white paper.
A numbered list is a special case
The easiest and most informal flavor of white paper is a "numbered list" with a title like "Six Things You Must Know About BI Software... Before You Buy."
After you write a white paper as a numbered list, this is an ideal time to blog about a white paper.
Your blog can present the bare list, and direct readers who want more details to the full white paper.
As always, your white paper can present more detail, more evidence, and more logical arguments than the blog post.
White papers: a whole different galaxy
Some SEO enthusiasts tend to over-promote blogging. They say a blog can generate vast amounts of Web traffic and push your site to the top of Google.
This is rarely true in B2B marketing.
B2B buyers consider a good white paper far more seriously than a blog post.
And to achieve what B2B marketers want—a steady trickle of warm, qualified leads—white papers are in a whole different galaxy beyond blog posts.
