78 per cent of decision-makers share this content with their colleagues

You want to convince investment decision-makers of your complex products or services that require explanation, generate valuable leads and show your technological expertise? Then you can now place one of the most effective content marketing tools on our websites: a whitepaper.

Martin Schwarz, Head of Digital Media at WEKA Industrie Medien explains when a white paper makes sense for your company and how to write one that doesn't miss its mark.

For years you have worked on a new technology, conducted tests and commissioned studies, you have built up know-how - and you know: Advisory competence and numerical certainty are the hardest currencies in an environment where the clientele is usually very experienced in the decision-making processes for capital goods.

So now it is important to communicate one's own competence credibly and to present one's own know-how in a form that is useful for investment decision-makers.

This is what a white paper brings

Whitepapers are one of those content marketing tools that can be particularly effective in this scenario.

Only recently, a study in the USA revealed, that 78 percent of B2B decision-makers prefer to share whitepapers such as case studies with their colleagues. The conclusion is that white papers can be one of the decision-making tools when it comes to investment: Sharing content is a sure indicator of its value to the reader. In another study it becomes clearhow relevant white papers such as case studies actually are for the purchase decision.

There is actually no limit to the term white paper. They can be detailed user reports, technology information or surveys. What all these forms have in common, however, is that they are of considerable value to the reader, who, by downloading a white paper, expresses a genuine interest in valuable background information and may even be on the verge of making an investment decision. 

How to reach the right decision-makers

We now offer corresponding whitepaper portals on many of our websites, where you can have your whitepaper uploaded and decide right away which data you would like to receive from the readers of your whitepaper: is the email address enough for you, do you also need information about the reader's position in their company, details about the company or the postal address? You can configure all this according to your wishes - just like the number of conversions you want to generate.

Especially in view of the increasingly strict data protection regulations, this is also a weighty argument for the use of a white paper as a content marketing tool: by downloading it from our portals, the user also agrees to be contacted by you. You will then receive reports with the data of those readers who have downloaded your whitepaper for the entire duration of your whitepaper.

This is what whitepapers look like on our websites

See here, for example, how this is done with our Magazine Factory or at our Industry magazine looks like.

Also on the websites of our magazines Solid, HLK, TGA, on the agenda and dispo you can download your whitepaper Have uploaded.

With our solution, we have ensured that you only pay those leads who have actually downloaded your whitepaper: the user receives a download link by email and only when this has been activated does it count as a lead.

In addition, we display references to current white papers in matching editorial stories on our websites. This increases the accuracy of your white paper even more.

How to make your white paper successful

1. The utility value counts

With a white paper, it is important to offer your readers added value that is relevant to their decisions. User data for expert knowledge - that's the deal with a whitepaper. Advertising slogans are out of place here. What matters is factual information, arguments and evaluations.

2. Problem solver

People who download a white paper also expect it to help them solve a problem or to be a decision-making aid, for example, for upcoming decisions. So make sure to describe concrete use cases of your technology or your product. If possible, include concrete user stories.

3. Numerically secure

In white papers, work with graphics or diagrams where possible to illustrate the benefits of your solution.

Are you interested in publishing your white paper on one of our portals? We will be happy to advise you. Please contact office@b2impact.com 

This is how you can publish your whitepaper - here using factorynet.at as an example