4 common mistakes writers make in white papers (and all marketing content)
1. Trying to sell instead of tell.
The focus on Steve Jobs this past week reminded us of how fanatical the guy is about good, clean, corporate writing, the kind that never “sells” technology. Instead, he insists on the kind that tells how the product would help the reader reach a goal. Emphasis on the reader. And the reader’s goal or problem.
2. Complicating the message.
Jobs has a one-sentence description — or vision — for every product he has ever introduced. Incredibly, every single piece of written content, in all marketing material, revolves around this simple sentence. Study after study shows that people think in “chunks” and remember no more than three or four characteristics of anything. That’s why the best content contains no more than three, core leave-behinds. Your reader is busier and more easily distracted than ever. Make it easy on them. Think about the most effective content you’ve read. Chances are, the writer kept it pretty simple. It’s why you remember it. After all, no less a mind than DaVinci said that simplicity was the ultimate sophistication.
3. Failing to stay on message.
Begin with a clear expression — the single sentence — of what your content must convey. Then think of it in three parts and sketch an outline of the “sum” of the parts: What? So what? And now what? In other words, consistent with the core sentence, describe the problem being experienced by the customer/reader, (2) all the dimensions of why this is a significant issue at this moment and (3) what needs to happen for resolution of the issue (solution to the problem).
4. Ignoring (boring) the reader.
If you’re not energized to the point of passion about your subject matter, don’t expect your reader to take up the slack. Look at what you’re writing through the reader’s eyes. To what would you favorably respond? Studies show that readers favor a graphic presentation of complex data, thus the popularity and more frequent use of infographics. What would make you keep reading? In your experience, which styles of content convey the most information most forcefully and memorably? Most important, what would make you want to know more about what the vendor has to say about this issue and what they have in the way of solutions?
What does your team do to optimize the readability and simplicity of your written content — including those white papers? BTW, for an animated video of Jobs’ career, check this out: /08/26/ste…