What you should not do is write about a topic simply to mimic competitors. We all look over each other’s shoulders to see which competitors’ activities generate success. However, the goal should be to strategically get ahead of like-minded companies rather than following in their footsteps. If multiple competitors write about the same topic, ask yourself the following before making their whitepaper strategy your own:
- Can I execute this particular tactic better?
- Do I have something unique to say about the subject matter?
If you can’t answer affirmatively to either, focus your whitepaper strategies on fulfilling underserved needs rather than simply hitting the same talking points as everyone else.
Don’t Undervalue the Design of the Landing Page or White Paper
Remember that the designated landing page and white paper cover page will provide first impressions. Design should be polished, and messaging should immediately clarify the value visitors will receive from downloading the white paper.
Relatedly, don’t be greedy when designing the download form; too many fields or requests for unnecessary information will turn off page visitors.
To gate or un-gate white papers
If you partner with an SEO specialist, they may push you to un-gate the materials so Google can crawl all that valuable content. Yet, logically, un-gating would provide individuals with less incentive to provide their contact information. Your underlying goals should heavily influence this decision, as touched upon later in the article. If you want to generate traffic and brand awareness, it’s wise to un-gate the materials. However, if collecting new contacts is the primary marketing goal, gating the white paper may be the best strategy. If you’re still on the fence:
- Test un-gating a select few whitepapers. You may be surprised by the number of downloads you receive from un-gated materials. Many people prefer print-friendly PDFs and will gladly share their information, even if the entire piece is visible on the page.
- Un-gate part of the whitepaper to appease search engines. By un-gating the first 500 words of a 3,000-word white paper, you may give Google the context it needs to rank the landing page for search results without giving away the whole piece. Win-win!
- Un-gate materials after the initial promotional buzz dies down. While some white papers will continue to generate interest for years to come, others’ interactions will drop off quickly. If you no longer leverage a white paper in your offsite marketing or link to it from the homepage, expect a sharp decline in readership. Soon after this happens, consider un-gating the white paper to grant it a second life as an SEO asset.