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Marketing for Construction Companies:

How to Use a White Paper to Generate Leads

Note: This is a long article with lots of information, and it will take about 15 minutes to read. It has an introduction, six sections, plus a short conclusion.

If you like, you could save this page to Pocket and read it later offline.

article Summary

This article is for any construction-related business. Whether your company is a large general contractor or a small supplier of a speciality building product, this article is for you. For simplicity’s sake, I will refer to all companies in the construction industry as construction companies.

A white paper is a tool that can generate leads for your business. Like any other tool, for the best results, it must be good quality and it must be used in a specific way. 

For a white paper to be a useful lead-generating tool for your business, it must be:

• High quality, backed by evidence (not a sales pitch)

• On a topic within the area of expertise of your business — whether that is 3D printing building façades or manufacturing volumetric modules

• Distributed in a specific way

Companies of any size can benefit from a white paper — what matters more than size is the nature of your product or service. (I’ll explain later why this matters.)

A good white paper provides something of value to its readers — reliable, useful information. The business that produces and distributes it gets something in return — high quality leads. Those leads provide their email addresses to access the white paper.

Introduction

Of course, there are many ways to market your construction business, including using content at different stages of your customers’ buying journey (or your marketing funnel). This article explores one specific method in detail: using a white paper at the top of the marketing funnel to generate leads.

Once you've read this article, you will know:

• What a white paper is (in this context) and what a good one should contain

• How a white paper can generate qualified leads for your construction business

• How to put a white paper to good use

• How to go about producing a white paper

1. How would a white paper benefit your construction business? 

Content marketing has many benefits, and different kinds of content — from video testimonials to e-books — have different strengths. A high quality white paper is a powerful lead generation tool, when used in the right way.

"Without active lead generation efforts, it will be very difficult to grow and scale your current business."

Source.

Section 2 will go into detail about what, exactly, a white paper is. For now, keep in mind that it's a document that provides high quality information in your area of expertise.

Great content is not enough, though. A white paper must be used in the right way if it’s to be successful in marketing your construction business. Section 4 will explain in detail how to use a white paper as an effective lead generation tool. But the basic idea is that a visitor to your website enters some information in return for a link to download your white paper.

They might enter their name, an email address, and phone number — and thus they become a lead for your business. Since they want your white paper, you know they're already interested in what your business does! You've got their attention.

2. What, exactly, is a white paper?

You may have heard the term "white paper" in the context of a government document, which is the original source of the term. (Google "Winston Churchill 1922 White Paper".) The term expanded to include detailed reports on subjects other than policy or potential legislation. A research group might publish a white paper to explain their findings for laypeople, say.

Businesses in the tech sector started using them to communicate with other businesses. The document would provide detailed information about a proposed technical solution to a particular problem.

“I’ve been writing B2B marketing documents for over seventeen years and – without exception – white papers outperform all other types of sales documents when it comes to generating leads.”

Source.

These days, white papers are no longer restricted to highly technical subject matter. They’re now becoming more common across the B2B (business-to-business) market more generally.

Independent of subject matter, the crucial thing that all these different sorts of white paper have in common is that they are about genuine, useful information.

In the B2B world, the term "white paper" is now pretty familiar. But, depending on your audience, it might make sense for you to call your white paper something different. Perhaps a “Guide” or a “Special Report”. Whatever you decide to call it, this is the standard structure* for white papers: 

• Describe a problem your ideal reader has

• Explain how a generic type of solution would help them

• Briefly mention the specific solution you offer

You want your reader to recognize a problem they have. Perhaps they’re a municipal government that needs to build supportive housing more quickly than conventional construction can. Or perhaps your clients are located in remote areas where minimal labour is available, and they need a cost-effective building with a large clear span.

*(The standard, most common structure described here is a ‘problem-solution’ white paper. There are other structures, but this is the one I’ll focus on in this article.)

Once you’ve explained the problem, you explain how a generic type of solution would work for your reader. When you provide the generic solution in your white paper, you talk how modular construction can build supportive housing more quickly than conventional construction, or how pre-engineered metal building components can be shipped to remote areas and be erected by a small crew.

At the end of the white paper you will touch on why your reader should prefer your specific product or service. (Perhaps you've been in business longer; or you have a track record of exactly that type of project; or your product is higher quality than others...)

Of course, on some level, readers know they're being marketed to — just as you know that the free mint at the end of a meal is really part of a marketing strategy.

You're not tricked by the free mint, but getting it doesn't feel like marketing. And even though you know that the mint is marketing, it is nevertheless something of (slight) value to you that you get for free. And it probably serves to make you feel slightly happier about paying the bill. :)

3. What is not a white paper?

White papers provide useful information in a few pages  — not enough to be an eBook. But, most importantly, a white paper is not a sales pitch (like a brochure). In fact, pushing sales too hard in a white paper is a turn off to the reader — who was promised useful information. The reader learns how the type of solution you provide can benefit them or their business.

Of course, some companies don't bother with research, use advertising-style copy, and call some poorly written fluff a "white paper".

Don't be tempted to do that.

Weak content can be detrimental to your business because it will likely annoy or disappoint the reader, who was expecting useful information. You'll need a strong writer who is also able to do the research necessary for a high quality white paper.

White papers can be any length, but there seems to be some overlap among veteran business writers, such as Carol Tice and Gordon Graham, regarding the standard range: 

"[M]ost white papers run 3 - 10 pages these days."

(Source.)

"Today’s 'typical' white paper is 6 to 8 pages long, shorter than in past years."

(Source.)

For a business that doesn’t deal with a highly technical product or service, the shorter end of that range is probably the right ball park. If your product or service is more complicated, or more unusual, your white paper is likely to be longer.

If a white paper is too short, it feels like a bait and switch, with not enough value to the reader. Too long, and it feels like too much time and effort to read it.

(Of course, these days, white papers are usually not printed on actual paper — white or otherwise. They are typically a pdf read on a screen.)

4. How do you use a white paper to generate leads?

You have the solution to a problem your potential customers have and you’re providing them valuable information on how to solve that problem. Your goal is to use that information to generate more leads for your business. By using your white paper in the right way, it can generate high quality leads.

You can’t just put a white paper on your website and expect people to find it. It’s a marketing tool that needs to be used. 

The main point is that your white paper needs to be gated content, not immediately accessible to just anyone. You want to ensure that the people who access it:

• are interested in the topic

• have a problem your business can address

• have given you their name and email address

Before you publish your white paper, create some anticipation about it using your email list and social media accounts. Have people sign up to receive it before it’s published. Then you have a list of readers ready to go.

Don’t send people to your home page and expect them to search around to find the download. Send them directly to a dedicated landing page. Here are some examples of landing pages for white papers:

A White Paper on How to Write a White Paper

Free White Paper for Production Scheduling Solution Architects

What is the Internet of Things?

Use small snippets of your white paper in social media posts and in your emails to drive traffic to your landing page. 

Don’t ask for too much information when they get there. People might be willing to give a name, a company name, and an email address in order to read the document. If you push for much more than that, you increase the risk of them clicking away.

Present the introduction to your white paper to anyone who cares to look. Or summarize the entire white paper in bullet points. If the visitors to your website are still interested — which filters out quality leads from slightly curious passers by — they should enter their contact details for a link to download the entire white paper. 

If possible, add social media buttons to your landing page to encourage people to share the link with others who might be interested. You could also run traditional ads (e.g. in your local paper) sending people to your landing page to get their download.

Summary of section 4 :

• Create buzz by asking people (via ads, email, and/or social media) to sign up ahead of time.

• Give the white paper its own dedicated landing page.

• Post snippets on social media, with a link directing people to the landing page.

• Enable anyone who visits to be able to read a summary or the introduction.

• To read the rest, visitors need to provide an email address.

5. What are the potential problems with a white paper?

It's a tool, not a magic bullet. It will fail to produce results if it's not put to good use. Wasted time and money.

The first thing you need to do is plan. Come up with a timeline for the various steps involved in producing a white paper. Maybe it makes sense to release your white paper at a certain time of year, depending on your business activity. Keep that date in mind as you work backwards in your timeline, creating intermediate deadlines for each stage.

Quality content takes time and money to produce. A high-flying white paper writer like Gordon Graham can charge clients like Google and IBM $7000 for a white paper. (Source.)

Of course, smaller businesses can expect to pay significantly less than that for a writer who does not yet have big league clients. 

But — word of warning — be cautious about using the "content mills" you can find online. (I’m talking about Upwork, Fiverr, that kind of thing.) On these sites, you may well find someone who will write a white paper for $100, but the reliability of the writers is highly variable. (The reliability of the clients that writers find on these sites is highly variable too!) 

Is producing long-form content a bad idea?

You might think that people don’t read long-form content any more. But that doesn't seem to be the case. Even though people are likely to skim a white paper the first time they look at it, people do read and value long-form content.

What is true, though, is that attention is a hot commodity in these days of sound bites and tweets — and white papers do need to be able to compete.

That’s why it’s important to make sure your white paper is visually appealing and easy to skim, with plenty of white space, bullet points and highlighted key points.

But the valuable content must be there, even if it's skimmed over the first time. Your potential customers will feel cheated if they don’t get quality content for their efforts.

Some argue that long-form content has other benefits too, such as being shared more than shorter content.

(Gated content cannot help with SEO [search engine optimization] because the search engine bots can't access it. So if improving SEO is your primary goal, rather than generating leads, you're likely better off publishing your long-form content on your website for anyone to access, rather than making it gated content.)

Here are some good links to read on these topics (and other related information):

How To Create Long-form Content (Backed by Science)

What is Long-Form Content and Why Does it Work? 

Why 3000+ Word Blog Posts Get More Traffic

And, finally, unless a white paper is vigorously marketed when it's published, it won't produce good results in the form of leads. So plan your ads and social media campaigns carefully, and consider using a tool like Hootsuite, so you can schedule automated social media posts in advance.

You may find this link useful: How to Counter the Five Most Common White Paper Promotion Mistakes

6. How do you produce a white paper for your construction business?

Remember that you are an expert in your field. A lot of the information that will end up in your white paper is inside your head. The trick is to convert your knowledge — plus supporting research — into clear written content. 

There are some great online resources and books on how to turn your knowledge into a white paper. I highly recommend Writing White Papers: How To Capture Readers And Keep Them Engaged by Michael A. Stelzner. Here are some other links to check out:

Mary Cullen: How to Write and Format a White Paper: The Definitive Guide

Michael Gerard: The Ultimate White Paper Template

Gordon Graham: 8 Tips for Writing White Papers (Hint: Don't Call It a White Paper)

Neil Patel: How to Write a White Paper that Generates Sales

Ben Sailer: How to Write White Papers People Actually Want to Read

Bear in mind that if you hire a writer to produce your white paper, it's not necessary for them to be an expert in your field. (Although it’s definitely an added bonus if they are! Be prepared to pay handsomely for this bonus.)

It is essential that they are able to do research, though.  If they can do research and ask experts (including you!) the right questions, then they don't need to be an expert. But they do need to be able to distill that expertise and knowledge into language the white paper readers can understand and appreciate.

In this final section, we will look at the steps involved in creating a white paper.

These are four main phases in producing a white paper:

• Preparation

• Research

• Writing & graphics

• Review/editing

Preparation

Why should a customer use your building product or service? What problem does your customer have that you’re able to solve? What do you offer that your competitors do not? Or what do you offer that’s better than your competitors’ offers? You need to be able to answer these questions in order to produce a white paper.

Once you've clarified your topic, identify your ideal reader for this white paper. (You might produce other white papers for other readers.) If your white paper is aimed at building owners, what industry do they work in and what is the function of their buildings? What's their job title? How big is their company? What problems do they have? What are the typical headaches you help them avoid? Any other crucial characteristics? Ideally, you would create a full customer profile or persona, including demographics and psychographics. Writing is so much easier — and effective — if you know who you’re talking to.

Then you need to produce an outline. Map out your plan for your white paper. Before you go further than this, check your plan with key members of your team. You don't want to start your in depth research and then discover not everyone is on board.

 Research

Your own company might have existing documents that help you (PowerPoint presentations, data sheets, press releases, brochures, info on your website, etc). These are good places to start. External press reports and articles about your company might also be useful.

You might want to interview people who are construction or engineering experts to add authority and flavour to your white paper. As long as you cite your sources properly, you can also use material from interviews that someone else has performed.

Always remember that white papers need to be valuable to your readers. This means that claims need to backed up. The nature and depth of the research will depend on the specifics of your white paper.

Articles in trade magazines and websites will be fine sources for some types of white paper (say, if you're talking about style trends). But for other white papers, you're going to need to access scholarly research (say, if you're talking about the energy performance of prefabricated metal buildings).

Once you've done your research, you will be able to add some more detail to your outline. It's a good idea to go over this with your team, before heading into the writing and design phase.

Writing & graphics

Create a compelling title that will grab attention and make sure you keep that attention  throughout the first page. Ensure your reader wants to read more. Here is a useful tool for assessing headlines.

To write the core of your white paper, break it into manageable sections, and work on each section separately. It's a significant investment of time, but you want your white paper to be the best it can be!

As mentioned earlier, a white paper must also be visually appealing. Even though it is an informational document, your readers are still human beings who will doze off if faced with a plain wall of text. Eye-catching images, and relevant diagrams or charts, all help to make your white paper more attractive and engaging. In my opinion, an online article can be quite casual about how relevant images are. But for a white paper, you’ll want to make sure every image is relevant to the topic.

Depending on your budget, you may want to hire a professional graphic designer to deal with the visual side of things. To keep costs down, you can use a drag-and-drop template. You can download a template, and find more advice on how to create and use a white paper at CoSchedule and Curata. A variety of free web-based templates are available at Lucidpress.

Review/editing

Get at least one other set of eyes to proofread and edit for you. You need someone who is experienced with editing, and who can check for clarity and logical flow.

Test out your document on someone who is in your target market and ask them what they think. Encourage them to be ruthlessly honest! If you can get multiple proofreaders and test readers, that's even better. It would be disappointing to do all that work, and have a document that is hard to follow or riddled with typos! (Even one typo in something I’ve written causes me pain!)

Marketing

Once you've completed your white paper, you need to market it. Treat it like a product launch. Here are some resources on how to market your white paper:

7 Tactics to Boosting White Paper Performance

How to Market Your White Paper - 21 Tips To Get More Readers

41 Fantastic Places to Promote Your B2B White Papers

Conclusion

So you are now in a position to start creating a white paper to market your construction business.  Here's a summary of the important points, if you want to use a white paper as a lead-generating tool:

• It must be high quality, and backed by evidence (not using "salesy" language).

• It needs to be on a topic within the area of expertise of your business. And it needs to address a problem your ideal client faces. (If you have more than one ideal client, consider creating different white papers for them.)

• A white paper provides a general solution to your client's problem, before touching on your specific solution.

• The entire process must be planned.

• The person who writes your white paper needn't be an expert in your field, but they must be able to do research.

• It must be written in a way that your readers can understand and appreciate.

• It must be visually appealing.

• It must be gated content so that each reader provides you with their name and email address.

• It needs to be vigorously marketed, starting before it is published.

If you found this article helpful, please share it with your networks. 

I am available to write white papers for construction companies. Please send me an email if you'd like to talk about how I might help you.