Steps to writing a proper white paper…

Use a Linear, Logical Approach: a white paper must be educational, not promotional in tone. And should posses the following objectives:
It must attract the right audience. White papers are highly audience specific, it is better to write white papers tailored toward different groups of stakeholders.
Must engage the reader; engage by showing them that you understand their problem and that you can “relate”. Or by quickly showing mastery of the subject, through good clear writing.
It must inform your reader. Written more like an objective magazine article than a sales brochure. they should objectively present a problem, the business case for solving the problem, and alternative ways of solving the problem. Therefore, the reader gains knowledge from having invested the time to read the paper. Ultimately the reader feels informed, not sold.
It must convince your reader; to convince reader to give your organisation consideration based information that you have presented.
Example, if your product has a high up-front cost but lower maintenance costs, your paper might include an analysis of ongoing “hidden” costs and a ROI model that shows how a high initial investment might actually be more cost-effective over the life of the purchase.

Your Title Is Key to Success of Paper:
A creative, meaningful title drives readership, whether you promote your paper online, distribute it at a conference, or pitch it to trade magazine editors.
The content as well as the title should be tailored to different stakeholders involved in evaluating your products.

Follow the 3-30-3 Rule:
Effective “short form” writing; writing that can’t take a long time to make an impression and accomplish an objective.
You must earn the targeted audience’s attention within the first three seconds of glancing at your paper.
If the three seconds are used well, readers will move on to the next part of their decision and give an extra 30 seconds. In that time they will decide whether or not the message deserves more calculated consideration. That being said; the first few paragraphs are key.
Finally, with the assumption that the introduction written was on target, the customer or potential prospect will now grant you an extra three minutes to make your point.
Do not create a white paper that needs ten minutes’ time to make its point.
How do you make a complex point in three minutes?
Talk about business problems from the reader’s perspective.
Make key point with devices other than body copy
Graph statistics (numbers matter) on the problem and the benefit of solving it
Segment your body copy with subheads that make the main point of the paragraph to follow.

Write in the Language of Reader:
Main question to ask self, who am I trying to persuade with this white paper?
For example if you have three distinct audiences, consider writing three white papers to those three audiences. It could contain overlapping content but should have different titles, different word choices in subheads, and specific body copy that relates to each audience’s interests.
Should write different white papers tailored toward different stakeholder groups.
Normally there are three general stakeholder groups:
Strategic Stakeholders: interested in implementing solutions to improve competitive advantage, augment financial performance of the company, accelerate operational efficiency, or foster other business-oriented objectives.
Technical Stakeholders: interested in detailed feature/functionality comparisons, architectural advantages, compatibility and integration with existing systems, security, scalability, longevity and other measures that make the technology a wise investment both today and in the future.
User stakeholders: people whose day-to-day jobs are affected by the application of the solution. They are interested in usability, willingness and speed of adoption, learning curves, ability to simplify processes and boost efficiency, improving employee morale and enhancing overall job satisfaction.
It is important to favour statistics, numbers and facts. Most people trust numbers more than adjectives.
Citing (“TC CARL will reduce costs by 30%” is better than saying “It will cut costs”)

Be Knowledgeable and Principled:
The goal is not necessarily to completely discount approaches other than own. only show that when all the pros and cons are tallied, your solution has the most tangible benefits.
A white paper should be well researched and technically documented, demonstrating your understanding of the entire industry and landscape of approaches.
For example, if you are developing an eight-page white paper, you should aim to provide a thorough and balanced discussion over the first six pages. After reading this “meat” of the paper, readers should feel like they have been educated, not “sold.”

Graphics Are Content Too:
Includes “brochure type” graphics that depict your product packaging, smiling models holding your product or sitting at the ubiquitously generalised keyboard, or –- in the worst case -- clip art.
Add to your paper informative illustrations that walk the reader through a relevant process.
Focus on “pictograms” ; a combination of words and pictures in a chart or diagram.

Have a Writer Write Your Paper

Keep the Branding Subtle:
When it comes to white paper branding the less the better.

*White papers are best applied in complex technology oriented markets with longer sales cycles.