Tip Sheets That Keep You in People's Minds... n 97 of 20 requests a week. Even a full decade after the Bottom Line/Personal offer ran, I was still receiving about a dozen requests a month for the original booklet. T HE W HITE P APER G AMBIT If you serve business-to-business clients or sell complex, expen- sive business products, consider a sophisticated variant of a tip sheet that can help you spread the word about what you do to potential customers, both with and without the help of the media. A "white paper" is a nonselling piece, relatively objective in tone, that informs a certain audience about your area of expertise and subtly positions your organization as qualified to solve a problem for them. White papers often get passed around an organization that is actively consid- ering major changes or investments in new technology. They usually run longer than tip sheets and either get posted on Websites for download in PDF format or are sent out upon request by phone, fax, or e-mail. A successful white paper strategy begins with writing your docu- ment so that it reads well, uses a minimum of jargon, holds back on salesmanship, and truly educates the reader. Ideally, its title should mention both the problem it addresses and the solution. For instance: "Digital Printing Options for Companies Producing Annual Reports" or "Achieving Greater Participation of Underrepresented Minorities in Private Companies." On the last page of the white paper, following your educational presentation, include a profile of your organization and how you help clients solve problems, along with complete con- tact information. Format the white paper attractively, with lots of subheads to facilitate a quick read. Once you've written and formatted it, send a news release mod- eled after Sample #3 in Chapter 4 to media in your industry. That is, don't merely announce that the white paper is available include meaty nuggets from it in the release. End by explaining how people can obtain a copy of the white paper. Also, create a bylined article related to the white paper, either by converting the news release into article format or by producing an edited excerpt from the longer white paper.