What different types of white papers exist?
White papers are often divided into three types: Technical backgrounder Business benefits A hybrid, or combination of both. Beyond these broad divisions, many other flavors of white papers exist: Market overview Position paper Product briefing Executive briefing Thought leader Competitive review Evaluator’s guide The “modular” or “tips” white paper is another popular flavor, consisting of a set of more-or-less standalone points. For example, “Seven Things Every IT Manager Must Know about Network Security” or “Six Ways to Build Profits Using CRM.” This format supports the tendencies of today’s readers to skin, scan and skip, especially when reading on the screen. Any of these flavors can be combined together as well. White papers come in many different types, with no accepted system for labelling each one precisely.
