What is a white paper?

Based on the free download from WhitePaperSource, I was curious to ask myself about white papers. I’ve always wondered where the term came from as well as the difference between a report or ebook and a white paper.

As White Paper Source states in its forum:

According to Michael Stelzner, author of “How to write a white paper – A white paper on white papers,”

What is a White Paper? 

The term white paper is an offshoot of the term white book, which is an official publication of a national government. A famous white paper example is the Winston Churchill White Paper of 1922, which addressed political conflict in Palestine. 

A white paper typically argues a specific position or solution to a problem. Although white papers take their roots in governmental policy, they have become a common tool used to introduce technology innovations and products. A typical search engine query on “white paper” will return millions of results, with many focused on technology-related issues. 

White papers are powerful marketing tools used to help key decision-makers and influencers justify implementing solutions.

So now you know. If you want more information about how to format, structure and price a white paper, the company offers – surprise: a white paper! – at their site: http://www.whitepapersource.com/report/index.html