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I think you've misunderstood the reason for the earlier reviews. It
has nothing to do with creating coherent, camera-ready copy, which any
decent writer can do, and everything to do with accomplishing the
goals of the client.
There are hundreds of ways to write about any given topic coherently.
The point of the progressive review is to properly identify the the
target audience, to establish the needs and pain points of that
demographic, and to verify that the copy is consistent with the
messaging of the client.
There are several reasons for writing white papers. Most of my clients
use white papers for lead generation. I need to know who they are
targeting, which could be anybody from the CTO, CFO, or CEO down to
the lab engineer using the product, or any management layer in
between. Each of these positions has their own concerns (pain points)
and the copy must be written to resonate with the issues of the target
reader. And I need to have a full understanding of the messaging of my
client so the resulting white paper will be consistent with their
other collateral.
It has nothing to do with making sure it's coherent. It has everything
to do with hitting marketing objectives. They're paying thousands of
dollars for a white paper. They expect much more than simple
coherence.
On Mon, Sep 27, 2010 at 8:55 AM, Kieran Sullivan <ksullivan -at- tssg -dot- org> wrote:
> In a word, no.
>
> The authors in our case should be able to put something together themselves
> (as close to camera-ready as is possible) and then pass it on to the review
> board for analysis.
>
> When the authors send the document to the review board, that's the first
> profession writing input the white-paper gets.
>
> I see your point about getting involved earlier in the process - it would
> help, but it could also take the writing activity away from the original
> authors. They should be able to put something coherent together themselves
> (or so the theory goes!)
>
> Kieran.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: techwr-l-bounces+ksullivan=tssg -dot- org -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
> [mailto:techwr-l-bounces+ksullivan=tssg -dot- org -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com] On Behalf Of
> Brad Whittington
> Sent: 24 September 2010 21:01
> To: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
> Subject: Re: Editorial review board - when to edit?
>
> Looks like good advice about the editing stage. I have a question
> about the earlier stages.
>
> When I'm working with a client on a white paper, there are earlier
> review stages. I get buy in for the title, target audience, word
> count, etc. Before I start writing, I create a proposed outline and
> there is considerable back-and-forth revision before it is finalized
> and the actual writing begins. In some cases, if I'm not clear on the
> desired tone, I get a review of the introduction and perhaps the first
> section to make sure I'm headed in the right direction.
>
> Is there a process in place for that level of review earlier? I've
> found that it saves a lot of misunderstandings and time.
>
> --
> Brad Whittington
> BradWhittington.com
> 512-674-5751
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