Faye Turner
7 min Read Time | August 10th 2021
Key Takeaways
Finding good sources can be a puzzle. This challenge can be broken down into two parts:
1) Finding the most useful sources (check our toolkit of recommended sources)
2) Verifying their credibility (more information here)
After reviewing thousands of analyses and checking tens of thousands of sources, we now have a pretty clear idea of how to go about it.
This article gives you the 4 simple steps to follow for effective and thorough research.
1/ Find a topic that interests you, provided by the Topic Selector.
Browse hundreds of available topics on a multitude of companies. All topics are available for the certification and reward.
2/ As a precautionary measure, go on the company’s page that you've chosen and see which topics are covered.
By doing so, you will notice the topics that have already been written about and avoid any duplicates, in case the Topic Seletor's algorithm has missed some.
3/ Do online research, the smart way
You now have an idea of which company you would like to cover, and perhaps a rough understanding of the topics of interest.
Now it is time to get proactive and to seek out information that is impact-worthy (i.e credible, relevant, accurate, objective… see more here on what makes a good source) while making sure that it is written (or can be translated) in English and the source is publicly available.
For this, we recommend:
For more information on online search tactics, you should check our dedicated post.
4/ Go for primary sources and not secondary ones
The source type is very important. There are several types of sources, but the two most common ones are primary and secondary. But what’s the difference?
Primary sources are as close to the origin of the information (immediate, authoritative), providing first-hand accounts of an event or time period. They are most frequently the first formal appearance of original research.
Interviews, official statistics, historical documents, studies, annual reports, etc.
Secondary sources are interpretations, summaries, or analyses of primary sources.
Articles, textbooks, magazines, reviews, blogs, etc.
You should always try to use primary sources, which are often more reliable and less distorted by opinions or interpretations.
If you follow these simple steps, you should soon become a maestro in research.
Feel free to add your own best practices and favourite sources in the comments section!
With the right investment companies having a positive impact on the planet are able to flourish. Our community forms part of that mission by measuring their impact.
