SOURCES OF INFORMATION: HOW TO CHECK AND WHICH TO TRUST
Information without a link to the original source is manipulative. It’s either plagiarism, where the author wants to claim an interesting idea as their own, or the author’s idea to mislead you with facts you can’t check. Correctly classifying and using information sources is one of the key skills for a marketer.
“The original source of information should be presented reliably, scientifically, and clearly. It is what helps make the best decisions and achieve the desired results”.
Victor Person, an Austrian philosopher.
Important: This material is meant for marketers and its main goal is to teach beginner bloggers how to prepare comprehensive manuals, reliable materials, and instructions.
What we mean by reliability and comprehensiveness is the ability to easily check information, the ability for the author to support their ideas with links to more authoritative sources than themselves. But first, let’s look at what kinds of information sources there are for advertising material.
What we will talk about
Terminology
“The first thing you need to do before starting research is to make sure you adequately understand the terms”. These words belong to Sergey Bezlubenko, a Doctor of Philosophy.
Choosing information sources determines the direction of your work: the more reliable the sources, the more credible the material. What is not embedded in the GPT chat, researchers should adhere to — citing information, supporting their ideas with existing ones, turning to experienced colleagues for a review or comment.
Material without information sources, especially on a popular topic, resembles the hero of the meme “Let me copy your homework. Just not word for word”. Such materials do not differ from one another, except for “text uniqueness” of 98%, verified by the Unicheck or Smodin service, or similar. They carry no practical benefit to readers. You can see for yourself by searching for “Interesting facts about February 14th” or something like that.
An information source is a text, data, visual or oral information that serves as a basis for ideas, assertions, or refutation of information. Wikipedia
To understand how sources function, let’s look at their classification. First, we’ll turn to the base: historiography, and then we’ll choose a model for searching sources for advertising material.
Classic types of information sources
Going through the classics can be as exciting as reading a newspaper in a data center, so let’s quickly refresh the basics and move on. To make the reading more varied, I’ll try to provide examples for marketers.
In short: primary sources are cited by secondary sources as their basis. However, sometimes secondary sources can act as primary sources if accessing the original sources directly is not possible.
Primary Information Sources
Primary sources are eyewitness accounts and official documents. They appear first, containing information that has not been published elsewhere.
Example
Example for marketers: primary sources include experiments conducted by marketers. For instance, Georgiy Ryaboy from Netpeak conducted research on how Google indexes old content and shared the results of this study, which was conducted in 2017.
If someone wants to conduct similar research now, they can refer to Georgiy’s study and draw parallels. For a marketer, a primary source is official information from services or companies: Google’s Help Center, Facebook, etc.
Secondary Information Sources
Secondary sources are books or scientific journals. They interpret primary sources, providing explanations, according to Wikipedia. From a scholarly perspective: an article is a primary source, while a review of this article is a secondary source; an eyewitness’s diary entry is a primary source, and a history book using this fact is a second-tier source.
Usually, secondary sources are reports, works, or studies that analyze, digest, evaluate, and interpret primary sources. They are not always authoritative but can be useful if the issue is debatable, suggesting multiple solutions.
Example
An example of a secondary information source is an interview with Neil Patel “Best SEO Link Building Practices for 2013”. The well-known marketer reviews a primary source (the fact of Google’s Penguin algorithm release). Theoretically, if someone wants to compare backlink strategies over different periods, they can refer to this interview to understand the evolution of the method.
Tertiary Information Sources
Tertiary sources compile the previous two types of sources. They explain, analyze, or interpret primary and secondary sources without claiming originality. Their goal is to make information accessible and convenient.
Example
This material (what you are reading now) is a tertiary information source. It collects facts, tables, and a checklist to help marketers select reliable sources for their materials.
Books and encyclopedias are also examples of third-level sources. At the same time, the difference between secondary and tertiary sources is slight.
Types of information sources for marketers
Types of information sources for marketers
Marketers are neither scientists nor journalists, for whom working with information sources is a pressing need. In this field, general principles of media literacy and checking are enough.
Sources can be classified into three categories:
- 1st place: historical, official
- 2nd place: scientific, authoritative
- 3rd place: verified
#1 Historical and Official Information Sources
At the top are historical and official sources — these are what you should refer to at the beginning of your research. These are primary information sources that are cited, discussed, and explained by other marketers. This is the basis for conducting experiments.
Examples of official sources for marketers
- General
- Country legislative documents
- Google Help Center
- YouTube Help
- SEO
- Advertising
- Paid Social
You should start your research with these sources. For example, if you need to write a guide on using DSA, the first step would be to find official information in the Google Ads help section, rather than looking for help in articles from search results, even if they rank higher than the official document. The second step is to see what authoritative sources have written about this issue, and the third step is to see what competitors think. This is the sequence to follow.
If any bill is passed, such as one regulating the collection of information on the internet, the law itself will be the primary source, not a publication in the NYT.
#2 Scientific and Authoritative Information Sources
Scientific and authoritative information sources are essentially secondary sources; they interpret, comment on, explain, or supplement primary sources. These can be printed specialized publications, internet publications, meetings, exhibitions, conferences, interviews with experts.
You should always turn to scientific and authoritative sources: to formulate hypotheses, to search for non-obvious solutions, for experimental ideas. Such sources often complement official ones, which is good. It’s problematic when they start to be considered primary sources and treated as official information.
Among authoritative sources, there are also authoritative pseudos. We will look at them a bit later in the Unreliable sources section.
Examples of scientific and authoritative sources for marketers
- Company blogs
- Blogs of renowned marketers
- Online publications
- Google The Keyword blog
- Official Google journal Think with Google
- Wikipedia (especially interesting is the bibliography section)
- Social networks (for example, Twitter accounts of CEOs like Google’s CEO)
- Marketing books
#3 Verified and Reliable Sources
Verified sources for marketers include competitors’ blogs, partners, and authoritative marketers not yet universally recognized. For example, competitors might have conducted a marketing analysis or described a case study.
An example of a verified but not authoritative source could be comments from a specialist (but not an expert). For instance, if you have a very complex and understudied topic, and the only material is a comment from a designer at a competing company, it’s better to reformulate the topic and try to search again. But if you still can’t find anything, you can refer to this comment. Also, don’t forget to send a request to this professional about your topic; perhaps you’re at the forefront of new research.
Examples of verified sources for marketers
- Industry competitors’ blogs
- Partners’ blogs
The examples of verified sources will vary for everyone. The more experience in the profession, the more reliable your sources — it takes years to verify the truthfulness, ethics, and intentions of marketers who decide to share information.
Often, what is a reliable source for a beginner marketer may not be so for someone more experienced.
It’s bad practice to start and finish your research based solely on reliable sources (they are tertiary sources). Remember your master’s thesis: you couldn’t cite other bachelor’s theses, just as in a dissertation, you can’t refer to a master’s thesis — only to research of the same level or higher.
If competitors write about a well-known topic or problem, there’s no need to cite them — they won’t say anything extraordinary, and their level of expertise is practically equal to yours. It’s better to look for primary sources to confirm your hypothesis, then your article will appear more professional.
However, if your market colleagues have conducted research, reviews, experiments, or created useful infographics, of course, it’s possible and necessary to cite them. But don’t forget to support these references and arguments with more authoritative sources.
Suspicious Information Sources
Doubts about any source are important and one of the main principles in the work of reporters and all journalists.
David Randall, “The Universal Journalist”
When Primary Sources Become Suspicious
According to definitions, official information sources are both authoritative and reliable. In the era of information wars, this is not always the case. The president of a certain country may deliberately provide false information while still being categorized as an official source. We understand this is absurd. Therefore, the rule of primary sources can be grossly violated when propaganda intervenes — always remember this.
Fortunately, we are not journalists or involved in information wars, but choosing reliable sources still requires hygiene. For example, a blogger with a dubious reputation conducts an experiment and shares the results. Why are they doing this?
Understanding people’s motives is important. Sometimes the motive is encapsulated in an already outdated term — hype.
For marketers, for example: Google does not warn about updates to search algorithms, so the absence of official information does not mean the event did not occur. In such cases, second-tier sources can help: blogs of well-known marketers and online publications.
When Authoritative Sources Are Actually Pretenders
All information about the author, publication must be provided in full. Academic degrees do not guarantee the authoritativeness of the source, but it’s a first sign to question the information.
I personally know at least one marketer with successful advertising courses who, apart from general education school, has no further education. This leads to two thoughts. First: the specialist did not have the time or other resources to obtain higher education. And second: to conduct specialized courses, school education is enough. I lean towards the first conclusion and would never even consider such a specialist as a third-level source.
Where Pseudo-Authoritative Sources are Most Often Found
- Platforms: medium.com, quora.com, etc.
- Authors’ blogs on social networks and Web 2.0 platforms.
Starting your career in marketing, you automatically become a suspicious source. Therefore, it’s important to state your education, position, company, work experience, and links to cases to increase trust factors.
To check information effectively, consider these key aspects:
Reliability
- Documents with Identifiers: Look for a stamp, responsible person’s name, signature, and date. You can check page changes using the Wayback Machine.
- In the Publication: The author’s name, position, work experience, or specialization should be indicated.
- On the Page: Information about registration, company location, phone number, and email should be available, along with links to social networks.
- Photos or Screenshots: Should be unique and verifiable via Google Image.
Currency
- Information Freshness: Publication or update dates should be mentioned. However, be cautious with updates — often, they are auto-updates meant to improve search engine rankings rather than actual content updates. You can verify freshness by checking if screenshots in the content are outdated compared to the claimed update year.
- Wayback Machine: Can show if page versions vary. Truly authoritative sources will highlight the text that was updated to save you from investigative efforts.
- Website Design: A fresh, modern design indicates reliability. Popular sources, which are usually reliable, regularly redesign to meet standards like Google’s.
Comprehensiveness
- Adequate References: The content should have enough references to other sources (if it’s a secondary source). A lack of references almost certainly indicates a pseudo-authoritative source.
- Screenshots and Illustrations: Pay attention to dates in screenshots. Even if some data are blurred, human error can leave clues.
How to Check an Information Source
Reputation
What is the source’s image in the professional community? Is it invited to conferences, has it been published in other outlets, and what kind of outlets were they? How often do peers cite it? Has it worked in “black” niches (casinos, cryptocurrency, etc.)?
Competence
What education does the author have, what are their areas of interest, and work experience?
Bias
How does the author use information sources, does he provide links to primary sources, does he attribute quotes? If his work lacks any references to market peers, competitors, other researchers, and the information is presented one-sidedly, the question of bias arises.
How to Cite Information Sources
“Citing information sources, you transfer the responsibility for the accuracy of a certain fact. However, opinions must have an author, otherwise, the reader might think it belongs to the reporter. But facts are different”.
Irving Feng, professor of journalism.
You can cite a source in the text, making the name or title of the material clickable. It’s not advisable to place a link on the word “here”.
“An abundance of links complicates the development of the story; it’s hard to follow. On the other hand, material without links resembles a comment. Credibility is achieved through accurate and thoughtful references”.
Irving Feng, professor of journalism.
At the end of the article, you can format a bibliography as in a scientific paper. Both these options are acceptable.
A few years ago, SEO experts had a theory that a page should have a limited number of outgoing links. Now, this is considered a mistake, and not providing a link to the primary source is seen as bad form. For example, the Yoast service immediately warns that the material needs at least one outgoing link.
Checklist: How to Verify Information Sources
Conclusions
- There are three classic types of information sources: primary, secondary, and tertiary.
- For marketers, we can also name three types of sources:
- 1st place — historical, official;
- 2nd place — scientific, authoritative;
- 3rd place — verified.
- Research should start with studying official sources.
- Any information source can be considered suspicious until proven otherwise.
- Relying on pseudo-authoritative sources is not advisable.
- There are clear criteria for checking information and its sources.
- Referencing information sources is a must: this way, you promote the opinion of other researchers and show your professionalism in selecting sources.
- And one more thing: be like cats, check your sources. By the way, the source of fluffy is Midjourney: the network presents cats as those who verify information.
The material was prepared by Julia Sotnikova, a specialist in journalism, graduated from DonNU in 2010, has 4 years of experience in journalism, and 10+ years of experience in marketing.
