Both newbies and experienced virtual assistants are often required to carry out a research task for their clients once in a while, if not, always. This is due to the fact that clients save a lot of time handling their responsibilities when they have all the information necessitated. Relatively, you are aware that research has a lot of advantages for business people, such as in formulating a new marketing strategy, analyzing competitors, and improving products or services.

If you want to step up your game in doing research, you should learn the top five tips to apply when doing the task.

1. Focus on authoritative sites. Always remember that when you say “authoritative,” these are sites that have a good reputation, particularly in releasing facts on their platform. To make it easier for you to identify them, keep in mind that they are often found on the first page of results when searching. There is a typical reason why they are in their positions – their websites are gaining a high level of traffic, which is synonymous to having a lot of visitors.

Avoid using references that are written by random people. For instance, if you are looking for information on health-related topics, it is best to settle with what physicians have to say.

2. Never limit your research into a written output. Your client would prefer that your research is easily readable. Indeed, you may shorten or summarize the topic, but it does not mean that you cannot explore other media in presenting your research. For instance, if you want to show the statistics on the feasibility of developing a real estate business in a certain country, infographics could be a good choice of presentation.

Alternatively, if your client requires assistance in navigating a software application, a video tutorial works best.

3. Do not make yourself a copy-paste researcher. You should never, ever taint your reputation as a good researcher by copying all information from the web. Be reminded that as a virtual assistant, you must be fully aware that it is your responsibility to make your work as concise as possible.

Include the most important facts only and do not put too many examples (which can be a typical thing in some articles). For instance, you need to list the tips in keeping your credit score on track, you may only include the ones that are often advised in most of the articles you found. This only means that such tips are the best ones to follow.

Remember, your client has very limited time to read everything you have researched. In the said short amount of time, he or she should already learn from your output.

4. Always choose up-to-date references. You will encounter various sources online, which are written years before. As much as possible, you select references that are published in your current year. This must be strictly observed if your research involves topics that are constantly being studied by professionals. A good example is the stock market trend, which may change due to the behavior of the players over time and other external factors.

5. Presentation should never be disregarded at all costs. You may have presented your facts right with your research, but all could go downhill if your presentation makes it hard to read. Be reminded that your client values how you present your output.

Ensure that your document is formatted accordingly with the same font style, font size, font color, and spacing all throughout. If you need to use images, ensure that each has a considerable resolution and is resized properly.

With the aforementioned tips, you would have easier means of accomplishing your common task at work. Remember that even if research is a typically manageable activity, it should not be taken lightly. Know that even the busiest clients will see what type of employee you are with your simple research work.