Whether you are a high school, college, masters, or a doctorate student, it is an imperative that you use credible online sources when writing custom research papers. With more stringent rules set by academic institutions on writing papers, students must be able to adhere to the highest writing standards. One of these is making sure that online sources you use for writing your research paper are credible.
Here are five things to check when writing your research paper
No contact page/contact information. Online sources must contain a contact page or contact information. A lack of this means that the online source is not credible. A contact information provides you with significant details regarding the people or company behind the online source. Without these details, the credibility of the online source gets to be questionable. A contact page allows users and customers and writers to get in contact with the people behind the site. Moreover, an online source with no contact information can make one get easily disappointed.
No online chat/online consultant. Student writers who need to submit custom research papers have to use online sources for references. There are instances when you need a clarification on the reference that you used on real time. It is imperative that you get the answer quickly as there is the possibility that you might have to submit your paper the next day. The quickest way to get an answer is to chat with an online representative or an online consultant. An online source with great credibility must have online chat/online consultant present when you need specific information regarding your paper.
Online sources that have online chat/online consultant show that they provide convenience to their clients. Online chat offers immediate gratification and problem solution to its customers who are student researchers. Websites that have online chat/online consultant provide easy access to the website with their questions and concerns compared to those who lack these.
No information on other sites. Online sources often have journals or articles that use references from multiple sites. Research is never an island. Information is obtained from different sources. They interlink and crosslink with each other. When an online source appears independent from other sites and has no cross-referencing done, then there is the question on the validity of the site.
An online source with no information on other sites might be questionable. Other sites link to other sites based on the site’s credibility. It is possible that an online source might be newly created. This might be a possible excuse that other sites might not have information on it. However, if the site has been online for a number of years and is considered to be an “authority site” and there still are no information on other sites, then its veracity as an authority as a reference is put under question.
Old/creepy design. “Do not judge a book by its cover.” This popular adage might bear a general truth and this can be applied to online sites. However, a credible online source must have a website with well-designed layout. This matters when it comes to online sources. A website with ill-designed or a creepy design reflects the image and branding of an online source. It implies that its owners are not very particular with the way they prepare their website. This decreases the credibility of the online source.
It is true that content is still the best way to gauge the veracity of an online source; however, most customers and clients veer away from online sources with an ill-designed layout. There are studies that show that people give mistrust to online sources that have an old/creepy design. Some of the elements that people mistrust online sources include pop-up advertisements, small print that is hard to read, busy or complex layouts, boring web design or lack of color, slow website intros and load times. With these elements in an online source could make the online source not a credible one.
Too cheap prices. References that have been peer-reviewed had undergone rigorous steps on having its articles verified. Editors have checked whether the article or research is within the standards of the journal. This takes time for the research paper to be approved. It also has to pay its reviewers and editors ample funds. An online source that has too cheap prices when it comes to the use of its references imply that the online source might be a predator journal and it is not really a legitimate online source. You, as a student writer, who has to finish custom research papers must make sure of the credibility of the online sources that you have used as your reference. If your reference is not credible, the paper you are writing loses its credibility as well.
There is the myth that open-access journals have low quality. Despite this being the norm for a number of years in the academic arena, it has been refuted that open access journals can still have high quality despite what most academicians believed in. On the contrary, an online source that usually sells its articles with too cheap prices might not have high credibility.
In Conclusion
Student writers and student researchers in all academic levels must base their custom research papers on credible and verifiable sources. Online sources that writers like you must clearly have signs that they are credible and must veer away from signs that make the online source not credible.
This article has summarized that the online source must have an online contact page, an online consultant, must have information on other sites, must not have an old or creepy design, and must not have cheap prices. Example of such resource may be essaybasics.com. These signs clearly indicate what a writer must do in order to have a reference that is clearly credible. Checking out for these 5 signs will ensure that your paper will be of the highest writing standard that deserves an excellent mark from your professor. Doing these will make your academic life a better one.
