A fair number of times in recent months, writers have asked me about using citations in their work. The typical question is, “When do I need to cite my sources, and what’s the best way to do that?” It’s an excellent question. Because, giving proper credit to your sources is important. When you take the time to credit your sources, a lot of good things happen. First, you help your reader. You provide them with additional, valuable information beyond your own work. And, you make it easy for them to look at your sources and learn even more. You also help your reader by showing them you’re trustworthy, that you don’t pass off other people’s ideas as your own. And, you allow them to draw their own conclusions by giving them a way to evaluate the information you’ve used to reach your conclusions. Second, you help the people who’ve helped you. When you include sources in your work, it adds depth and richness to what you’re writing. It’s only right to provide credit. And, when you do, you help build the credibility of your sources, and you might even send a little traffic their way. You could also help their standings with Google. Finally, you help yourself. By citing your sources, you add weight and credibility to your work. You build your own authority when you show you’re relying on good sources. And, I mentioned it before, but it bears mentioning again… you also help your reader to trust you. Citing sources is a good idea, but when exactly should you do it?
Add Citations to Your Work When…
You can be as generous with citing sources as you choose. But, there are a few times when it’s absolutely essential to cite your source, if you want to stay on the right side of ethics. Any time you’re citing a study or referencing data or statistics, and you’re not the one who did the research and the calculations, then you need to include a citation. This makes sense on a lot of levels. Someone did a lot of hard work to come up with the numbers you’re using in your article, so you want to recognize that hard work by giving them credit. Also, not every study is as well-designed as the next one. When you site a source, providing a link to your reader lets them go review the methodology of the study or survey to see for themselves how well it was put together. Another time you always need to include a citation is when you’re directly quoting an expert, an influencer, or really anybody. If the words you’re using came from someone else, put them in quotes, and include an attribution. Any time you’re referencing a specific idea you learned from someone else, provide a credit to that person. And then, any visuals you use, you should provide a credit for. The exception might be stock images that don’t require citations. You don’t need to provide a source for things that are considered common knowledge. So, for example, if in your research on baking, you come across 10 different articles saying you need steam in the oven when making bread, you don’t necessarily need to cite a specific source. But, it’s still good to say something like, “I encountered multiple sources that talked about using steam in the oven when baking bread.” And, you might link to your favorite. On the other hand, if you’re an experienced baker, and you know all about using steam in the oven, then you don’t need to reference that at all, because you’re drawing on personal experience. (This is a made-up example, by the way. I have no idea whether steam in the oven with baking bread is a good thing.) When you’re working with common knowledge that’s new to you, if you’ve found one or two sources particularly helpful in getting you up to speed, it’s good manners to give them credit. Now you know when to offer credit, the next question is how do you include your sources in your work?
The Best Way to Include Citations in Your Writing
There isn’t a single right way to give credit. You have several different approaches you can take. If you’re working with a client, ask them if they have a standard approach, and then use it. If this is for your own site, come up with an approach you like and use it consistently. My most common method of including citations is to work them directly into my copy. So, I might say, according to research conducted by eMarketer, Snapchat is experiencing strong growth in Asia-Pacific nations. Notice, I reference eMarketer in the copy, and I provide a link directly to the source, so the reader can easily explore the data further. That’s my favorite approach. But, it’s not the only approach. You could include your source in parentheses after you share the information. That would look like this: Snapchat is experiencing strong growth in India and other Asia-Pacific nations, especially when compared to its growth in North America. (eMarketer, Jan. 21, 2022) Again, I’m linking directly to the page I’m referencing, not the eMarketer homepage. A third option is to include a footnote or end note. In that case, you would put a superscript number after the information and then have a corresponding number at the end of your article with the citation. This is my least favorite method, unless I’m using a mix of online and offline sources. A couple other helpful notes about good etiquette and using citations…
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If you’re citing a source, check to see if they have attribution or content usage guidelines on their site and then follow their guidelines. You can see an example of that from Hubspot right here.
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If you’re citing a primary source (always good), but you only found the primary source because of another blogger or influencer, it’s nice to give them a nod, as well.
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Sometimes you don’t use a specific idea, number, or quote in your work, but it’s still inspired by the work of others. When that’s the case, I like to thank them and give a link to their site or to their most active social media page.
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When you cite someone, let them know. Drop them a note through email or social media, saying, “Great work. I’m sharing some of your insights with my readers, here.” And then give them the link.
The Internet was built on sharing. It’s good to share links and information and ideas. But, the internet was also built on transparency, so let people know where your information and ideas come from. And give them a link, so they can see it for themselves. When you do, you’ll build trust with your readers, you’ll treat your sources with respect, and you’ll grow your own reputation in the process.
