A lot of creators make informational videos, covering everything from science news to celebrity scandals. However, because anyone can say whatever they want on the internet, it’s easy to get your facts wrong. Sharing misinformation, even unknowingly, can damage your credibility in the future.

Therefore, if you’re going to create an informational video, it’s vital that you do thorough research. Here’s how to do research for your videos.

Use Google Scholar to find reputable sources.

Typically, a simple Google search is good enough for finding the information you’re after. However, if you intend to share that information with others through a video, then you should take extra precautions to ensure the sources you’re using are reputable.

Utilize Google Scholar to automatically filter out unreliable sources. This search engine feature presents you with research papers and other academically published works, weeding outsources like blog posts and Reddit threads.

Find multiple sources that say the same thing.

To further validate your information, find other sources that back up what your main sources have to say. The more sources you can find that agree with your original source, the more valid that information is.

You should also look for sources from different places. Use articles from a variety of authors, universities, locations, and perspectives. You can find other sources to look for in the reference section or the citations of your main source.

Get into contact with experts.

The best information comes straight from the source. To get the most up-to-date information for your video, get into contact with an expert. You can start by emailing the author of the best source you found.

You might also get into contact with experts who were interviewed or quoted in the articles you read. If you’re unable to get their emails, then you find them on Twitter or LinkedIn and send them a message. Ask if you can interview them for a YouTube video.

Save your sources and share them in your video descriptions.

Your viewers won’t know you used reputable sources unless you share them. So, as you research, save the link to every article or video you plan to reference. You might even collect ones that viewers can check out if they want to read further into the subject of your video.

Then, before you publish your video, put the links to your sources in the description. You might also link them in information cards at the points in your video where they’re referenced.

As a content creator, credibility is an important part of your reputation. In order for viewers to view you as a reputable source, you need to back up your facts with reputable sources.