Key takeaways:

  • Research is your guide: Research helps guide early content planning, keyword choices and SME interviews.
  • Don’t take shortcuts: With information easily accessible online, it’s tempting to take advantage of time-savers when gathering web content research. But these shortcuts can weaken your content’s impact and credibility.
  • Get multiple perspectives: Well-rounded web content research involves a variety of sources and perspectives to avoid biases and inaccuracies.


Author: Addy Werling
Last updated: 04/16/25

Great web content doesn’t start with a blank page — it starts with research. Whether I’m crafting a thought leadership article, service line content resource or a health IT product landing page, the research phase lays the foundation for content that’s accurate, engaging and built to perform.

Keep reading to discover five key research steps I’ve learned that will set up your web content for success — and four common research shortcuts to avoid.

5 research steps that can make or break your web content

The first step in your web writing research is identifying what you already know and what content gaps you need to fill.

1. Plan for content early

Begin by creating a content outline based on the project brief. This will help you discover the key questions you need to answer and the main topics to cover in your web content research. Depending on how comprehensive your project or content brief is, you may need to ask for added information such as:

  • Audience research: Review the target audience for the web content and make sure you’re addressing their needs.
  • Competitive analysis: Review previously published blogs, articles and other content from competitors to identify relevant points already covered and gaps that you could cover that would add value.
  • Analytics: Review performance on similar content topics to inform your research.

2. Evaluate credible sources

Reputation matters — including the reputation of your sources. As you’re researching for your next web writing project, make sure that you tap into reputable resources for information. That can include:

  • Your own SMEs
  • Reputable national or state organizations and associations
  • Recognized journals and researchers
  • Academic research centers

Pro-tip: Look for .gov, .edu and .org domains when evaluating sources.

It’s helpful to keep a master list of trusted sources to streamline your future research efforts. Listing sources in your document as you go keeps your work organized and efficient and makes it easy to revisit and cite references and links later.

3. Use research to inform SEO

Effective research doesn’t just improve content accuracy, it also can strengthen your SEO strategy. Your research can guide smarter decisions by helping you:

  • Identify keyword opportunities — especially high-volume, low-competition terms that match your content topics
  • Analyze top-ranking pages — to understand what makes them successful
  • Uncover search intent — to recognize not just what people are searching for, but why

Beyond traditional research methods, tracking social media conversations, trending topics and user-generated content can provide real-time insights into what your audience cares about.

Some useful tools for social listening and trend analysis include:

  • Google Trends: See how interest in certain topics fluctuates over time.
  • AnswerThePublic: Discover common questions people ask about your topic.
  • Reddit: Find direct audience pain points and emerging industry trends.

By incorporating social listening into your research process, you can create content that directly addresses current concerns and trending discussions, making it timelier and more engaging.

5. Prepare for SME interviews

Research is crucial for SME interviews. Reading up on the experts and the given topic can help you ask informed, focused questions. It also can help you identify pain points your audience might struggle with or want to learn more about. Use these findings as a guide for your interview.

Strong preparation also gives you the awareness to adapt and ask follow-up questions during the interview when you need clarification or find important information. This is where the heart of the content is.

Send your questions to the SME beforehand to help them prepare. They’ll have time to reflect on your questions and bring more thoughtful answers.

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Avoid these 4 research mistakes that can hurt your web content

With so much information easily accessible online, it’s tempting to cut corners during web content research. But these shortcuts can weaken your content’s impact and credibility.

1. Using AI for your web writing research

AI can be a valuable brainstorming tool, but it shouldn’t replace proper web writing research.

AI-generated content often lacks transparency regarding where information comes from, making it difficult to know if it’s reliable or accurate. Some AI models may even be trained on outdated or biased information.

Instead, use AI to brainstorm, create an outline and guide your web content research.

2. Sticking with one source

Well-rounded web content research involves a variety of sources and perspectives to avoid biases and inaccuracies. Cross-checking facts across multiple sources is a good practice to gather multiple perspectives and ensure accuracy.

3. Not investing in fact-checking

Using non-credible sources or not backing up your claims can damage your brand’s trustworthiness. Take your research seriously.

Two helpful tips for fact-checking:

  • Go upstream: This is a common practice of finding the original source of a claim, survey or research. You don’t want to base your information on someone else’s opinion. For example, if you cite a research study, find the original one.
  • Cross-reference: If you’re citing a study or research, try to compare the information with at least two other credible sources.

4. Copying and pasting sources

Just because you’re citing a source doesn’t mean you should use the content word-for-word. Rewrite the information in plain language, matching it to your brand’s writing style and using it to tell a story.

Keep your audience in mind as you edit the piece. Don’t cram your web content with statistics and facts that lack context and meaning. Remember: you’re telling a story. Your goal is to present complex information in a way that’s accessible, valuable and memorable.

Let WG Content create your research-driven web content

Even if your content team has all the right tools and strategies, conducting in-depth research takes time. The content strategists and writers at WG Content specialize in creating engaging, research-driven content for your readers.

Contact us to learn how we can help scale your content needs and take your web content to the next level.


More tips on researching your next content project:

For healthcare content, stick to reputable organizations, such as:

  • Academic research centers
  • Government agencies like the National Institutes of Health
  • Leading health systems, like the Mayo Clinic

Look for .gov, .edu and .org domains. It’s also a good idea to check for citations. Claims should be backed up by primary research or linked to reliable studies.

Aim for sources less than five years old to keep content relevant. Check publication dates and citations to ensure credibility.

Research studies are often long, complex and filled with jargon. Start by reading the abstract and results sections to draw out the most important points. Then, break it down into clear, accessible language by choosing simpler words and adding explanations where needed. Once you’ve got the facts, spice it up with your brand’s flair — including voice, tone and other distinguishing factors.

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