From the latest cricket match and the top actors of Hollywood, to the current food craze and the top business news of the world, the blogosphere is filled with every topic you can imagine. But if you are thinking of posting about something, wait and read this blog completely before doing so.
Current scenario in blogging
As it happens in all fields, there are some basic guidelines and principles in writing which a content developer has to comply with. These are the basic tenets of any professional blog writing services and has to be complied with at all times.
One such important principle is the healthy practice of quoting sources for figures, statistics, verbatim quotes, and crucial facts.
Why is quoting sources essential?
1 – For credibility
The internet has brought a vast amount of information to users. With the help of just a single click, you can know the weather in Japan and the piracy situation in China. With this tremendous information overload, sometimes it becomes difficult to trace the source of an idea or a story. By quoting your sources, you would be providing credit to the person who has taken tremendous hard work to write the article or post. By providing credit to whom it is due, you would be protecting your blog’s reputation as well as an immunity in case of any legal trouble.
2 – For extra information
Sometimes, a reader might want extra information on a particular topic. So for instance if we have talked about blogging, and referenced an industry authority like Neil Patel for the same, then we can add this source. This way, if the reader is interested in an in-depth guide then he can visit the site and gain extra knowledge.
PS: The hyperlink above is a classic example of a quoting the source
3 – For protection from plagiarism charges
Quoting sources on another author’s intellectual property saves you from plagiarism charges. There are various formats for citation styles but the main thing to remember is to never forget the source. Representing someone’s ideas, words or thoughts as your own is nothing less than thievery. The content would be counted as stealing if you do not quote the proper source.
Ways to cite sources in a blog
By following generally accepted etiquette on sharing content on the internet, you can earn a great amount of goodwill and a loyal fan following. Some simple ways to cite sources in a blog are:
- Directly naming the author.
- Through the use of footnotes.
- A bibliography which contains all your sources.
- A hyperlink to the source URL so that if a reader click on it, he gets re-directed to the source URL
When to cite a source of information?
As an expert in blog writing services, you may wonder when to cite the source. The below are some scenarios inside a blog when you can cite a source:
- When summarizing a paragraph
- When quoting directly
- When using diagrams, graphs, or pictures
- When using an idea that came from someone else’s work
- When taking an exact passage from the source
To conclude
If the original work has been copyrighted reproducing the same in your blog would count as a criminal activity and you can be subjected to criminal prosecution. By just taking a minute of to provide proper citation you can save yourself from a lot of troubles.
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