The Recommendation Report Overview explains the basic requirement for primary and secondary research for your report. This guide will help you understand what you need to find to support your analysis and recommendations. First, I’ll explain the difference between the two kinds of research, and then I’ll share suggestions for collecting what you need.

Primary vs. Secondary Research

Primary research is information that you gather personally. It includes data such as the following:

What makes these kinds of research different from secondary research is that you (and your group) measure and record the information. It wasn’t collected by someone else outside your group.

Secondary research is information that someone else has found or observed. You had nothing to do with collecting the details. Sure, you searched online or in the library, but the information you found was originally collected by someone else.

Primary Research for Your Recommendation Report

You and the members of your group can gather information on your website that you can then use in your report to persuade your reader why they should consider and accept your recommendations.

As you gather information, remember to collect visual and/or audio evidence of your findings too. Take screenshots or record videos that you can use to illustrate your report and show the reader what you find. Showing your audience evidence is always more convincing than just telling them about what you found.

The list below outlines some ways you and your group can collect primary research.

Secondary Research for Your Recommendation Report

You’re probably very comfortable with secondary research. I’m sure you search out webpages, journal articles, videos, and books all the time. For your recommendation report, you’ll want to find sources about writing online content, website design, and usability. Here are some useful sources that I recommend: