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Research method
How findings are gathered, compared and recorded before anything is written down.
Order of operations
The method exists to stop the usual failure mode: conclusions arriving before the evidence. Everything below happens in sequence, and each stage has a pass condition before the next one begins.
We are explicit about what a desk-based method can and cannot establish. Published information is strong on specifications, prices and stated terms, and weak on internal reliability, actual capacity and real service levels. The pack says which is which.
- Criteria agreed and written before searching
- Multiple independent sources per material claim
- Single-source figures labelled unverified
- Contradictions surfaced rather than averaged
- Every table normalised onto one frame
From criteria to a documented finding
Each stage has a defined output, so progress is visible rather than implied.
Criteria definition
Your requirements become a written checklist with non-negotiables separated from preferences. Nothing is researched until this is agreed.
Source gathering
We collect published information across listings, specifications, directories, published terms and open catalogues. Source type is recorded, not just the source.
Cross-comparison
Material claims are checked against at least one independent source. Where sources disagree, both positions are recorded with their origins.
Normalisation
Products and channels are placed on one criteria frame so a row can be read against any other row without adjusting for how the data arrived.
Write-up and labelling
Findings are written with inline references. Anything unverified, contradictory or out of date is labelled as such rather than quietly dropped.
What counts as a source, and how it is treated
Corroborated
A figure confirmed by two or more independent sources. Stated plainly in the pack with both references.
- Two or more sources
- Stated as fact
- Both references given
Single source
A figure that appears once and cannot be confirmed. Included, but labelled as unverified wherever it is used.
- One source only
- Labelled unverified
- Never used alone as a basis
Conflicting
Two credible sources that disagree. Both positions are presented with their origins, and the difference is named.
- Both positions shown
- Origins named
- No artificial average
What a desk-based method cannot tell you
Outside the method
We cannot confirm anything that only exists behind a login, inside a company or on a site visit — production capacity, internal quality control, real service history or unpublished commercial terms.
- No site inspection
- No private data access
- No internal system verification
- No unpublished terms
Time-sensitivity
Published information ages. Prices, minimum orders and lead times move, so every pack records the date each source was consulted and you should treat those figures as point-in-time.
- Consultation date recorded
- Point-in-time figures
- Re-check before committing
- No forward guarantees
Want the method applied to your category?
Send the category and the decision you are facing. We will confirm what is researchable.