Information is here. Information is there. Information is everywhere.
In a world that is crammed with information, how do you focus on the important ones? How do you separate the facts from the fiction? How do you ensure that what you get is free from any personal bias or views?
Whether you are in business or in academics or in any other field, and if you want to stay informed or make informed decisions, you need hard facts and objective informative details.
For that, you need informational reports.
But, what are they? How important are they? Can you write one by yourself?
So many questions and we have all the answers right here in this blog. So without further ado, let’s get down to the basics of informational reports!
What is an Informational Report? (Definition)
An informational report is a factual text which provides information in an organized and objective way, without analysis or recommendations.
Basically, it’s all about reporting facts. So, it often includes data, details, feedback, or any other type of information about any topic or event.
One major element of informational reports is that they don’t contain any arguments. They are always objective and maintain a neutral position that is free from personal views or of bias.
The purpose of these reports is to present detailed facts and inform the readers so that they can make a decision. Hence, the information inside an informational report is specific, complete, and relevant.
An informational report is usually read by officers, board of directors, and stockholders of a company, but depending on the contents of the report, it can be available or anyone in the company.
Some examples of informational reporting include decision-making reports, policy reports, compliance reports, status reports, etc.
Seems pretty basic, right? So, why are they important in a business? Let’s find out!
Benefits of Creating an Informational Report
1. Medium Of Communication
In big companies, there is often a huge workflow that deals with multiple branches, departments, and teams. Any form of verbal communication often gets lost in that chain or network of people, which is why written reports are a crucial medium of communication for all.
Their main purpose is to communicate information to people and that is exactly what informational reports do because they aim to provide facts and details to all their readers. These are passed on from one person to another; thus, everyone is equipped with first-hand data.
2. Gathers and Organizes Data
An information report helps gather information about your company’s growth history, project details, and many other important areas. All of this information will be stored in a single place concisely and understandably for the people to access. It ensures that all data will be organized and designed in a standard format.
3. Accurate and Objective
Nobody writes their personal opinion or views in an informational report because they are purely based on facts and accurate information or data which are taken at face value. They are always neutral in their approach, which is why they do not contain any arguments and remain free from bias. Thus, these information reports always provide an accurate and objective picture of the subject or topic.
4. Facilitates Decision-Making
Since information reports provide a full factual picture of the subject or topics they present, it makes it easy for businesses to keep track of their revenues, expenses, operations, and other activities. All these data help management make decisions for the company.
There is communication, the flow of information, and interaction, all of which facilitate or pave way for decision-making within a company.
Now that you know the importance of informational reports, let’s take a look at the steps involved in making one!
Important Elements To Consider When Creating Informational Report
Most reports follow a very simple and basic structure during the writing process. Informational reports are no exception to that.
But, before we look at the writing process of an informational report, let’s consider some basic things to keep in mind to ensure that your report is in good order.
1. Brainstorming for Topics
The first thing that you must do before writing any informational report is to brainstorm topics. The goal is to inform the audience about a specific subject, so you have to pick the right topic for it. Make sure that you settle on a topic that will allow you to do proper research and present facts objectively.
Avoid choosing broad topics as that may result in a very long informational report. Try to narrow down even within broad topics so that it is a well-focused report which will help maintain focus.
2. Research on Topic
Researching is the next logical step after choosing a topic for your informational report. The main purpose here is to ensure that your report is purely based on facts and credible sources rather than on personal arguments. Avoid anything that appears unclear and focus on reporting only accurate information. Make sure that you cross-reference your facts and data to maintain consistency in your reports.
3. Keep a Target Audience in Mind
When writing an informational report or any report for that matter, always have a target audience in your mind. You should be aware of who all would want to read your report and why they would want to read it in the first place. It is also based on this factor that you kick-start your informational report.
4. Write Informational Report
Once you have data and information gathered and have also completed your research, you are ready to start writing your informational report. For this, you must have an idea of how you are going to write your report. The usual format includes an introduction, main body, and a conclusion.
Now that we have discussed some elements to keep in mind before writing an informational report, let’s dive into the actual writing part!
How to Create an Informational Report? (Process)
Step 1. Start With Introduction
Every single report needs to have an introductory section. It must be the first paragraph you write, where you establish or introduce your topic and aim to hook your readers with it. It should be brief and simple to understand.
You can include your thesis statement here. It should be the last sentence of your introduction to your information report. It is usually just a few lines that capture the main idea or message of your report. It makes the writing process more focused and helps you decide what to include and exclude in your informational report.
Step 2. Include the Main Body
The main body is where you present your facts and discuss your topic. Here you give a detailed report of all the data you gathered in an easy-to-understand manner. You can summarize, paraphrase or use direct quotes to ensure that your report retains all the major information.
You can also break down the content in your main body into headings and sub-headings so that there is a flow in your writing that keeps all your information organized.
Step 3. Use Visual Elements
A major point to keep in mind while writing an information report is to incorporate visual elements like graphs, tables, figures, maps or images, whenever possible. You can include them in the main body in order to back your information with visual evidence. Doing so not only helps you present data in a much more engaging way but also makes it easy for people to understand.
Step 4. Write a Conclusion
No report is complete without a concluding paragraph. This section is where you provide any final details, sum up your report and draw a conclusion. You can re-emphasize the major points discussed in the main body of your report and wrap the whole thing up.
The rule of thumb to remember here is that a conclusion section should never introduce any new points or information that was never included in the report.
Step 5. Include Glossary and Bibliography
A glossary is the definition of the list of all the technical words or jargon that you used in your informational report. Including this will ensure that your readers don’t feel lost while coming across technical terms.
The bibliography is all the sources that you used as references during the writing process of your information report. It can include anything from books, research papers, journals, reports, etc. This ensures credibility to your report and provides further details to anyone who wants to do advanced research.
Read More: Report Writing: Steps, Tips & Tools!
Step 6. Proofread Your Informational Report
Now that you have completed the entire writing process, the only thing left for you to do is to proofread and ensure that all your facts and data are accurate and free from personal bias. Look for spelling errors, grammatical mistakes, inconsistencies in punctuations, and check whether your sentences are properly structured.
Seems easier than you expected, right?
But wait! What if we told you we could make writing informational reports easier than it already is with just a few clicks?
Don’t believe us?
Then scroll down to see how!
Bit.ai: Ultimate Tool to Create All Types of Reports
Gone are the days you spend hours on your computer trying to fix and align your reports and projects because technology has simplified our lives so much that all it takes is a few minutes and a few clicks for completing any task!
Yes, but how is this possible?
We present to you Bit.ai, a cloud-technology-based document collaboration platform that helps you create modern, digital integrated documents effortlessly.
… and it’s a boon for your informational reports! How?
Take a look at these features of bit.ai!
1. Document Templates
What if we tell you that the entire structure of your information report is already done and designed for you? That’s because Bit has an extensive template gallery that provides you with over 70+ ready-made templates from which you can choose your favorite! This basically means that you have a template for your informational report just waiting to be used. All you have to do is insert your text in a pre-formatted document and customize it wherever it is required! You no longer have to worry about how your document will look, just focus on your content!
2. Auto-Formatting
In addition to the amazing templates that Bit provides you, it automatically formats all your documents even if you don’t! You don’t have to bother about the margins, line spacing, numbering, and fonts of your document because Bit has a minimalistic design that ensures everything is uniform and neat. This saves you a lot of time and effort!
3. Supports 100+ File Formats
Want an easy way to include visual elements in your informational document? Then Bit is the perfect tool for you, because it supports multiple file formats and lets you seamlessly add videos, maps, charts, tables and so much more onto your document within a few seconds! Its smart integration allows you to add rich media elements like weblinks, pdfs, embeds, math equations, graphs, and make your informational report highly engaging!
4. Multiple Workspaces
There is a lot of information and people involved in the creation of an informational document, and sometimes it can become chaos. But not with Bit around, because it lets you create infinite workspaces and folders around projects and teams to keep all your work organized. This lets you store all your information in a neat and orderly manner so that you can create informational reports much more efficiently.
5. Real-time Collaboration
Bit’s has a real-time collaboration feature that allows you to invite people from multiple teams and departments to join you and work together in real-time to prepare information reports. You can edit, add comments, high to add collaborators who can proofread or edit your work.
You have to admit, Bit is the whole package deal for writing reports! It will definitely change the way communicate and create information!
So what are you waiting around for? Get Bit and enjoy an easier and smoother life!
Conclusion
Information is all around us. Including this blog we just wrote for you. But gathering and writing it all down in an organized manner for a report is a whole other deal.
And we just helped you out with it! Not to mention our bonus recommendation of bit!
Now go out there and create your best informational reports!
Further Reads:
Project Report: What is it & How to Write it?
Survey Report: What is it & How to Create it?
Collaborative Research: Definition, Benefits & Tips!
How To Create Brainstorming Document? (Template Included)
Report Writing Format You Must Follow!
Project Summary: What is it & How to Write it!
How to Create an Impressive Fact Sheet? (Steps and Template Included)
Information Security Plan: What is it & How to Create it?
