Well, if you are asking about the investment, you should read whitepaper of the project you are investing in, check their background, check background of its development team and advisors and see what utility it serves in the current market and real world. For trading purpose, you must also be updated on the news of the coins you are planning to trade in because good news usually pump coins high and bad news dump them bad. Also study the movement chart of the coin and check its support level and the level of resistance to analyse the entry point and exit point and trade effectively.