There are many trading strategies in the stock market; swing trading is one of them. You can this type of trade in the same category as a momentum trade. This is where you will use charts to follow the direction of a stock. A swing trade is generally considered a medium term stock trade.
Of course fluctuations are part of stock trading; other factors such as news and obscure outside factors can affect stock prices. If you want to trade this way you have to look for trends, a trend can last weeks to months to even a year. Even the best stock pickers cannot hit the prices at the very lows and highs; this is why you have to wait for the trend. A chart will give you visuals as well as technical indicators to the formation of a trend.
The combination of volume, relative strength, moving averages and trend lines are some of the indicators you must look at. There is one key to swing trading success you should know about, it is emotions. If you approach this form of trading as more mechanical, getting in and out of a stock based on the indicators instead of feelings, your success rate will be much higher.
There are other tools like stop losses and options you can use to protect your exposed side of a trade. Of course this will reduce your profits, but it will also protect you from big losses in case your swing trade goes bad. Make sure you don’t turn a trade into an investment.