Before you Begin: Know the Assignment

• What length is your final paper supposed to be?
• How many resources are required?
• What types of resources are required?
• When is the assignment due?

Before Searching:  Develop a Strategy

• PRE-search several topics that you are interested in to see what kind of information is available. Will there be enough to support the assignment requirements?
• Company websites can be a good start for gathering background information & keywords, but keep in mind that they are usually there to market their services.
• Is there a way to narrow or expand your topic using keywords? These will become your search terms.

  Example Thesis: "Supporting the environment can help a business attract new customers. "

  Example Keywords: Environment, Business, Attract, Customers

• Brainstorm additional search terms by finding words with similar meanings.

  Example 1, Keyword "Business": company (similar term), Patagonia (narrower term)

  Example 2, Keywords "customers": consumers, shoppers, clients