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?
• Is there a way to narrow or expand your topic using keywords? These will become your search terms.

  Example Research Question: "How do Super Bowl commercials impact consumer perceptions of products?"

  Example Keywords: "commercials", "consumer"

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

  Example 1, Keyword "commercial": television advertisement, television marketing

  Example 2, Keyword "consumer": buyer, customer, shopper