Research Game Plan

Q1.
Research question (project proposal or thesis or topic sentence):
Example: Henry Doorly Zoo should offer UNO and Creighton students discounts.

Q2.

Describe the biggest, broadest topic your research falls under:

Example: Henry Doorly Zoo should offer UNO and Creighton students discounts.

Broad topic: Student Discounts

Research hint: Offering things like discounts can affect brand image and create loyalty which would fall under marketing!

Q3.

If your research deals with a product or company, describe the industry that your topic falls under.
Example: Henry Doorly Zoo should offer UNO and Creighton students discounts.
Industry: Zoos

Research hint: The IBISWorld database has great resources for industry information! Find your industry using this link and searching by keyword.

Q4.

List the narrow issues within topic (parts of your argument or subtopics):

Example: Henry Doorly Zoo should offer UNO and Creighton students discounts.

Narrow issues: student finances, cost of education, rising cost of entertainment, socioeconomic diversity, limited disposable income, building brand loyalty, attracting new and future customers...

Research hint: Try to think of at least 5 narrow issues. If you can't find research to support 1-2 of these topics, you still have 3 topics you can use to write the paper.

Q5.

List some synonyms for your keywords (Alternative spellings, acronyms, etc):

Example: Henry Doorly Zoo should offer UNO and Creighton students discounts. Keywords: price decrease, price deduction, undergraduate, graduate, college student, university, wildlife park, outdoor entertainment

Research hint: If you can't think of any alternative words, try an online thesaurus.

Q6.

Using the connectors "AND", "OR", or "NOT", create one search string you want to try in the database.

Example: entertainment AND "student discount"

Example: student AND zoo OR "wildlife park"

Example: zoo AND "student discount" NOT coupon
Research hint: Using more than two keywords can help narrow or broaden your search results so you get to the information you need faster. Also, if you have a key phrase (more than one word that go together like "school lunches") use quotation marks around the phrase to get more accurate results.

Q7.

Select 3-4 types of information you will need to find:

Research hint: The more information you need to find, the longer your research will take so be mindful of how many types of information you really need to support your research.

Background information - Try ABI/INFORM Global or Business Source Complete
Historical information - Try ABI/INFORM Global or Business Source Complete
Statistics - Try Statista or IBISWorld
Expert opinions - Try ABI/INFORM Global or Business Source Complete
Current events - Try Access World News or New York Time Online for UNO
Criticism and analysis - Try ABI/INFORM Global or Business Source Complete
Research results - Try ABI/INFORM Global or Business Source Complete

Q8.

Enter any reminders to yourself here while they are fresh in your mind:

Example: What questions do I need to ask the librarian or my instructor regarding this research topic? What do I need to remind myself to find later?

Q9.

After using this outline, do you feel confident about what you brainstormed for your topic today?

Q10.

Email a copy to yourself so you don't lose all of your hard work! Once you've hit Submit, you will be re-directed to the main databases page on the Marketing Research Guide to get started.

Research hint: Open your email side-by-side with the Research Guide so you can have it handy.

Enter your email here:

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