Some general tips:

1) Cite as you write: Keep track of your citations as you go so that you are not trying to compile everything at the end of the writing process, when you will already likely have your hands full making your final edits.

2) If the style guides are confusing, take a look at the sample papers provided on the OWL at Purdue site. A model can sometimes help clarify tricky citation questions.

3) Databases, including Business Source Complete, Statista, and Search It all offer pre-made citation options. However, these are computer-generated and often need to be cleaned and edited before adding them to your References. If you use a citation generator, just make sure to check it against the APA style guide and clean up any errors.

•    Include a title page (also known as a cover page) with running head.

•    The title page is your first page. The number one (1) should be located in the upper right-hand corner of  the page.

•    Keep your font consistent throughout the paper:  12-point Times New Roman, double-spaced. 

•    References page always starts on a new page.

•    Margins - APA guidelines specify: one-inch margins at the top, bottom, right and left of every page. Default margins in Word are one inch.

•    Citations and reference list. Include both in-text citations and a reference list.

For more information check out the APA 7 webpage:

https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/examples

A Work by Two Authors

Name both authors in the signal phrase or in parentheses each time you cite the work. Use the word "and" between the authors' names within the text and use the ampersand in parentheses.

Research by Wegener and Petty (1994) supports...

(Wegener & Petty, 1994)

A Work by Three or More Authors

List only the first author’s name followed by “et al.” in every citation, even the first, unless doing so would create ambiguity between different sources.

(Kernis et al., 1993)

Kernis et al. (1993) suggest...

Organization as an Author

If the author is an organization or a government agency, mention the organization in the signal phrase or in the parenthetical citation the first time you cite the source, just as you would an individual person.

According to the American Psychological Association (2000),...

If the organization has a well-known abbreviation, you may include the abbreviation in brackets the first time the source is cited and then use only the abbreviation in later citations. However, if you cite work from multiple organizations whose abbreviations are the same, do not use abbreviations (to avoid ambiguity).

First citation: (Mothers Against Drunk Driving [MADD], 2000)

Second citation: (MADD, 2000)