BA 150, 250 & 278 - Sickert: Company Info
Research Tips
- Company's website: mission, vision, values (as available), 10-K/Annual Report, media/news/press releases.
- Not all companies have a "mission/vision/value statement" per se, but you can get a general idea from their website or annual report/10-K (if public) about what they do/who they are, where they want to go, and what they stand for.
- Information on public companies is much more readily available than info on private companies or subsidiaries.
- SWOTs may be part of a company's profile and readily available.
Company Profiles
- Business Insights: Global This link opens in a new windowProvides company and industry profiles, including SWOT reports, market share reports, investment reports, articles, financials, and case studies.
To find company information, search the company's name or ticker symbol in the search box. - S&P NetAdvantage This link opens in a new windowFull text of many S&P products, including the Stock Reports, Corporation Records, Industry Surveys, and more.
- Business Source Premier This link opens in a new windowProvides full text and citations to articles in various business publications; also includes company profiles, industry profiles, and country information.
To find company profiles, click "Company Profiles" in the top navigation.
Sizing the Market
As we discussed in class, looking up the NAICs code for your industry is an important first step as some databases allow you to search by NAICS. The databases listed to the right under "Databases for Market Research" all have some information or features that could be helpful. Business Insights Global, in particular, has industry reports that can be helpful.
It's not always easy to find size information for markets, especially on narrow/niche or emerging markets. When that happens, search for Business Source Premier and Nexis Uni to see there are articles that talk about your market. Industry associations often provide estimates. Google is great at picking up news, blog posts, and press releases that may mention specific numbers.
You may also need to infer from broader market data and come up with your own estimates, esp. for new products/services that don't exist yet. Below are tutorials tutorials on how to size a market:
- Census Business Builder
- A suite of services that provide selected demographic and economic data from the Census Bureau tailored to specific types of users in a simple to access and use format
- Census Business and Economy
- The Census Bureau produces economic data across the entire economy on a monthly, quarterly, yearly, and five-year basis
- Census Data search
- You can also directly search for data by region and demographics
- American Time Use SurveyThe American Time Use Survey (ATUS) measures the amount of time people spend doing various activities, such as paid work, childcare, volunteering, and socializing using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- MyBestSegments (Claritas segmentation system)Consumer demographics and lifestyles based on zip code. Basic information is free (PCC doesn't have full subscription)
This is another product of the Census Bureau with extensive data about population demographics.
SWOT Analysis in Library Databases
Library databases below may have a readily available SWOT report on select companies. Not all companies have a such a report, and even when there are SWOT reports, these are other people's opinions that you can consult and cite. You should, however, always create your own analysis.
- Business Source Premier This link opens in a new windowClick on Company Profiles on the top menu bar to get the MarketLine Report, which may contain a SWOT section.
- Business Insights: Global This link opens in a new windowChoose SWOT reports under Companies tab in top navigation.
Market and Industry Research
Industry Classifications
When researching industry information, it is helpful to find the NAICS or SIC code for that industry, though all the industry databases also allow a keyword search. You can search some databases by NAICS and/or SIC code to get industry information.
Industry and Trade Associations
To find the industry association websites:
- Do a Google search with keywords followed by "association".
- Industry profiles in library databases may have a section for related associations.
Databases for Market Research
- Business Insights: Global This link opens in a new windowBrings together company profiles, brand information, rankings, investment reports, company histories, chronologies and periodicals. Find detailed company and industry news and information.
- Business Source Premier This link opens in a new windowFull text for over 3,000 journals covering business, management, economics, finance, banking, accounting, and more.
- S&P NetAdvantage This link opens in a new windowFull text of many S&P products, including the Stock Reports, Corporation Records, Industry Surveys, and more.