Developing a Business Plan: Research Resources
When developing a business plan, either a start-up or existing business, research the company, the company’s industry, the industry in general, general economic conditions in the U.S. or regional settings, research in competitive forces in the market and include how legal, cultural and/or demographics issues have an impact on a new product/service’s ability to penetrate the market.
CREATING A BUSINESS PLAN
10 Innovations in Business Plan Creation: 10 Best Practices - "Major changes in technology and the economy have created a shift in the business landscape, and traditional business plans are being thrown out the window. In this guide, you’ll gain helpful insight on a number of new ideas and learn how to apply them to your business."
DMPTool - An open source, online tool that helps users build a comprehensive and descriptive data management plan.
Company profiles – Accoonaw, BBB.orgw, Business Source, ORBIS Directoryw, Company Profiles for Students, Fortune 500w, Lexis/Nexis, Privco, State UCC and Corporation Public Recordsw, ThomasNetw
Company’s industry – Alibaba, Business Source, EDGARw, Global Edgew, Lexis/Nexis, Privco
Industry in general - Business Source, EDGARw, Global Edgew, Institute for Supply Managementw, Lexis/Nexis, Privco, Regional Business News
General economic conditions in the U.S. or regional settings - Business Source, Encyclopedia of Business and Finance, Encyclopedia of Small Business, Guide to Economic Indicators, 4th ed. (Credo), Handbook of United States Economic and Financial Indicators (Credo), Information Plus: American Economy, 2009 ed. (GVRL), Institute for Supply Management, Lexis/Nexis, Regional Business News; U.S. Census 2000 State & County Statistical QuickFacts**; Handbook of United States Economic and Financial Indicators**, Yahoo Financew
Research in competitive forces in the market - Business Source, Encyclopedia of Major Marketing Campaigns (GVRL), System for Award Management (SAM)w, Global Edgew, Institute for Supply Managementw, Know Thisw, Lexis/Nexis, Privco, Regional Business News, Yahoo Financew
How these issues impact a new product/service’s ability to penetrate the market:
Legal - Lexis/Nexis
Cultural – Cassell's Peoples, Nations and Cultures**, CIA World Fact book**, Countries and Their Cultures**, Encyclopedia of World Cultures**, Global Road Warrior, Greenwood Encyclopedia of American Regional Cultures**, OVIC, Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life, 2nd ed.**.
Demographics – County & City Data Book, Global Edge, Global Road Warrior, Statistical Abstract of the United States w,Whitaker’s Almanack [R032.02 W58a]*, World Data Analyst, Guide to Countries of the World**, Statesman’s Yearbook w
Intellectual Property Law – Lexis/Nexis; See also these Web sites:
Library of Congress Copyright Office: http://www.copyright.gov/ w
Nolo - Law for all: http://www.nolo.com/ w
Legal Information Institute: http://www.law.cornell.edu/ w
United States Patent and Trademark Office: http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/tac/tmlaw2.html w
TOOLS AND THEIR TOPICS
Databases & Indexes
Business Source Premier (EBSCO): Marketing, management, MIS, POM, accounting, finance and economics.
TIP: Select the blue tab “Choose Databases” à select “Enhanced Business Searching Interface”. Browse: Company Profiles, Datamonitor, Industry Profiles, Country Reports, Market Research Reports
Global Road Warrior: Comprehensive country data related to: Society and Culture, Communications, Demographics, Travel (with a business perspective, but equally usable for personal travel), Trade, Business, Money and Banking (scans of all banknotes and coinage in worldwide circulation), Country Maps (9 proprietary downloadable maps per country) and more than 20 other topics.
Lexis/Nexis Academic: news, business and legal publications
Business - business and financial news, U.S. and international company financial information from government or private sources, market research, industry reports, and actual SEC filings; comparison of companies based on criteria such as sales, income and number of employees.
Law - primary source material such as case law, statutes and regulations; secondary source materials such as legal news or law reviews for background or analysis of a legal topic.
Opposing Viewpoints In Context (OVIC): An online library of current event topics - the facts as well as the arguments of each topic's proponents and detractors. It provides electronic access to a reference program of statistics, government data, legislation and more.
Privco: business and financial data on major, non-publicly traded corporations, including family owned, private equity owned, venture backed, and international unlisted companies.
Regional Business News (EBSCO): Provides comprehensive full text coverage for regional business publications. Incorporates 75 business journals, newspapers and newswires covering all metropolitan and rural areas within the United States.
World Data Analyst: Create tables and charts comparing countries across multiple statistical categories, or focus on statistics for a single country. Create tables and charts comparing changes over the past 90 years. View up-to-date information for individual countries.
eReference Books
For a comprehensive list of all business related eReference books from the library Web site eReferences page select the Main Topic: Business. For individual encyclopedias, dictionaries, etc. use the free-text search box and type a truncated form of a broad topic – one that is likely to be in the title (e.g. busi, econ, finan, indus, corp, etc.)
Cassell's Peoples, Nations and Cultures
Guide to the myriad discrete ethnic and cultural groupings
Company Profiles for Students (GVRL)
Covers more than 400 prominent companies and includes company logos, illustrations and ticker symbols, current market share, new products, and where to write for an annual report.1999
Presents the cultural similarities within a country that set it apart from others by examining over 200 countries to document the myriad ways in which culture defines and separates the nations of the world as much as geographical borders do. 2001
Encyclopedia of Business and Finance, 2nd ed. (GVRL)
Covers finance and banking; accounting; marketing; management; and information systems. 2007
Encyclopedia of Major Marketing Campaigns (GVRL)
An annual publication that profiles important marketing campaigns of the 20th century. 2007
Encyclopedia of Small Business, 3rd ed. (GVRL)
Contains detailed articles and overviews of all the key information needs of small business users including financing, financial planning, business plan creation, market analysis, sales strategy, tax planning. 2007
Encyclopedia of World Cultures
The source for historical, social, political, economic, linguistic, religious, and other information on virtually every existing culture. 1996
Greenwood Encyclopedia of American Regional Cultures: The Pacific Region
Explores the marvelously eclectic cultures that define the Pacific region (California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, and Hawai'i). 2004
Guide to Countries of the World (ORO)
Global handbook containing separate entries for every country in the world. Each entry gives a succinct overview covering the contemporary social, economic, religious and political issues that shape the country. It also contains vital statistics such as GDP, life expectancy, income distribution, and internet use. 2007
Guide to Economic Indicators, 4th ed. (Credo)
Current and reliable data on the major statistical measures of the U.S. economy, from Average Weekly Earnings to Value of the Dollar, as well as explanations of the meaning, use, and availability of macroeconomic indicators, including websites, recent trends, and current data. 2006
Handbook of United States Economic and Financial Indicators (Credo)
Answer questions about the makeup, purpose, use and availability of economic indicators in a broad sense of the term. In addition to identifying and describing indicators, the entries show how they are calculated, where they are published, and where one can find further information about them. 2000
Information Plus: American Economy, 2009 ed. (GVRL)
Factbook describing the vast size and scope of the American economy, explains how it functions, and examines some of the challenges it faces, such as inflation, government regulation, off-shoring, and corporate scandals.
U.S. Census 2000 State & County Statistical Quick Facts (Credo)
Facts about people, business and geography. Presented here as dynamic tables, the statistics may also be viewed in chart format. This title is not sponsored by the US Census Bureau. 2000.
Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life, 2nd ed.
Covers cultural groups in Asia, Europe, the Americas and Africa covering history, politics, customs, religion, education, human rights issues, teen life, and more.
Web Sites
Accoona - A large company database with free access to Dun & Bradstreet’s on executives, sales, employees, etc.
Alibaba - A B2B power-tool matching buyers and suppliers that gets it (almost) right
BBB.org - Checking a company's reputation? Start with the Better Business Bureau's enormous database.
CIA - The World Factbook
Produced by the Central Intelligence Agency to provide comprehensive basic intelligence for the US Government. It contains extensive information on all the countries of the world, including hundreds of maps and flags.
County & City Data Book - Comprehensive source of information about individual counties and cities in the United States. Coverage includes the following topical areas: age, agriculture, births, business establishments, climate, construction, crime, deaths, earnings, education, elections, employment, finance, government, health, households, housing, income, labor force, manufactures, population, poverty, race and Hispanic origin, social services, and water use.
EDGAR - The SEC's company filing system with a new twist....Full-Text Searching
Fortune 500 - Top 500 companies ranked by revenue. Includes information about each company and lists other top 500 companies in that same industry.
Global Edge – offers the latest and most comprehensive international business and trade content for a wide range of topics including: in-depth analysis of selected industries, extensive research and teaching resources, market research, and free access to the Database of International Business Statistics™.
Google News - Sure you know this one. But have you really put it to work for your business needs?
Institute for Supply Management - a not-for-profit association that provides opportunities for the promotion of the profession and the expansion of professional skills and knowledge.
Know This - A leading resource and reference site for those involved in marketing, market research, advertising, selling, promotion, and other marketing related areas.
ORBIS Directory - A Dun and Bradstreet wannabe with lots of free information.
State UCC and Corporation Public Records - State governments know more about companies than you might imagine, and it's all public record.
Small Business Administration -- SBA offers a variety of programs and support services to help you navigate the issues you face with your initial applications, and resources to help after you open for business.
Statesman’s Year Book - Reliable information on all 194 countries in the world plus states and dependencies, covering key historical events, population, politics, economics, trade and infrastructure for each country.
Statistical Abstracts of the United States -The authoritative and comprehensive summary of statistics on the social, political, and economic organization of the United States.
System for Award Management (SAM)w- The Official U.S. Government system that consolidated the capabilities of Central Contractor Registry (CCR), Federal Agency Registration (Fedreg), Online Representations and Certifications Application (ORCA), and Excluded Parties List System (EPLS).
ThomasNet -Another B2B mainstay, when looking for sources of industrial goods.
Yahoo Finance - A one-stop resource for company, financial and investment information
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Hoovers (D&B) company information, industry analysis, sales leads
IBISWorld - one of the world's leading publishers of business intelligence, specializing in Industry research and Procurement research.
Market and Markets - M&M is a full service market research company and consulting firm that produces 400 high-level, strategically analyzed, full-length reports a year, tracking more than 10 industries.
Market Research Reports - Market research and industry reports, company data, and country profiles.
Research And Markets – The world’s largest market research store offering over 1.5 million research resources across all industry sectors from leading analysts across the world.
