LITMIR.BIZ

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Historical trends

      ■ Future economic projections

      ■ Demographics

      ■ Market size

      ■ Competitors

       Research resources

      An almost unlimited number of resources exists, which you can consult to find out just about anything you want to know about any topic. With the advent of the Internet and electronic search capabilities, you have a wealth of information at your fingertips.

      ■ People. People will provide you with some of your best resources for discovering details about just about any topic under the sun. Interview current and past business owners about their experiences. You might think that such people could be reluctant to share information with a would-be competitor, and in some cases this is true. But in many instances, people are delighted to provide up-and-comers with informational interviews about their experiences and lessons learned. Indeed, there are associations—many of them national, with regional or local chapters—that exist primarily for like-minded business-people to share ideas and experiences, and to provide assistance to one another. The local Small Business Development Center is always a good place to start to find help as well.

      ■ Libraries. A business library or large branch of your local library is one logical place to start. You’ll find books devoted to your area of interest, years’ worth of magazines that you can search through—increasingly via electronic means—and online databases. The reference section will have books or binders of business research that are usually updated annually, if not quarterly. Librarians are trained in research and are enthusiastic about helping you find information on your chosen area. They can be one of your most valuable research resources. If you live near a college or university, chances are good it has a business library with specialized resources for entrepreneurs. If you are not a current student or alumni, such libraries will generally issue you a day or week pass for a nominal fee.

      ■ Internet searches. The breadth of what’s available about every industry and field is extensive. Typing in relevant keywords causes relevant websites, articles, book references, speeches, and other resources to pop up on your screen. Frequently you’ll get hundreds if not thousands of “hits.” The problems are understanding what information is reliable and accurate, and taking the time to truly dig deep.

      ■ Business research databases. Business information is valuable. For this reason, the most reliable and useful information is often collected by business research companies and compiled into databases. These are often available in university and public libraries. In the past, most for-fee business databases were only accessible at libraries or via subscription. Today, an increasing number of them will provide you with a specific article or report on the Internet for a one-time fee. Sometimes this fee is quite reasonable, but it can range up to thousands of dollars for in-depth market research reports by top-tier companies.

      You might wonder why you would spend money on research when you can do a Google search for free. The answer lies in the quality and timeliness of the information you get from professional research and analyst firms, which specialize in doing original primary research based on the kind of custom surveys and complex analyses that are well beyond the means, and expertise, of most entrepreneurs (or even established businesses). With access to the databases and reports of professionals, you hear about emerging trends ahead of people not subscribing to these resources. And the opposite holds true: if you don’t pay for this market wisdom—that is, you may well find yourself behind the curve. You may have to hand over what seem to be significant dollars to get your hands on industry reports. But it might a smart use of your marketing dollars—especially when you’re researching the possible opportunities out there.

      There are specialized databases such as Lexis (for performing legal research) and Nexis (for business-related topics) (www.lexisnexis.com). Other leading for-fee market research databases include Factiva (www.factiva.com), Dialog (www.dialog.com), and Alacra (www.alacra.com). Generally, whatever you want is out there in one form or another—and increasingly it’s online and accessible from your computer.

      ■ Government resources. Government resources can be some of your best sources of information, and for the most part, they are free. An increasing proportion of them are available online. Occasionally, you’ll have to pay for a hard copy of a report, but that’s generally a minimal fee designed to cover printing and postage costs. Some reports are still only available by mail, and you have to request them specifically. Among the best resources for entrepreneurs are the website of the Small Business Administration (SBA) (www.sba.gov), the U.S. Census Bureau (www.census.gov), and Statistics Canada (www12.statcan.ca/english/census/index.cfm).

       Industry Associations

       One of the best sources of information about virtually any type of business or industry is the appropriate industry association. An association exists for every market niche you can imagine: Restaurant owners have the National Restaurant Organization; businesses centered around clothing, sports, or outdoor equipment have the Outdoor Industry Association; exterminators have the National Pest Management Association; and on an on. These groups routinely collect industry news, statistics, and trends and make it all available to members to help them run their businesses better. Most sponsor conferences and training events as well. One of the smartest things you can do is join the trade association for your type of enterprise. For a list of industry associations, go to www.planningshop.com/tradeassociations.asp.

      The government collects data on a mind-boggling breadth of topics, ranging from growth projections in a broad range of industries to population demographics—segmented by state, county, even city—to analysis of economic trends. Always do a search to see what the government might have already collected and analyzed for you before doing your own research or paying someone else to do it for you.

      ■ Research firms. There are market research companies that charge for the research they routinely perform into various industries, markets, and subject areas. Some of the largest and most reputable ones include Gartner (www.gartner.com), Yankee Group (www.yankee.com), International Data Corp. (www.idc.com), Frost & Sullivan (www.frost.com), and Yankelovich (www.yankelovich.com). The research from these firms is usually quite pricey—but it can be worth it once you get serious about a particular business area.

      These research houses do extensive primary research, generally in the form of surveys, on just about every area of business you can imagine, and produce comprehensive reports in which specialists in a particular field—say, the music business—analyze what the survey results mean. Most established firms in the majority of industries routinely subscribe to the services of these research houses on the premise that everyone else in their industry is reading them, and they don’t want to miss an important emerging trend.

       Researching an industry

      When you’re researching opportunities, you’ll generally be interested in resources that give you information at the industry, rather than specific company, level. (You’ll want to research specific competitors once you have narrowed down your specific business concept.) Here are some resources that provide detailed industry data.

       Free resources

      These are generally available through government agencies, particularly the U.S.

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