How to Find Industry Information

Reports and Surveys

Industry information is complex and it sometimes can be difficult to find. It includes analysis of past trends and forecasts for the future. Because of the varied types of sources, it is important to use a multipronged strategy to find industry information.

The industry overview sources are extremely helpful for providing a snapshot of the industry. If you can't locate a particular industry, you may have better luck using trade periodicals. See News and Trade Periodicals.


Databases

Industry Analysts

Additional Sites

Databases

• Business Insights Global
  Contains detailed essays from Gale's Encyclopedia of American Industries, Encyclopedia of Global Industries, and Encyclopedia of Emerging Industries. Additional market research reports on most industries from Datamonitor International.
  
  1. Start by typing your industry in the main search box.
  
  
  
  2. When the results appear, scroll down to Industry Profiles.
  3. You can select View All to see more listings.
  
  
  4. Scroll down and to the left to see more industry options.
  



• Business Source Premier - Business Searching Interface
  Business Source Premier provides an enhanced interface that makes it easier to locate industry reports. It offers 1,800 quality full text industry profiles (reports) from three different content providers. DataMonitor furnishes 1,600+ profiles, averaging 10-12 pages in length. Another 22 Industry almanacs are included from Plunkett Research, and more than 100 industry yearbooks from Global Insight.
  
  1. In the Browse area, select: Industry Profiles.
  
  
  2. In the Publications screen, type any word that describes your industry. For example, "airlines".
  
  
  
  3. As an alternative, you can search for a preselected industry. Select the industry tab and scroll down to the industry you are searching.
  
  
  Lexis Nexis Academic
In this section of Lexis/Nexis, you will find lists of companies doing business within the same SIC industry code. Companies are listed by Net Sales, but also include total assets, total liabilities, cost of goods, and net income. Integra Industry reports provide an overall industry balance sheet that includes an industry income statement along with industry ratios.

1. Start in the Company Dossier form. Type the name of your compamy and select: Find.


2. Select your company from the list that appears in the next screen.
3. From the Snapshot screen, scroll down to Industry Classification and select the link for your company's SIC Code.


4. The new screen will list companies doing business in the same SIC Code, along with a link to the Integra Reports.

Hoover's Industry Snapshots
Includes current and future trends, key players, and industry links. This link will take you directly to the form which will search Hoover's Company and Industry Reports.



This link will open in the Power Search screen, with Hoover's Company and Industry Reports already preselected in the Select Source Area. In the Add Section Search Area, in the Section box, use the down arrow to select the correct segment. Highlight the Industry segment. In the terms box, type the name of your industry. For example: motorcycle. Then, select: Add To Search. Once your search appears in the top Search Terms box, click on Search. From the results page, slide to the Navigation column on the left and click on the plus sign in front of the word, Industry Slide down and select the industry you are researching. You now have a list of companies with in-depth reports from Hoover's that do business in the industry you selected.

Industry Analysts

"Business researchers have long valued analyst reports as high-quality sources of in-depth, detailed information and insights on companies, industries, technologies, and emerging trends."* At times, analysts may have conflicts of interest. We have seen several high profile stories that discussed concerns over the independence of industry analysts due to financial reltionships between IT analyst firms and the vendors they are supposed to be writing about objectively.

"As the industry consolidates and questions over the independence of analyst firms continue, some have turned to the Internet and alternative sources for industry analysis to at least supplement the analysts' advice."*
*From: The Information Advisor, April 2005

• Blogs
  An increasing number of people have set up their own Weblogs to offer to offer up their own views and commentary on a particular indutry, IT solutions, technology, etc. While bloggers should not be viewed as a wholesale replacement for indutry analysts, they can provide a much faster take on industry developments, as well as what blogger David Sampson of Shared Spaces Research and Consulting calls the "passionate buzz" on a company or product, as opposed to the analysts' more formal reports.
  • Sway:analyst relations, influencer marketing, and the business influence.
    From 2000 to 2011, The Directory of Analysts was part of Tekrati and Barbara French was its managing editor. Tekrati was the online guide to the IT and telecommunications industry analysts. It included 3 directories, 2 news services, a strategic consulting business, and tips, insights and commentary on the analyst business. By 2011, Tekrati had profiled some 650 analyst firms, published over 12,000 news posts, and hosted 150K to 250K unique visitors each year. Today, this directory is a personal curation project and part of Ms. French's personal blog.
    
    
• Individual Investor Commentary Sites
  These are sites that aggregate opinions and commentary of individual investors in order to reach a grass-roots "word on the street" consensus, mainly on matters related to companies and their performance. An expample of this type of site is the free
  • WhisperNumber.com
    This site solicits commentary and surveys 60,000 investors to come up with a group consensus on matters like company earnings expectations and to detect an overall market sentiment.

Additional Sites

The sites listed in this section vary in their depth of analysis. Some may prove more helpful than others.

• Current Industrial Reports
  From the U.S. Census Bureau. Features manufacturing, mining, and construction statistics.
• EPA Sector Notebooks
  Profiles of industries impacting air, water or land
• HighBeam Business: Industry Reports
  HighBeam Business is operated by The Gale Group, which is the publisher of the database, Business and Company Resource Center . You can get historical and statistical analysis on narrow industry slices, down to a four-digit SIC code. The data comes from well-known sources such as D&B, the U.S. government, and associations.
• Industry Week
  Well known industry magazine that covers news items on many industries. It's a good place to identify trends.
• International Trade Administration (ITA): Trade Development: Industry Analysts
  Trade Development is dedicated to enhancing the global competitiveness of U.S. industry. With its access to information, government analysts are involved in strategic research and analysis. In addition to excellent reports and statistical graphs, you will find contact info for analysts specializing in a wide range of industries.