Click into your Company's Website. See if you can answer these questions:
What products and services do they provide?
Can you identify their primary industry?
How big are they?
What is their organizational structure?
Are they public or private?
Some companies offer a link to "About the Company." If the company is public, look for the "Investor Relations" tab to get the 10-K and the Annual Report for an overview of recent performance.
Learn how to find the NAICS code for your company. Each industry has its own NAICS code. Many industry reports use the NAICS code to describe the industry and to identify key companies within that industry. For more information on NAICS codes, see the US Census Bureau web site.
Industry Report
Log into IBISWorld, search by keyword or NAICS code, and obtain your industry report. IBISWorld gives in-depth reports on hundreds of industries, with a quick overview of how the industry operates and key company profiles.
For more information on your industry and to see how to analyze companies within that industry see also the S&P Industry Surveys.
Look for articles on your company. Check ProQuest and EBSCOHOst's "Business Source Complete" for trade, newspaper, and academic articles on your company. Try Factiva for news articles on public and private companies. Search Tip: Combine your company name with search terms, for example:
General Motors and advertising costs
Starbucks and marketing
Dell and internet strategy
To see where your company advertises, Log into Ad$pender . Search by Company Name, Advertising Media (Newspapers, Radio, etc.), or Product.
