5 Ways to Sniff-Out The Competition

Industry Trade Association Sites

For most every industry in the U.S., there is at least one Trade Association. These associations often do more than just collect dues from their member companies. They are a wonderful source of data on the industry as a whole. As an example, the trade association for semiconductors is SEMI. SEMI routinely presents sales, manufacturing, and market data for multiple industry subsections. This can be very enlightening for a company looking for new areas to enter or to be on the lookout for future downturns. And the semiconductor industry is not unique. From construction to electronics to  software, industry associations are an often overlooked resource.

Public Company Filings

Honestly, I loathe to bring this one up. Just reading through a company's latest annual report  is enough to put me to sleep. But, it's a great way to get a glimpse into the inner workings of a large company. Keep tabs on what the leaders in your industry are up to. Get ideas on how the moves that a bigger company makes may be a good idea for your company. Find out information on a potential customer. Public companies are mandated by the government to be transparent with their data so that investors can make informed decisions. As a small business owner, their filings can help you make your own well-informed decisions.

Analyst Group Press Releases

Technology research groups can give invaluable information on the latest tools and trends. Well, they're not really invaluable, they put quite a high value on them. But, firms like Gartner also have a lot to offer to the small business. Because, not all small businesses will be small forever. Gartner, and other technology analyst groups, offer a wealth of information in their press releases. Right now, you can find out the Top 10 Strategic Technology Trends for 2016.  Whether it's transforming your own small business, helping your clients keep up with emerging technologies, or keeping up with what new developments will be affecting your customers, press releases are a great way to keep your finger on the pulse.

Premium Research on the Cheap

Premium research groups like Markets & Markets and IBISWorld often charge thousands of dollars for each report, and for good reason. The data that the reports provide is in-depth, highly granular, and wide reaching. For large companies with large research budgets, their reports easily pay for themselves.  But that doesn't mean that the small business can't find value from their data. Just accessing the landing page for a report will give you a good overview of the industry and its issues, data like industry size in dollars, number of companies, annual growth rate, and regional data.

Google

Google is ubiquitous. It has become common usage to just say "Let me Google that" to mean "I will find out more information about that." But Google has much more to offer than just the simple search bar on the home page. By clicking the nine-box square in the upper right of the Google home screen, it will open up a host of tools to help you narrow down the information that is returned. The News icon will let you restrict your search to news articles on a subject and even focus on certain geographies. Finance puts all publicly available data on public companies at your command. You can see results from the last week or the last five years. Analytics will help you understand how your own web efforts are working. Google is much more than just a wide net that swamps you in data. It is a toolbox that help accomplish the task at hand.

Research is a way to distance your company from the competition. You can react faster, make wiser decisions, and avoid costly mistakes. The best news is that you don't have to commit a huge budget to research to reap impressive benefits.