Conducting Research for Your Business Prospectus Assignment

The resources in this section will help you prepare the Company Background section of your Business Prospectus.

This section requires at least one source. Be sure to focus on the relationship between your business/product/service and the potential buyer/consumer and/or similar companies. According to the assignment description, this section should discuss three areas:

the company's mission and objectives
the company and industry
your product and/or service.

In order to complete the objective in this section of the assignment you will need to locate relevant sources relating to the industry you have selected for your Business Prospectus,

Selected Resources

Statista
Provides access to statistics and studies gathered by market researchers, trade organizations, scientific publications, and government sources on over 600 industries.
Nexis Uni [formerly LexisNexis Academic]
Nexis Uni™ features more than 15,000 news, business and legal sources from LexisNexis—including U.S. Supreme Court decisions dating back to 1790—with an intuitive interface that offers quick discovery across all content types, personalization features such as Alerts and saved searches and a collaborative workspace with shared folders and annotated documents.
S & P Global NetAdvantage
- This link opens in a new window
NetAdvantage gives reference users the core intelligence they need for in-depth company and industry research in the digital age, and is the go-to resource to evaluate performance, analyze financials and gather market data and access: Corporate Records, Stock Reports, Industry Survey, Register, Outlook, Stock Guide, Bond Guide, Earning Guide, Dividend Record, and Mutual Fund Reports.
Hoover's Online
Provides company profiles, corporate directory (searchable by company name, industry, ticker symbol, sales, location), market quotes, and business news.

NOTE: Hoover's is not compatible with mobile devices.

Google Finance
Provides historical and current company and market information. Information on stock prices, company profiles, financial news, market summary are freely available.

The resources in this section will help you prepare the Market Analysis section of your Business Prospectus.

According to the assignment, you should have at least two sources in this section. The assignment describes this section as follows:

Based on market and industry research, this section will identify the likely customers or clients for your product or service. In other words, you need to answer the questions, "What currently exists in the marketplace, including competing products or services, and how does your business compare?"
Be sure to consider the broader economic or political issues that may affect your product or service such as cultural trends, environmental impact, new technologies, and energy and transportation issues. will identify the likely customers or clients for your product or service based on market and industry research.

Selected Resources:

Statista
Provides access to statistics and studies gathered by market researchers, trade organizations, scientific publications, and government sources on over 600 industries.
Nexis Uni [formerly LexisNexis Academic]
Nexis Uni™ features more than 15,000 news, business and legal sources from LexisNexis—including U.S. Supreme Court decisions dating back to 1790—with an intuitive interface that offers quick discovery across all content types, personalization features such as Alerts and saved searches and a collaborative workspace with shared folders and annotated documents.
S & P Global NetAdvantage
- This link opens in a new window
NetAdvantage gives reference users the core intelligence they need for in-depth company and industry research in the digital age, and is the go-to resource to evaluate performance, analyze financials and gather market data and access: Corporate Records, Stock Reports, Industry Survey, Register, Outlook, Stock Guide, Bond Guide, Earning Guide, Dividend Record, and Mutual Fund Reports.
Hoover's Online
Provides company profiles, corporate directory (searchable by company name, industry, ticker symbol, sales, location), market quotes, and business news.

NOTE: Hoover's is not compatible with mobile devices.
Regional Business News
Comprehensive full text coverage for regional business publications. Incorporates coverage of 75 business journals, newspapers and newswires from all metropolitan and rural areas within the United States.
Cabell's International Business Directory
Cabells is the complete source for journal info, evaluation metrics, and submission details for Accounting, Economics & Finance, Management, and Marketing.

Data Sources for U.S. Economy

Census Explorer
Explore census data using visual guides and maps
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Produces research on GDP, trade, personal income, investment, international comparisons, and special markets. Going through Resources > Article Collections, you can search for regional reports.
U.S. Data and Statistics
US maps and population, demographic, and economic data.
Federal Reserve Bank of New York
Designed to give a quick snapshot of the national economy.
National Bureau of Economic Research
The NBER data collection is an eclectic mix of public use economic, demographic, and enterprise data obtained over the years to satisfy the specific requests of NBER affiliated researchers for particular projects.
CensusScope
CensusScope, developed by the Social Science Data Analysis Network (SSDAN) at the University of Michigan, is a tool to assist researchers investigating U.S. demographic trends. Easy-to-use graphics and exportable data provide information to generalists and specialists.

The resources in this section will help you prepare the Financial Plan section of your Business Prospectus.

According to the assignment description this section discusses financial requirements and financial projections. You need to present the main financial factors in clear and persuasive writing, in addition to tables or figures (which are to be placed in the Appendix).

You need to research and obtain realistic figures for all major costs of starting and sustaining your business (e.g. office space, legal assistance, salaries and benefits, insurance, office equipment and supplies, website creation & maintenance, advertising materials, utilities, etc.).

As part of the financial projection (noting costs across time), you need to answer the following:

What are the initial costs, when can revenue be anticipated
When will there be a return on investment (if applicable)?

Selected Resources:

Business Expenses Survey
Created to compile statistics on business operating expenses for Retail Trade, Wholesale Trade, and Service Industries.
Census Business Builder
Developed by the US Census Bureau, these interactive tools give you the ability to search by area of the country or type of business and generate useful reports to help your planning.
Salary.com
Used to calculate how much you can expect to spend on employee salaries.
U.S. Small Businesses Association
The SBA is a federal agency that helps provide counseling, capital, and contracting assistance for small businesses.
CalcXML
Use this calculator to determine start up costs for your business.