Industry Overview

Industry research analyzes the aggregate environment and conditions impacting companies operating within a similar business category. Industry research usually includes information such as the following:

Financial history and trajectory in the industry
Market share and concentration
Competitive landscape and risk
Political and legal environment

It can be challenging at times to identify the industry that is relevant to you as they are usually categorized very broadly. It may also be the case that you are working with a business that operates in multiple industries, in which case you may need to conduct a more holistic analysis.

Below you will find some recommendations for places to find high quality industry research reports and materials.

Library Subscription Sources

IBISWorld
Industry reports in five categories: market research, risk ratings, company research, global industry research, and economic and demographic data. Standardized market research report components include overviews, industry performance and outlook, competitive landscape (including market share concentration), regulatory environment, major companies, operational conditions, and key statistics.
Mergent Intellect
Provides access to First Research industry reports. Search for a company, then look at the Industry Details tab. Click on the actual report icon to bring up the First Research Industry Report. Note that there may be multiple reports if your company is classified in multiple industries. Alternatively, select the First Research link beneath the search bar on the home page of Mergent Intellect to browse reports by industry title.
Business Insights: Essentials
Provides access to Plunkett Analytics industry reports. Scroll down to the "explore industries" heading to browse reports, Search Within Results by industry name/NAICS code, or search a company name then look at the Industries section in the company profile for industry essays and/or Plunkett reports.
Statista
Provides access to statistics and studies gathered by market researchers, trade organizations, scientific publications, and government sources on a variety of topics. Industry terms and topics can often provide insightful ala carte data points that may be relevant to your industry overview.

Free Government Resources

NAICS Manual
From the Census Bureau, provides an overview of the definitions for the North American Industry Classification System that is commonly adopted by industry research firms for their report categorization. This could be useful if you needed to more broadly understand the exact definition to verify what companies are usually included within a specific industry category.
Library of Congress Industry Sources
Provides an in depth bibliography of free resources available on the topic of industry from the U.S. government. Includes links to resources from multiple government agencies such as the Census Bureau and Bureau of Labor Statistics.

MSMG 60415 - Strategic Communication (Harms)

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