Internet Resource Table
From “Preparing Effective Business Plans” by Bruce R. Barringer
Resource to Help Complete the First Screen
Source
Description
Applicable
Parts of
First Screen
Cost/Availability
American Factfinder
(http://www.factfind
er. census.gov)
An easy-to-use portal for obtaining
census data. One quick way to retrieve
data is to get a “Fact Sheet” on a
geographic area (by city, county, or
ZIP code), which provides population,
medium household income,
demographic breakdown (age, gender,
race), and other information.
Part 3
Free
Business &
Company Resource
Center
(http://www.gale.
com/BusinessRC)
Access to information on the
organization and structure of industries,
current industry trends, and other
information.
Parts 1 and 2
Fee based;
typically free if
accessed through
a university
library
Source
Description
Applicable
Parts of
First Screen
Cost/Availability
Hoovers Online
(http://www.
hoovers.com)
Brief histories and financial
information on companies, industries,
people, and products. Premium service
provides access to detailed financial
information and 10-K reports for
publicly traded firms.
Parts 2, 3,
and 5
Free; premium
version available
on a fee basis or
typically for free
if accessed
through a
university library
library
Lexis-Nexis
Academic
(http://www.
lexisnexis.com)
Provides access to sales data for public
and private firms, which can be
searched in a number of useful ways.
Helps startups estimate the financial
performance of similar businesses. Go
to “Business” and then “Company
Financial.”
Part 5
Fee-based;
typically free if
accessed through
a university
library
analysis.
Mergent Online
(http://www.
mergentonline.com)
Provides near instant access to
financial data, including income
statements, balance sheets, and cash
flows, on more than 10,000 U.S. public
corporations.
Parts 2 and 5
Fee based;
typically free if
accessed through
a university
library
library
Source
Description
Applicable
Parts of
First Screen
Cost/Availability
ProQuest (no public
Web site available)
Very robust search engine for
searching publications such as the Wall
Street Journal and the New York Times.
Useful for all areas of feasibility
analysis.
Parts 1, 2, 3,
4, and 5.
Fee based;
typically free if
accessed through
a university
library
ReferenceUSA
(http://www.referen
ceusa. com)
Provides contact information, estimated
annual sales, credit rating score, year
established, news, and other
information on both public and private
companies. Contains more information
on private firms than many similar
sites. Helps startups estimate the
financial performance of similar
businesses.
Part 5
Free
Source
Description
Applicable
Parts of
First Screen
Cost/Availability
Yahoo! Industry
Center (http://biz.
Provides a directory of industries,
along with a list of the companies in
Parts 2, 3,
and 5
Free