joyce gray - beginner's guide to business information
DESCRIPTION
This is a presentation that Joyce Gray gave to the Sheffield Inventors Group in July 2014.TRANSCRIPT
Beginner’s Guide to Business Information
Joyce Gray
Information Library Officer
Business Information?
• What is it?
• Why do I need it?
• Where do I find it?
• How can the Business & IP Centre in the Sheffield Central Library help?
Desk Research
Data Experiences Opinions
The wider contextContacts
Four areas of business Information
Guides
Market
Company
News
Guides
• Business guides, how to books etc available to borrow from the library.– http://library.sheffield.gov.uk/uhtbin/webcat
• COBRA online database.– http://sheffield.cobwebinfo.com/
• Useful websites– https://www.gov.uk/business– http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/startingup/index.htm
Market Research
Trends Market share
Commentary on key factors
Sales figures
Demographics
Sector segmentation
Other sources
Market Research
• Keynote Market Research database: subscription only online database available in the Business & IP Centre. https://www.keynote.co.uk/
• Mint UK Company database: has Datamonitor Industry reports https://mintuk.bvdinfo.com/
• COBRA includes UK Market Synopses
http://sheffield.cobwebinfo.com/
Statistics
• Office of National Statistics database: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/index.html
• Neighbourhood statistics that allow you to drill down by ward for information about your immediate trading area eg population, income and lifestyles: http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/
Company Information
Can help you–identify competitors–find suppliers –find partners–prepare for meetings–benchmark businesses and sectors–direct marketing by creating mailing lists.
Limitations to information available on UK companies
• Sole traders/self employed are not obliged to file financial information.
• Small businesses are exempt from filing an audited profit & loss account, only a balance sheet, if they match these criteria
They have fewer than 50 employees.Turnover is less than £6.5m.They have assets of less than £3.26m
Sources of Company Information
Free information on the Internet• Companies house
– http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/
• Yellow Pages– http://www.yell.com/
•Thomson Local• http://www.thomsonlocal.com/
•Kellys• http://www.kellysearch.com
Companies House
• The official website that lists all information about becoming a limited company
• Has a free limited search facility to see if a company is still trading
• http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/
Databases available in the library
• Mint covers 6,109,492 UK companies– 4,278,098 active incorporated Ltd and PLC
companies– 1,353,439 unincorporated companies which
include sole traders and partnerships.– https://mintuk.bvdinfo.com/
• Keynote covers active UK ltd and PLC companies– https://www.keynote.co.uk/
Products and Services Information
• Kompass Global online database available in the library http://gb.kompass.com/– This is a business to business database
that primarily used to identify suppliers of products and services worldwide.
News
• Newspapers– daily papers taken in the Central Library– Newsbank database
• https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/libraries/businessinformation/businessdatabases.html
• Trade Journals
• Industry news available on the Mint and Cobra databases.
News- Newspapers
Local news
Cultural trends
Ethical issues
Current news
Stories
News- Trade & business journals
Current news
Key issues
Contacts
Products
Legislation
Insider opinionsStories
Trade Journals
• Library subscribes to a few trade journals • Increasingly Trade Journals have a website
that gives some useful information for free• http://www.foodmanufacture.co.uk/• http://www.engineering.com/• http://www.managementtoday.co.uk/• http://www.businessmag.co.uk/ • http://www.economist.com/
Other Useful Resources
• Trade Associations• http://www.taforum.org
• Exhibitions and Trade Fairs• http://www.expoabc.com
• Cobra – Business Events• http://sheffield.cobwebinfo.com/
Technical Information
• British Standards Online
• World Metal Index– https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/libraries/all-
libraries/mi-21-world-metal-index.html
– http://www.mi-21.com/pages/
Library Webpages
• https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/libraries/businessinformation.html
• https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/libraries/businessinformation/businessdatabases.html
Contact us
Business & IP Centre
Reception, Reference and Information Library
Central Library, Surrey Street, Sheffield S1 1XZ
Tel: 0114 273 4736
E-mail: [email protected]