MKTG 361 - Advanced Professional Selling

Use sources listed under the Public Company Info page (see menu at left), especially:

• Annual Report to Shareholders (look on company website, under About Us, Investors)
• SEC Filings (look at the 10-K report)

1. S&P Net Advantage, First Research, or Business Monitor International Reports are your best bets.


2. If your industry isn't covered in S&P Industry Reports or Mintel, you will need to use other sources on the Industry Research guide.


3. In most cases, you will need to look for information in trade articles--especially when you are looking for market share or trends. The best source for articles is ProQuest One Business.


4. You may find information that conflicts with the information you found in a different source. When this happens, you should: A. Consider that the sources may provide different numbers because they define the industry differently  B. Decide which source you want to go with depending on the other information you have. It doesn't matter which industry you choose (there is no right answer), but you must be consistent (ex: same market size, same market growth, same competitors) throughout this project.


5.  You won't always be able to find exactly what you want. Sometimes you will have to use the information that is available and consider the ways the information isn't perfect, and make those adjustments for yourself, for example, if the market growth depends on the economy, look at how the economy is doing, or if a new competitor enters the market, this may change the market share of the established competitors.

A SWOT is a common analysis tool used to show a company's competitive position within it's industry. It identifies what makes the company a unique competitor, what it's problems are, possible growth opportunities, and legal, political, and environmental threats to that growth. An analysis is a snapshot in time, so it needs to be updated as conditions change.

S=Strengths
W=Weaknesses
O=Opportunities
T=Threats