To understand a company and its competition, you need to understand the industry of which it is a part, even if you are looking for information about a niche industry.

Finding information about an industry includes the following steps:

• Get an overview of the industry
• Look for articles on trends and see if you can find forecasts
• Find financial norms and estimates if you need them
• Gather statistics from government agencies and trade associations
• Contact trade associations for additional information about the industry

Problems

Each information tool uses its own industry groupings and covers different industries

Small industries are often reported as part of larger industries in government data and other information sources

Quality, availability and cost of association information varies widely. Some of it is only available to members or for a fee

            Emerging industries are difficult to research