Research Guides: ENTR 200: Introduction to Entrepreneurship and Innovation: Home

Welcome

Welcome to the ENTR 200 Resource page

This site provides information to support your work in ENTR 200. Browse the topics below for links to relevant resources and databases.

IBISWorld Industry Reports
Data-driven reports on industries. Each report is approximately 30-40 pages in length, providing an authoritative overview of trends, competitive forces, statistics, top companies, and more.

SimplyAnalytics
Web-based mapping, analytics and data visualization of demographic variables, psychographic variables, and business locations. Map any area down to the US census block level. Add map data data variables and create custom reports. Includes MRI-SimmonsLOCAL and EASI customer data.

US Census Data
US Census demographics: population, housing, economic and geographical data
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
A portal site that allows you to find information about various chambers of commerce.
Bureau of Economic Analysis: Regional Economic Accounts
Regional data down to the MSA level of economic conditions
CFED - Development Report Card for the States
The Development Report Card for the States (DRC) uses 67 measures to provide a relative, state-by-state assessment of economic development, assigning grades in three main areas: Performance (economic climate for a wage-earner), Business Vitality (economic climate for a business), and Development Capacity (how a state is positioned for the future).

Researching Companies (News)

ABI/INFORM Global
A comprehensive business database covering the broadest range of business topics for both academic researchers and professionals in the workplace. In addition to thousands of scholarly journals, includes full articles from The Economist, Financial Times, and Wall Street Journal. Can also be searched as part of the larger ABI/INFORM Collection.
ABI/INFORM Trade & Industry
Trade and industry-specific publications that cover trends, product launches, and other key contexts. Can also be searched as part of the larger ABI/INFORM Collection.
Factiva
Full-text access to top national and international newspapers including the Wall Street Journal, newswires, business journals, and a limited number of market research reports. Updated daily.
Gale Business: Entrepreneurship
A portal for entrepreneurs containing business plans, entrepreneurial articles, small business forms and related information. Includes small business encyclopedias.

Competitors & Suppliers

Mergent Online
LSEG, the vendor which licenses Mergent Online to Purdue University Libraries, sunset this product on June 30, 2025. Libraries provide access to several other databases which provide company information like that included in Mergent Online. PitchBook is the recommended alternative for coverage and ease of use. Other easily-accessible resources that can help with company information research include D&B Hoovers or PrivCo for private companies in the United States. Other powerful products like PitchBook that are less accessible include LSEG Workspace and S&P Capital IQ. All of these databases can be found on the Libraries’ A to Z database list and on the Companies and Organizations LibGuide. In addition, the Bloomberg terminal located in the Parrish Library of Management & Economics can be used to research companies.
Data Axle Reference Solutions
Basic directory data includes millions of current and historical US businesses, and individual US consumers. Use it to build lists like these examples: all coffee shops in Indianapolis, all semiconductor machinery manufacturers in California and Indiana, or consumers in West Lafayette interested in cooking / wine with a household income between $125,000-$200,000.
ThomasNet: Thomas Register of American Manufacturers
Offers in-depth supplier profiles of North American suppliers. It enables users to search for suppliers, compare products and services, and contact suppliers, all on the platform.
NexisUni
Features news, business and legal sources from LexisNexis -- including US Supreme Court decisions dating back to 1790.
D&B Hoovers
Aggregates company profiles, business news, and industry reports.
PrivCo
Business and financial data on major, non-publicly traded corporations, including family owned, private equity owned, venture backed, and international unlisted companies.
Note: This resource requires you to create a user account.

Small Business Administration (SBA)
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is a cabinet-level federal agency fully dedicated to small business and provides counseling, capital, and contracting expertise as the nation’s only go-to resource and voice for small businesses.
CrunchBase
The world's most comprehensive dataset of startup activity.
Angel Capital Association
ACA is a professional society of accredited angel investors who make up the world's most prolific early-stage investment class. The association is the largest professional development organization for angel investors in the world deploying more than $650 million in early stage capital each year. ACA provides an insider perspective that can help you make smart investment decisions.
National Venture Capital Association
NVCA is a nonprofit association powered by our members. We convene venture capital investors, entrepreneurs, and industry partners to shape public policy priorities, to develop new industry initiatives, to provide premier research, and to participate in professional development opportunities with their peers.

IBISWorld Industry Reports
Data-driven reports on industries. Each report is approximately 30-40 pages in length, providing an authoritative overview of trends, competitive forces, statistics, top companies, and more.
Bizminer
Choose from two main categories. Industry Financial Profile offers financial ratios and data for industry segments with sales class filters. Industry Market Profile offers demographics, competitors, market volume, and more for the entire US, states, counties, zip codes, cities, and customizable market radius.
Key Business Ratios (D&B)
Examine industry benchmarks compiled from D&B's database of public and private companies, featuring key business ratios. Choose a one-year or three-year set of ratios for public and private companies in hundreds of lines of business.

Quick MBA: Strategy
Strategic management resources from QuickMBA.com.

Market Research

Mintel
Market research reports and consumer data: primarily B2C (business-to-consumer) categories like food and drinks, travel, beauty and personal care, pets, household goods, and retail and apparel.
SimplyAnalytics
Web-based mapping, analytics and data visualization of demographic variables, psychographic variables, and business locations. Map any area down to the US census block level. Add map data data variables and create custom reports. Includes MRI-SimmonsLOCAL and EASI customer data.
Insider Intelligence
Market research reports and news articles: primarily advertising, marketing, financial services, and technology with particularly strong coverage of overlap topics like ecommerce, digital marketing, digital payments, mobile banking, etc.
Passport
Aggregates industry reports, economic information, and consumer information by region and country with global coverage.
Bizminer
Choose from two main categories. Industry Financial Profile offers financial ratios and data for industry segments with sales class filters. Industry Market Profile offers demographics, competitors, market volume, and more for the entire US, states, counties, zip codes, cities, and customizable market radius.
IBISWorld Industry Reports
Data-driven reports on industries. Each report is approximately 30-40 pages in length, providing an authoritative overview of trends, competitive forces, statistics, top companies, and more.
Frost and Sullivan
Market research reports: a wide range of categories like aerospace and defense, automotive and transportation, consumer products, healthcare, energy and power systems, and measurement and instrumentation.
MarketResearch.com Academic
Market research reports: a wide range of categories like food and beverage, technology and media, heavy industry, life science, consumer goods, and service industries.
Plunkett Research
Aggregates industry reports, company profiles, and job-seeker resources.

Consumer Spending Habits

Consumer Expenditure Survey
The survey provides information on how much consumers spend on a variety of product categories, based on age, occupation, income, and other demographics.

MRI-Simmons Catalyst
Demographic, lifestyle, product and brand usage, and advertising media preferences reported by a sample of US consumers.
SimplyAnalytics
Web-based mapping, analytics and data visualization of demographic variables, psychographic variables, and business locations. Map any area down to the US census block level. Add map data data variables and create custom reports. Includes MRI-SimmonsLOCAL and EASI customer data.
Data Axle Reference Solutions
Basic directory data includes millions of current and historical US businesses, and individual US consumers. Use it to build lists like these examples: all coffee shops in Indianapolis, all semiconductor machinery manufacturers in California and Indiana, or consumers in West Lafayette interested in cooking / wine with a household income between $125,000-$200,000.

Location, Location, Location

Bizminer
Choose from two main categories. Industry Financial Profile offers financial ratios and data for industry segments with sales class filters. Industry Market Profile offers demographics, competitors, market volume, and more for the entire US, states, counties, zip codes, cities, and customizable market radius.

CFED - Development Report Card for the States
The Development Report Card for the States (DRC) uses 67 measures to provide a relative, state-by-state assessment of economic development, assigning grades in three main areas: Performance (economic climate for a wage-earner), Business Vitality (economic climate for a business), and Development Capacity (how a state is positioned for the future).
US Census Data
US Census demographics: population, housing, economic and geographical data
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
A portal site that allows you to find information about various chambers of commerce.
Indiana Business Research Center
Part of the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University, the IBRC maintains databases on numerous topics such as income, employment, taxes, sectors of the economy, education, demographics and a host of other economic indicators for the nation, the state and local areas.
STATS Indiana
STATS Indiana provides access to economic and demographic statistics for states, counties, cities and towns, townships, regions, census tracts and more.

SimplyAnalytics
Web-based mapping, analytics and data visualization of demographic variables, psychographic variables, and business locations. Map any area down to the US census block level. Add map data data variables and create custom reports. Includes MRI-SimmonsLOCAL and EASI customer data.

Books on Consumer Spending Habits

Who's Buying...
Book series containing consumer buying trends in specific product categories including: alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, entertainment, groceries, household furnishings, and several others.
Some are electronic resources-click on:Get full text
Household Spending
Demographic look at household expenditures.
Best Customers: Demographics of Consumer Demand, 10th Ed by New Strategist Press Editors (Prepared for Publication by)
ISBN: 1940308437

Publication Date: 2014-07-15

Citing Sources in APA

Reports

Author. (Publication Date). Title of report. Name of source. Available/retrieved from URL.

Examples:

Mintel Market Research Report
Mintel. (2016). Convenience store foodservice - US - March 2016. Available from http://www.mintel.com/
Bizminer Industry Report
Bizminer. (2016). Industry market research - All US - Department stores (except discount department stores. Available from http://www.bizminer.com/

Graph, Chart, or Table Retrieved Online

Author. (Publication Date). Title of graph, chart, or table [type of figure]. Title of website. Available/Retrieved from URL

American Fact Finder Data
United States Census Bureau. (2016). Annual survey of manufactures: Geographic area statistics: Statistics for all manufacturing by state: 2014, 2013, and 2012 [table]. American factfinder. Available from: http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ASM_2014_31AS101&prodType=table

U.S. Patent

Author. (Publication Date). U.S. Patent No. Washington, DC: U.S.

Example:

Willams, D. (2005). U.S. patent No. 6,885,550. Washington, DC: U.S.

News and Articles

Author. (Publication Date). Title of article. Journal title, Volume(issue), page numbers. Available/Retrieved from URL/Document URL