From building a company to promoting a product, business research and statistics should provide the foundation for your choices and a pillar of your strategic communications. When you consider a need that you may be able to fill through a new business or a new offering, conduct research to better understand the market. When you need to communicate the scope of that need and show how your solution improves the situation, business research and statistics can illuminate the issue to potential investors and customers.
Where can you find strong resources for your statistics, and information?
When gauging a need or promoting your business, consider the source of your statistics. Photo by Frits Ahlefeldt-Laurvig
- Public research. Look for reports relevant to your field from public organizations like Pew Research. Pew produces original research and comments on research done by others. Go to the site as a first stop for research in your field, or use it to find conflicting or complicating studies to compare to those you already know about.
- Published academic research. Tools like Google Scholar can help you find public access academic journals. Your public library is also an excellent resource. The library may have access to more publications and a librarian can help you tailor your search. Even more research is available through academic libraries. Many colleges and universities will allow community members to use the library. Contact a school near you to find out if this is possible.
- Work with academics. If you have the resources, find an academic team willing to take on your issue. Sponsored studies in contentious areas may be criticized as biased, but they can also contribute to research that might not otherwise be conducted. Conduct a study and pair it with outside resources for the best of both worlds.
- Private and industry research. You can always look for relevant information from the big players in your field. Mary Meeker’s annual Internet Trends report gathers data from a variety of sources to present predictions about the tech industry. Search for similar resources that apply to your company.
- Survey your users, or make use of your analytics. Unless you work for a major company with established research credentials, your audience may question the validity of self-generated statistics if used alone to discuss broader trends. However, this sort of research is useful in discussing your own product or service, or writing about your business over time. It can also be presented in combination with outside research.
Whatever sources you use, recognize their potential biases. It’s best to find multiple studies and compare them to make sure you have accurate information. If you are developing a product or service to meet a need, you want to have the best possible grasp of what that need actually is. If you are promoting your business, you want to have strong, defensible numbers.
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Learn how to construct an infographic with your research.
