Hello! My name is Mikaila. I am the Business and Career Librarian at Chester County Library, and I am back once more as a guest star on this series! Today I’ll be introducing you to another of the library’s business databases. A library database, for those who are unsure, is essentially just an online resource that the library pays for so that you can access it for free with your library card.
The business database that I’ll be discussing today is called Statista. Statista is an international database that focuses on market and industry analysis. While Reference Solutions can hone in on data surrounding your individual business and community, Statista looks at the big picture of how your business engages with the larger scale industry. With Statista, you can view data on over one million market and consumer statistics covering 80,000 topics, 170 industries, and over 150 countries. For E-commerce businesses, Statista can be invaluable in gathering the marketing and consumer insight that may be difficult to garner in such an expansive playing field. Whether it’s to better understand your market or provide research for your business plan, you can download statistics, reports, market insights, and forecasts and surveys at your leisure.
Find Statista on our website by going to chescolibraries.org –> Tools and Research –> All CCLS Databases –> S –> Statista
This post is number fourteen in this databases series! If you missed the previous installments, you can view them here.If you would like to read Mikaila’s first guest post, the one on another of our business databases called Reference Solutions, you can find it here.
Hello! My name is Mikaila. I am the Business and Career Librarian here at Chester County Library, and I’m excited to be the first guest star on this series! In line with the former posts, I’ll be introducing you to one of the library’s databases. A library database, for those who are unsure, is essentially just an online resource that the library pays for so that you can access it for free with your library card!
This week, I’ll be discussing Reference Solutions (formerly known as Reference USA). Reference Solutions is a multi-database resource that focuses on U.S. and Canadian data. I usually describe it as an in-depth white pages/yellow pages in which you can research information on over 104 million U.S. businesses and 322 million consumers. This tool is invaluable to small businesses who are looking to do the following: research your competition, so you can see where your competition is located as well as a snapshot of their business to get an idea of their day-to-day operating; create mailing lists for vendors, B2B, and B2C; record data and download heat maps for your reference or to input in a business plan; and generally better understand how you and your market fit in your service area. Reference Solutions is updated regularly to ensure your research is verified.
Find Reference Solutions on our website by going to chescolibraries.org –> Tools and Research –> All CCLS Databases –> R –> Reference Solutions
This post is number ten in this databases series! If you missed the previous installments, you can view them here.
Join the Chester County Library in celebrating National Entrepreneur Month. It’s a time to recognize and honor the innovations and economic growth that entrepreneurs bring. The Chester County Library aims to provide resources and a space for entrepreneurs to grow their businesses. Whether through library services or providing referrals to local organizations, the Chester County Library connects entrepreneurs to the most needed resources in our community.
National Entrepreneur Month celebrates the ingenuity and risks that entrepreneurs take when starting and running a business. Please see the attached flyer which honors entrepreneurs by highlighting library and community resources for small business owners to take advantage of or click here for more information.
The Chester County Library has long supported small business owners and entrepreneurs by providing access to top-notch, authoritative information needed to help them succeed. Most of the Chester County Library’s business resources can be accessed from home with a free Library card through the online Business and Career Center.
Sam Bardarik, Business and Career Librarian and SCORE Volunteer, helps her clients find targeted resources for their specific needs. She meets with clients one-on-one to explain the databases, review catalogs and other resources that are important to the clients’ research objectives. “Owners and entrepreneurs are often surprised by the breadth and usefulness of the resources we offer,” says Bardarik.
The Library offers business and technical skill-building opportunities, often in conjunction with community partners like SCORE, to support business planning, social media, marketing, financial stability and more.
The Role of Market Research Business owners want to deeply understand the competitive environment and target customers prior to making costly, significant product or service decisions. Data-based choices are key to the development of business, marketing and operational strategies before the official launch.
Reference Solutions (formerly ReferenceUSA) is the No. 1 resource used to identify demographics and spending habits of key customers, build competitive profiles, inform marketing strategies, and determine ideal neighborhoods and locations to open a new business. “It’s a massive database that can focus down to the street level,” Bardarik explains. Reference Solutions compiles all that information into easy-to-interpret charts, tables, and graphs which can be incorporated into an entrepreneur’s business plan.
Other databases, like Statista and Gale Business Insights: Essentials, provide powerful search capabilities and are easy to use. Users can spend less time hunting for answers to their questions and more time on their market analysis and action plans.
References and Training Other courses cover cybersecurity skills and related programming languages such as Python and Linux.
For nonprofit leaders, the Chester County Library provides visitors with free public access to grant maker directories and grant funders with the Funding Information Network, an international network of libraries, community foundations, and other nonprofit agencies.
The Library orders books, e-books, and audiobooks on all critical small business topics. Print books and audiobooks can be placed on hold for pickup at any Chester County Library location.Print and digital magazines can be borrowed or accessed with The Flipster app. All the best titles are available: Bloomberg Businessweek, Fortune, Harvard Business Review, Inc., and Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, Forbes, Kiplinger’s and Money.
Most of the Chester County Library’s business resources can be accessed from home with a free Library card through the online Business and Career Center. Stay in touch with Business Center updates on LinkedIn or by signing up for the Business Bulletin newsletter.
SCORE Chester and Delaware Counties is proud to partner with the Chester County Library system, where many local SCORE business workshops were held in-person prior to COVID and are now hosted virtually. Popular topics such as How to Start and Operate a Small Business, Customers and Competitors: Getting the Inside Data and business planning have been featured year after year.
About SCORE SCORE, the nation’s largest network of volunteer business experts, is dedicated to helping small businesses get off the ground, grow and achieve their goals. Since 1954, SCORE has provided education and mentorship to more than 11 million entrepreneurs nationwide. SCORE Chester and Delaware Counties has been operating since 1985, with 100 dedicated volunteers today who provide confidential mentoring at no charge and offer business seminars, workshops and webinars to benefit the community. SCORE is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and a resource partner of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).
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