Читать книгу Six-Week Start-Up - Rhonda Abrams - Страница 82

Ever wonder why there seem to be three or four fast-food joints at the same intersection? Or why, all of a sudden, not one but three big office supply stores open in a community?

The answer is they all rely on similar statistics to analyze a market. They look for certain factors: population density, characteristics of nearby residents (age, gender, income), number and type of local businesses, and so forth.

Big corporations hire consulting firms to compile these statistics. You’ve got an even bigger consulting group doing it for you—free! The United States Government, particularly the Census Bureau, compiles all kinds of information useful for businesses, and it has put much of it online.

First, a few key websites to remember:

Fedstats (www.fedstats.gov): The main portal for finding government statistics. The government really has tried to make this accessible, but if you don’t know what you’re looking for, it may be hard to find at this site.

The U.S. Census Bureau (www.census.gov): Bookmark this! This gives you access to all Census data about people, businesses, trade, and much more.