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MKTG 380: Principles of Marketing (Stone): Industry Research

Resource for Ann Stone's MKTG 380 course.

Industry Classification Codes

What are industry classification codes? They are codes created by the US government used to collect industry-wide statistics. Many reference sources use them as a way to organize industry and company information. NAICS replaced SIC in 1997, but some sources use both, some still use SIC only

North American Industry Classification (NAICS)
Created by the Census Bureau in 1997, NAICS replaced the SIC. Each industry is assigned a unique number is a code used to identify and describe North American (US, Canada, and Mexico) industures. It is hierarchical and classifies each industry by broad group and then subdivides each into smaller, more specific classifications.

Standard Industrial Classification (SIC)
SIC system used to describe the structure of American industries. A hierarchical system, industries are organized into broad industry groups and then subdivided into smaller groups. Each industry carries a unique four-digit classification code ranging from 0100 to 9999. The SIC was replaced in 1997 with the North American Industrial Classification System but many sources still use the SIC.


Industry Research: Where to Start

Industry research, like company research, includes looking at different aspects of an industry: major companies, market trends, market share, ratios, finances. We have several resources that will help you get an overview, but you will need to use multiple sources to get a full view of an industry.

Food and Beverage Industry

Some suggested search terms for locating industry reports and information on the the food and beverages industry. These are just examples, there may be others.

  • packaged food (this includes items like, frozen food, cereal, premade food items, etc.)
  • frozen food
  • convienece food
  • snack foods
  • The types of food item (cereal, potato chips, cookies, etc.)
  • beverages
  • non-alcoholic (or alcoholic) beverages
  • soft-drinks
  • energy drinks
  • bottled water

Keep your initial search simple and broad. If you get too specific with your search terms you may not find anything. When you start a search, the simpler the search, the better.

How to Locate U.S. Industry Reports

Locating industry reports in Business Source Complete and IBISWorld. 

Short videos (3 mins.) will open in a separate window.

Business Source Complete IBISWorld
Business source complete IBISWorld