Last week, Whittaker Associates gave a webinar presentation on targeting companies for retention, expansion, and attraction. During the webinar, I was able to demonstrate the Hoovers Online system, a company information database that we use for our everyday research. During my time here at Whittaker Associates, I have worked with numerous research sources, both fee-based and free, and Hoovers has always been my preferred go-to source for the information I need.
As a subsidiary of Dun & Bradstreet, Hoovers contains information on more than 30 million companies and organizations worldwide. The user-friendly interface makes it easy to access the most up-to-date information in just a few clicks. Some features of the system include:
Facts/Overview. Each company record contains address and contact information, as well as a link to the company website and an overview of the company, if available.
Family Tree. Extensive family trees show relationships between parent companies, subsidiaries, and branch locations, both national and international.
Industry. Hoovers has acquired First Research, a company that offers industry information. With a subscription to First Research, one can have access to in-depth information regarding the competitive landscape, operations, trends, and challenges of each industry.
Competitors. This feature lists several competitors for a company, and has links to competitors’ company records.
People. Hoovers has employee names and titles from headquarter executives to branch location facility managers. For larger, public companies, age, salary, and a brief biography may also be available.
In addition to the features listed above, Hoovers also has company news, significant developments, and financial figures. Information on smaller, private companies can be just as plentiful, as data is updated as it becomes available after a company’s fiscal year-end.
With its many useful features and up-to-date records, Hoovers has become a one-stop shop for business information.