First resource up: The US Department of Agriculture. If your business is related to food products or agriculture, you can find a ton of top research from the USDA. That includes topics you might not think of, including forest and fire issues, biotechnology, and economics.

There’s even a special Rural Information Center, that I have just added to my bookmarks, because it has a wealth of information on community development, housing, funding, education, and tourism.

What can you do with USDA data? How does this relate to business intelligence? I heard a great example in a webinar by the eXtension Entrepreneurs and Their Communities service, on Identifying Assets and Opportunities in Your Community. The presenter was Bill Pinkovitz, of the University of Wisconsin Extension Center for Community and Economic Development. He discussed a family farm looking for a way to make their business into something their kids could inherit and would want to stay involved in. To narrow down their potential new directions, they looked at USDA data about meat consumption trends. They could see that pork consumption is rising, and that processed pork sells much better than fresh pork. With that information, they were able to decide on the best way to go.

Oh, and if you need photos on any remotely agricultural topic, don’t miss the public domain photos from the USDA Newsroom.

If you have research sources that help you collect small town business intelligence, I’d love to have your suggestions. I plan to make this an ongoing series.

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1. Do a business plan for the right reason.
Most people only write a business plan when they want money. But the top reason to write a business plan is for your own benefit. Lots of people say, “I’ve got it all in my head.” Please get it worked out and do a couple of pages of narrative. Figure out how much money you want to make and how long you expect to stay in the business.

2. Develop your entrepreneurial attitude. 
Work on willingness to take risk and perserverance.

3. Evaluate your business idea carefully.
How can you tell if an idea will make money? By doing the planning, doing the financial projections. The business plan guide from the Oklahoma Small Business Development Center includes financial projection forms. 

4. Get out and gather some business intelligence.
Local sales tax goods reports can give you an idea of the current local market in many areas. Want to know the real experience of others? Call competitors and other entrepreneurs. And don’t forget the personal resources, the service providers who support small businesses in your area.

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