Instructions:

Choose a company and product line big enough to have a professional website and plentiful information through multiple sources, but small enough to analyze properly.

For example, Universal Studios as a division of parent Company Comcast is too big, but Universal Studios Theme Parks (subsidiary) and Orlando's Islands of Adventure (product example) is perfect. Network television as a division of parent company Disney is also too big, but ESPN (subsidiary) and Sports Center (product example) works better.

The only time you will need to talk about the parent companies, such as Comcast and Disney, is when you provide a brief history and look up financial information. The rest of your research will be on the subsidiary brand you chose, its product lines, specific product examples, and specific competing products.

COMPANY/FINANCIAL

A publicly traded company is one that sells shares of the company to investors on stock exchanges. The value of the shares and the company's income must also be reported publicly, making it easier for you to find the information. View the video, "Determining if a Company is Public or Private" below.

Give a brief history of your brand's publicly traded parent corporation and talk about its current position. Also, a fact or detail from the past could be important to current operations.

Include the five metrics listed on the template: Year-over-year increase or decrease in stock price, comparison of stock price to the larger market, and the most recent year's net income, net profit margin, and debt to assets ratio. For step-by-step help, see "Financial Information Source" attached below.

Elaborate on the corporate structure and ownership. Focus mostly on what is happening today. Again, you will research the parent company only for financial and background information. All other research will be on the subsidiary brand and product you have chosen.

BUSINESS

What are the main product or service lines the company offers? What is a specific example of a product or service within each line? Include a description of the product line or the product as needed. Remember, your audience may not know if a product name refers to a video game, television show, album, etc.

Your eventual recommendations to the company in Week 4 will focus on a single product or service line. The product/service line on which you focus may change based on your continued research and that's okay. Your recommendations should always fit the research, not the other way around.

TARGET MARKET

Describe the type of customers, or market segments to whom the company's products/service examples appeal. Be specific. For instance, "Worldwide music lovers of all ages" is too broad. "Electronic Dance Music fans age 17-24 in North America" is much better. Substantiate your assertions with some kind of market research data that you find.

Be resourceful. There probably will not be an article that tells you exactly what you want and the way you want it. Make sure these are the product/service examples you've chosen to focus on in your research. See the attachment, "Market Segmentation Recap" for help.

COMPETITION

Who are your competitors? Name at least three competitors that offer similar products, appeal to similar customers, and are the same type of company. Compare Business Product/Service 1 to Competitor Product/Service A. Rank them by finding and using any one metric to assess their comparative success.

For instance: revenues, profits, ticket sales, number of users or attendees, awards, or rankings by credible reviewers, etc. Avoid using stock price as a metric. See template for more. As you continue to research your brand, what else besides direct competitors do you think might compete for your customers cash and attention?

SUMMARY FINDINGS

Research leads to findings. Summarize your findings so far in 2-3 well developed paragraphs. Describe your findings (data), and note whether it was significant or not. Reference the company or division's structure, market position, size, financial standing, products and competition.

This is also a good place to note anything else about your brand that seems important but does not specifically fit into one of the above sections.

Avoid editorializing: (XYZ is sure to dominate the competition for years to come!). Try to be objective in your description. Use both quantitative and qualitative data from your research.