While it is useful to visit corporate websites to gain an understanding of the information and image that the individual company is looking to portray, this information should not be mistaken for unbiased reporting/data. Content on a corporate website may be editorial (created by the company to promote a particular point of view) or even written by an outside source (third party) for use in promotion of a particular product or brand. Several prominent corporate websites - including Forbes, Fast Company and Huffpost - have recently come under fire for masking such outside content (for which writers are paid) as unbiased reporting. Don't be fooled - always consider the potential bias of a source and refer to suggested MU databases when applicable.
Need help? Refer to MU's information literacy & "fake news" research guide, or to AllSides, a media bias ranking resource.
It's essential to check a company's website for:
You should also analyze competitor company websites for comparison/contrast.
Look for company information submitted to the Internal Revenue Service, including Form 990.
"...published especially for those who don’t want to read piles of business facts but need to know what to make of them."
Forbes is a global media company that publishes both a popular print magazine and a multi-faceted web resource covering global business issues. The site offers an array of old and new media including daily reporting, podcasts, brand marketing feeds and a video channel, while the company brand has expanded to include conferences on a variety of topics.
Finding what you need on comprehensive websites can be time-consuming. Look for sitemap to locate specific materials, or use this handy trick:
This technique will yield search results for your keyword(s) only within the website URL.
Narrowing your results:
You can search by specific domains. For example, if you only want government jobs sites, you can search "jobs" + "site:.gov" .
You can also also search for specific file types. For example, to search for a PDF document on jobs, search "jobs" + filetype:PDF.
A private company does not offer or trade its company stock to the general public on the stock market exchanges; instead, the company's stock is offered, owned and traded or exchanged privately. Privately held companies generally have fewer or less comprehensive reporting and transparency requirements than publicly traded companies.
Source: Library of Congress Research Guide - Private Companies