Anyone have an opinion of ReferenceUSA as a search tool?

April 19, 2019

by a professional from Marquette University in 21370 SW Langer Farms Pkwy #196, Sherwood, OR 97140, USA

I recently learned that ReferenceUSA is available free through our area library system here in Portland, OR. Doing a bit of searching online, I see it is available through many libraries around the country. A couple quick searches on companies that I have worked with and know quite well, suggests to me the information can be old or just plain wrong. Anyone have experience with the database and an opinion on it?

Reply by a searcher
from Dartmouth College in Richmond, VA, USA

Paul - of course, hardly any tool will have very reliable info for private companies - esp financials. But I've found ReferenceUSA to be better than D&B Hoover's. I'm told it's based on some sort of census (of companies?) data. LinkedIn Sales Navigator $80/mo is the best - as people keep their own info up to date. To find companies by industry, geography, headcount - and then you can find people at different seniority levels ("Owner" etc.). Headcount is a decent- ish proxy for rev - if you adjust for industry (manufacturing vs. software, for instance).

Reply by a searcher
from Harvard University in New York, NY, USA

I’ve found ReferenceUSA useful to identify companies in niches and geographies of interest. It does require effort and thought on codes and filters, and ultimately researching each company in the search results.

Using interns and UpWork consultants to collate contact info is also helpful.

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