Business & Entrepreneurship

Learn the steps to starting a business, get help creating a business plan, and find data on your customers, competitors, and industry by accessing BPL's online resources for business.

Gale Business: Plan Builder

A step-by-step online planning tool for starting, managing and optimizing a business or nonprofit; the Gale Business: Plan Builder dashboard walks users through five areas of exploration to develop a business plan focused on long-term success.

Gale Business: Plan Builder requires each user to create a username and password. To set up your personal account, select “Visit the Resource” below, then “Get Started”, and then “First Time Here? Get Started." To learn more about using this resource, check out this video tutorial.

Library card required

Gale OneFile: Leadership and Management

Provides access to authoritative periodical content covering topics such as 21st-century skills, organizational dynamics and leadership, adult learning and continuing education, and more. Updated daily, this library resource is useful for researchers or any professional interested in career development.

Free & accessible anywhere in NY state but requires a library card if outside of NY

LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com)

LinkedIn Learning offers more than 16,000 online courses in seven languages, hosted by expert instructors with real-world experience. Courses on LinkedIn Learning include Leadership, Project Management, Mental Wellness, Job Hunting, Digital Marketing, Data Science, 3D Animation, and CAD.

For Mobile users: 
1. Download the LinkedIn Learning app from Google Play / App Store 
2. Open the app 
3. Select - "Sign In" 
4. Select "Sign in with your library card" 
5. You'll be prompted to "Enter your Library ID". Tap on the box and enter "bklynlibrary" (all lowercase, no quotation marks) 
6. Use your BPL library card number or username and PIN and click on "Continue". 
First time users will be prompted to select topics of interest.

Library card required

Mergent Intellect

Access to public & private U.S. and international business data, executive contact information, First Research industry profiles, current D&B Key Business Ratios, job search, residential look-ups, and Census demographics.  To learn more about using this resource, To learn more about using this resource, check out these video tutorials:

Library card required

Mintel Reports Academic

Market research reports with analysis of consumer markets, companies, and brands.   

Unfortunately, the vendor restricts this resource to "view-only". You may not print or download from Mintel.

Only at Central Library

Plunkett Research Online

Market research, industry analysis and company profiles; Job seeker resources

To learn more about using this resource, check out this video tutorial.

Library card required

Reference Solutions (formerly ReferenceUSA)

Business, physician, dentist, and residential directory listings; job postings; data for entrepreneurs to research target customers, competitors and suppliers. To learn more about using this resource, check out this video tutorial.

Library card required

SimplyAnalytics

Demographic, business, and marketing data on a local level; users may create reports and maps with hundreds of demographic, business and marketing variables. 

Remote access to SimplyAnalytics is available to anyone within Kings County (Brooklyn) with a Brooklyn Public Library card. Exceptions to remote access content are below:

  • PRIZM Premier behavioral marketing & audience segments and Nielsen Scarborough local market research are only available to users on-site at any Brooklyn Public Library location. PRIZM and Scarborough data is not available to remote users.
  • On-site users will sign in to SimplyAnalytics with their BPL card number and PIN. Remote users will sign in to SimplyAnalytics with an email address and password. First-time remote users must follow the "Create an Account" link. You may have on-site and remote SimplyAnalytics accounts but these accounts are NOT connected. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Library card required

Statista

Quantitative data categorized into 21 market sectors such as media, business, finance, and politics. To learn more about using this resource, check out this video tutorial

Library card required

The Salesman's Guide

The Salesman's Guide Retail Buyers Database is for entrepreneurs and business owners seeking national buyers for their products in business categories like fashion, specialty foods, home furnishings, and more. Find and download contact information for store buyers.

Only in library branches

Subject Guides

BPL's Business & Career Services offers specialized subject guides for small business. Explore our small business guides: