I am working on a product for a specific type of business, let's say dentists for example. If I want to get a list of dentists in my city, how do I do that? Is there any gov site that gives such info, for free or fee?
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Yelp, Google Maps, and the Yellow Pages are probably your best bet. Is there something each of these don't offer that you're looking for? |
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Try infoUSA. They'll let you download business info based on the criteria you need. |
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Your best bet is purchase a list instead of trying to screen scrape information. Database prices do vary wildly. You can use the following search criteria in Google to find what your looking for. Example: dentist database list|directory purchase |
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Reference USA is the database I have used in the past. The St. Paul Minnesota public library has it available for use on their website (you have to access it off of their link otherwise you will not be logged in). Below is a link where you can access it. When I use the database, I search with for a NAICS code in a geographic area. However the advanced search allows you to search via multiple criteria. The end result is a list of business with tons of info on each business. You can export this list to a spreadsheet or just use the info off of the website. The North American Industry Classification System or NAICS (pronounced "nakes"[1]) is used by business and government to classify business establishments according to type of economic activity (process of production). A website to search for the code for your industry can be found below. Please let me know if you have any questions about it. If you find a library near you with a subscription to the database, a librarian could help you to find what you are looking for. Reference USA access http://alpha.stpaul.lib.mn.us/screens/dbsubj.html NAICS code lookup http://www.naics.com/search.htm |
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If you're hitting a smaller number of businesses or don't mind a more manual process you could use Yelp. Its a manual process but does have the information you need. |
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When I was in college, and looking for a list of businesses to apply to, they had this large blue book called the "Illinois Services Directory" at the local library. It listed every local service business by industry, or by city, and had information including CEO, # of employees, and a good deal of other useful information. Other states may offer this as well. |
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