How to Use the SIC Search Feature

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Did you know that SimplyMap allows you to search for businesses by NAICS or SIC codes? Searching by these codes is a great alternative to the general keyword search. Using the keyword search function to search for a business is the quickest method of compiling a business report or placing businesses onto a map. But searching by keyword may result in a broad mix of different business types. Narrow your search to a specific business classification type to generate more meaningful results.

Let’s take a look at an example of searching for coffee shops by SIC code in Austin, Texas.

First, Click on New Tabular > Business Report to start a new report.

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Open the locations panel, and search by City > Austin. Next, open the Businesses panel to bring up the New business search. Click on the Add Condition button to bring up your options.

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Exporting Shapefiles in SimplyMap

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Did you know that SimplyMap includes the ability to export Shapefile data for use in desktop mapping software (such as MapInfo or ArcGIS)? This advanced feature extends the power of SimplyMap and allows for increased data manipulation and mapping capabilities for advanced users or GIS professionals. Let’s take a look at the exporting process with an example.

To export shapefiles from any map, select Actions > Export Shapefiles.

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The shapefiles export menu will appear. Follow the 5 easy steps shown and depicted below to receive your shapefiles.

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SimplyMap Tip: Saved Tabs

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In this week’s SimplyMap tip, we wanted to do a quick write up reminding users about the Saved Tabs feature within SimplyMap.

Did you know that SimplyMap will automatically save all of your work on maps or reports? Although your tabs will save by default, there is a separate option to delete your tab/work. Please note that deleted tabs cannot be recovered.

Let’s take a look at how this works. Firstly, identify a tab you would like to close – we have a Business Report titled Full-Service Restaurants – Raleigh. Next, click on the respective tab and choose the Close option.

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SimplyMap Tip: Using the Variable Search

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With tens of thousands of variables available in SimplyMap, it’s common for users to wonder whether or not a particular variable they have in mind is available in SimplyMap. This is where the value of our variable search function comes in. The variable search allows you to type in a keyword or two, and will output any related results. Let’s take a look at an example.

We’ll start with something broad and go with a simple search for data related to income.

Open the Variables Panel and click on the Search icon. Enter your keyword, “income,” in the empty text box and hit the search button. Your results will be displayed (over 2,800 income related variables!).

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By default, SimplyMap will display results ordered by the popularity of that given related variable among all SimplyMap users. In this example, popular income variables include: Family Income Average, Family Income Median, and HH Income ranges. Hover over a variable and select Use This Variable to add into your report or map.

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Exploring SimplyMap Data: America’s Favorite Music

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This week’s SimplyMap report will set out to discover what America’s favorite type of music is. We will use data within the premium data package, SimmonsLOCAL to answer the question. The process outlined below can be completed within a matter of minutes – let’s get started!

First, create a new Standard Report.

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Next, locate the folder MUSIC – TYPES LIKE MOST. When you hover over this folder, use the option to Use All Variables from the action menu. Picture below for reference.

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Exploring SimplyMap Data: Frequent Flyer Programs

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This week we explore the SimmonsLOCAL data package to find which cities in America have the highest percentage of residents enrolled in a frequent flyer program. SimmonsLOCAL is available as an add on data package to SimplyMap, and contains over 50,000 variables. The data measures 210 American DMA’s (Designated Market Areas) with data estimated down to the block group level.

With over 50,000 variables in the data package, you can imagine the variety of variables available to you – in this example we’ll take a look specifically at survey takers who said YES to being currently enrolled in a frequent flyer program. In total, there is 24 variables related to frequent flyer programs including airline specific programs from: Southwest Airlines, Delta, United, and Continental. Let’s get started!

First, create a Ranking Report in SimplyMap.

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Open the Variables tab and follow this path: SimmonsLOCAL » TRAVEL » FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAM » FREQUENT FLYER PROG-CURRENTLY ENROLLED?

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Exploring SimplyMap Data: Sales At Gift and Souvenir Shops

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Most people in the United States could probably guess which cities are popular amongst tourists – Los Angeles and New York. But can you guess how much money is spent in novelty and souvenir shops at these popular destinations? In this quick SimplyMap report, we will use data from the Retail Market Power data package to find the answers to that. The figures might surprise you! Let’s get started.

First, create a new Ranking Report.

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Next, navigate through this path: Retail Market Power » Stores » Miscellaneous Store Retailers » Office Supplies, Stationery, & Gift Stores.

Use the variable titled, RMP: Retail Sales from Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores [NAICS 45322] ($), 2014. Image below for reference.

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Exploring SimplyMap Data: Life Stage Clusters

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Is there a specific age group and income bracket you are specifically interested in researching for a target location? Our Life Stages module has the information you need. Life Stages, by EASI is a premium data set available for trial or purchase to all SimplyMap subscribers. In this brief write up, we’ll take a look at some of the options available within this data package.

The Life Stages module is broken down into three folders:

Young Households – Very Young <25 and Young 25-34
Middle Age Households – Middle Age 35-44 and Late Middle Age 45-54
Older Households – Nearly Senior 55-64, Senior 65-74 and Oldest 75+

Each of these folders is further broken down by family types and income.The income data has three tiers: lower income, moderate income and higher income. Let’s get started with a demonstration.

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Exploring SimplyMap Data: Walking to Work in the US

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In this quick SimplyMap report, we use Census data to help us identify which city in the United States has the highest percentage of residents who reported walking to work as their mode of transportation. Have any cities in mind? Let’s find out!

First, click New Ranking from the top of your SimplyMap screen.

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For the variable, follow this path: Census Data » People and Households » Employment » Travel to Work » Mode.

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SimplyMap Tip: Using Multiple Years

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One great feature within SimplyMap is the ability to track the same variable across multiple years. In this report, we will track the percentage of households in the US ordering items from Amazon.com, as we suspect it might show a marked increase over the span of the available years. The value in viewing the same variable over multiple years is that it helps users identify trends in the data over time.

Let’s get started. First, create a Standard Report by selecting New Tabular Report > Standard Report at the top of your screen.

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Next, navigate through this path: MRI Consumer Survey » Purchasing » Mail Order & Internet Purchases and hover over the variable, % Households Buying – Catalog, Mail, Phone, Internet Order: Ordered From: amazon.com, 2014 so the actions menu appears. From the “Select Variable Year” option check off the list of years you would like to see. In this example we will use 2008-2014. See the image below for reference:

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