Contextualize the competitive market landscape. Recipe | People Data Labs
Recipe
"Mapping Startups" in a Sector
Contextualize the competitive market landscape.
03/17/25
5 min
Overview
For any investment, it is important to contextualize startups against the competitive market landscape they operate within.
This recipe walks through using PDL’s Company Search API to build a detailed sector overview of the key players and their equivalents within a market based on industry, tag and geographical attributes.
Data Ingredients
PDL Products
Company Dataset
Company Search API
Key Fields
name
founded
industry
location
tags
employee_count
funding
Directions
Step 1: Define sector keywords
Identify the industry or market you want to map (e.g., “fintech,” “renewable energy,” or “AI”). Specify your industry requirements using PDL’s industry taxonomy alongside any tags you want to use in your query.
Step 2: Query the PDL Company Dataset
Use the Company Search endpoint to build a query based on the sector keywords. Apply additional filters such as founded (e.g., startups founded in the last 5 years), employee_count, or funding to refine your results.
Step 3: Enrich company data
Retrieve enriched records with key attributes like founded, industry, location, and tags. Use this data to gain insights into the size, distribution, and characteristics of startups within the sector.
Step 4: Visualize your sector map
Organize the data into a sector-specific map using a table, dashboard, or graph. For instance, group startups by sub-industry, geographic location, or funding stage to identify trends and clusters.
Step 5: Refine and analyze trends
Analyze the resulting map to identify patterns, such as emerging sub-sectors, geographical hotspots, or startups with significant growth potential.
Chef's Recommendations
To deepen your analysis, consider incorporating dynamic signals from Person Search. Track talent movements, such as new roles emerging in sub-sectors (e.g., “AI ethicist”), to identify trends or new entrants before they’re widely publicized.
For advanced insights, use vector similarity searches on company descriptions to group startups based on textual similarities. This technique can surface hidden clusters or niche trends that keyword searches might miss, providing a richer understanding of the sector landscape.
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