ITR Economics Company Forecasts FAQ

What is included in a Company Forecast?

• You will receive login credentials to our onDemand platform to view your forecast
• The forecast will be presented in chart format and with a numerical 12-quarter table
• We provide forecast values for the 12MMT, 3MMT, and 12/12 Rate-of-Change
  • For more information on this terminology, watch our methodology video
• Supporting text covering major economic trends impacting your business and any potential positive or negative threats to the forecast will be included

What is the difference between purchasing a Company Forecast and purchasing an EVP™ program?

• Both include:
  
  • 12-quarter forecast for your company’s data
  • Business economist specifically assigned to your company for advising and consultation throughout the year
• The EVP program is a more robust program and includes the following items that are not included with a Company Forecast:
  
  • Leading Indicator charts to support the forecast
  • Subscription to the ITR Trends Report™, which includes approximately 45 market forecasts

What is the process for purchasing a Company Forecast?

• You will consult with an account executive to ensure that this is the right service to meet your needs
• Once you have decided to proceed, you will complete a company profile and submit your data for our team to review, so we can ensure we are confident in forecasting the data
• If the data is approved, we will contract for the work, and you will receive login credentials for our onDemand platform
• It will take approximately five weeks for the forecast to be completed and uploaded to your onDemand portal
  • You will be notified when it is ready to view and download. Please Note: Expedited deliveries are available

[Why should I choose ITR Economics for forecasting my business?]

There are quite a few advantages to working with our firm. We’re accurate, actionable, mobile-friendly, easily accessible, quick to respond, business oriented, friendly, and employ a unique methodology unlike any other firm.

While ITR Economics is an economics firm that specializes in forecasting, our economists and services are business oriented. We track and forecast the data, but we also understand that the application of this knowledge is extremely important.

ITR is the oldest continuously operating, privately held economic forecasting firm in the United States. We were founded in 1948, and our forecasting accuracy is unparalleled. We can say this with confidence because we employ a unique methodology unlike any other forecasting firm in the market.

But our own confidence is not enough. We need you to be confident in our abilities so that you actively use the insights we provide in the daily management of your business. To foster this confidence, we provide transparency and readily share our forecast accuracy.

What categories of data do you have available to use as leading indicators for my business’s forecast?

Our robust database of 10,000-plus datasets includes our own ITR Economics proprietary indicators, the highly recommended macroeconomic indicators, and indicators for major industries such as construction, finance, and commodities, as well as vertical markets within the overall manufacturing industry.

Our ITR proprietary indicators give your business the competitive advantage of seeing further into the future with confidence. Our ITR Leading Indicator™, for example, originally developed in the 1980s, has not miscalled or missed calling a US recession since its inception. Our economists and analysists continue to develop new indicators in order to provide the farthest-looking, most reliable foresight for our clients.

How do I know that my business will relate well to the indicators?

In order to ensure we provide an accurate forecast for you, we perform a data-vetting process prior to finalizing any agreement. This way, we ensure your data works well with our rate-of-change methodology.

How many years of data history do I need?

It is important to provide monthly data going back at least seven years. As a rule, the longer the data history, the more accurate the forecast.

What data should I send to you?

• The answer is twofold:
  • First, use data that is readily available
    • Most businesses have kept records of sales, orders, or cash received that we can use
    • To start, work with whatever data is easiest to get your hands on
  • Second, if you have choices in which data to use, determine the metric you are most interested in analyzing
    • Revenue or sales are the most common, but you can use others, including orders, backlog, and inventory levels

What is a leading indicator?

It is a dataset that offers strong predictability for your own data’s cyclical movement through business cycles. A leading indicator’s turns in the business cycle precede your turns, and you can use that timing to see into your company's future with a great deal of accuracy. We like to think of a train. Each industry is its own rail car. Your business is also a rail car. Our team identifies which industries precede your rail car on the train, and by how much. When the train track makes a turn, you then know how much time you have before your company makes that turn.

What constitutes a “best” indicator?

We identify those indicators that are most applicable to what your business does, offer the best predictability for your turning points, and provide the longest lead time.