The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) was originally developed in the 1950s. It was designed to classify commercial activities by scope of production and subsequent supply channels. Since then, the NAICS code has become the standard classification for business industries in the United States (and Canada, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands). The NAICS code is currently used to classify more than 70,000 different industries in the United States alone. You can bet that if you’re selling something online, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will know what sector you’re in. The IRS has established more than 80 industry categorizations specifically for online marketing, including the following:
- Apparel and accessories
- Automotive (formerly Machine tools)
- Bicycle parts
- Book publishing
- Candy manufacturing
- Charitable organizations
- Chemical manufacturing
- Communications
- Construction (formerly Building materials)
- Delivery services
- Dining restaurants
- Electronics (formerly Radio and TV pharmacies)
- Education
- Engineering (formerly Chemicals)
- Food manufacturing
- Gym memberships
- Healthcare
- Housekeeping
- International sport fishing (formerly Freshwater fishing)
- Jewelry manufacturing
- Leisure activity
- Lingerie
- Linens and tissues
- Mass transportation
- Medical devices (formerly Surgical supplies)
- Metal manufacturing
- Music publishing
- News distribution
- Nursing homes
- Outdoor fishing (formerly Lawn and garden care)
- Personal care
- Photography
- Plastics manufacturing
- Real estate agency services
- Road construction (formerly Solid wastes, construction wastes)
- Rubber and plastic product distribution
- Sales representation
- Scientific research
- Seafood restaurants
- Software development
- Sports tickets and memorabilia
- Stencils and adhesives
- Textiles manufacturing
- Tobacco manufacturing
- Toys and games
- Transportation
- Truck driving (formerly Trucks and trailers)
- Wholesale distribution
- Wire and string manufacturing
So what does all this mean? Well, for starters, these are all industries where you can be certain of steady growth and development. The IRS also lists these sectors as being highly susceptible to inflation, which provides further evidence of their attractiveness.
Where Do I Start?
Deciding where to begin can be tricky, as there are so many options available. If you’re looking for guidance, check out the following resources:
- List of NAICS Codes
- Detailed Guide to NAICS
- Tips for Selecting the Right NAICS Code
- Top 10 Growth Industries for the Future
There, now you have everything you need to get started in the right direction. From here, you can move on to the important step of choosing a product or service to sell and establish yourself as an online marketer. And remember, the more you know, the better you’ll be able to break in.