Many people who work for a listed company invest some of their money in stock issued by their employer.

Don’t stop with the company you work for.  If you’re looking for other companies to invest in, why not look at the companies whose products and services you use? You are familiar and happy with their products.

Of course, just because you use a product doesn’t guarantee the manufacturer is a good investment. But it’s a good place to start if you are looking for companies to invest in and you’re not sure where to start your research.

Getting Started

To find companies that may be worth investing in, just pay attention to the companies you are a customer of. What phone are you using and what telecommunications provider do you have?

Forming Your Investing Strategy

Once you come up with a list of potential companies to invest in you can dig down a little deeper and see if they fit your own personal criteria and portfolio. Read up on them and take a look at their history.

Also consider what kind of stocks you prefer to own. Are you looking for stocks with tremendous growth potential?  These types of stocks are extremely volatile.

On the other hand, you have older and more stable stocks like IBM, Coke, and AT&T.  These are examples of Dividend Artisocrats, companies with a long history of paying out regular dividends to their shareholders and increasing them year after year. These companies are more mature and less volatile than the market.  And while they may not have the same explosive growth potential, the regular dividend payments offer a valuable stream of passive income.

Get invested.