Level 1
What is a swot analysis?
a simple tool that allows businesses to analyze their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
True or False: Your SWOT Analysis should be getting super wordy and fancy.
False
Four components of a swot analysis
Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats
Define a weakness in SWOT Analysis
•is a disadvantage, limitation, or shortcoming a business has that can keep it from achieving goals
Opportunities and threats are _____ factors of a SWOT analysis
external
What is the goal of a SWOT Analysis?
to identify issues and provide guidance for strategic decision-making
SWOT analysis should always be followed by
further planning and development!
Questions to ask when determining strengths
•What are our advantages?
•Where are we making money?
•What are our assets?
•What unique resources do we have access to?
•What do we excel at?
•What are we known for?
What are the companies that are examples of weaknesses in action?
A weakness for Coca Cola could be that they have low product diversification in relation to their major competitor Pepsi. Coca Cola just offers beverages, while Pepsi Co also offers snack lines like Lays
Benefits of swot analysis
•Can be used by any company in any situation
•Little to no cost to conduct a SWOT analysis
•Provides a visual overview of the business
•Allow companies to prioritize what’s important
•Discover issues that hadn’t been previously thought about
•Filter for a great deal of information
•Helps a business gain insight into competitor strategies
Businesses use SWOT analysis to...
•Provide guidance and direction in developing strategies and plans
•Analyze what’s working for their business and what isn’t
•Look at market trends and how trends could affect the business
•Analyze their position relative to their competitors
•Prioritize projects and tasks
How do you find opportunities for a business?
•One way to find opportunities is to observe trends. Trends tell you what customers and the media are most interested in.
What company was the examples of strengths in action?
In 1998, Apple released the colored iMac computer. This influenced customer buying behavior, and it was a major strength because they were the only company doing this at the time. They launched a trend in the appliance industry and appliance manufacturers starting offering all kinds of appliances from vacuums to toasters in bold, vivid colors
Strengths and weaknesses are ____ factors
Internal
Who should conduct a swot analysis?
SWOT Analysis can be conducted by anyone involved with a company, and it’s a great idea to pull in multiple perspectives.
Finish the sentence: Completing a SWOT analysis is an excellent tool to...
analyze your business, but just completing the matrix alone isn’t enough!
Questions to ask when determining opportunities
•What new opportunities in the market are becoming available?
•How is the market changing?
•What opportunities did we pass, but are still available?
•What would be the ideal opportunity for us?
•What is the competition ignoring that we can play in our favor?
Define a threat in a SWOT Analysis
any unfavorable situation in the environment surrounding the business that could help competitors gain an advantage in the industry.
Define opportunity in the SWOT Analysis
•any favorable situation in the environment surrounding the business that could help the business gain a competitive advantage in the industry.
When should a swot analysis be conducted?
•No set time frame for SWOT
•Can be conducted any time or as often as needed!
•Conducting a SWOT analysis can be especially helpful when you have a limited amount of time to solve a problem
Examples of threats in action
During the COVID19 pandemic, restaurants faced the threat of being shut down for inside dining. Most restaurants quickly pivoted their business model to offer delivery and carry out services so they could stay in business and serve customers.
Examples of opportunities in action...
•At the beginning of the “go green” craze, Martha Stewart’s company noticed a spike in the percentage of customers buying eco friendly products. To capitalize on the opportunity, she launched a line of green cleaning products and used the slogan “Finally Green Means Clean”
What are some examples of threats?
new competitors in the area, economic slumps, bad publicity, etc.
Questions to ask when determining threats
•Who are our competitors?
•Has there been an increase in competition lately? Where and why?
•What are the costs of our resources? Is it affecting our bottom line?
•Are our suppliers unreliable?
•Is our technology safe/secure?
First steps for conducting swot
1.Establish your goals and objectives for conducting a SWOT analysis. (Why are you doing it? What’s the purpose?)