Why complete a swot analysis

Building on strengths A SWOT analysis will help you identify areas of your business that are performing well. Minimising weaknesses Weaknesses are the characteristics that put your business at a disadvantage to others. Seizing opportunities A SWOT analysis can help you identify opportunities that your business could take advantage of to make greater profits.

Counteracting threats Threats are external factors that could cause problems for your business, such as changes to the market, a competitor's new advertising campaign, or new government policy. Addressing individual issues You can conduct a SWOT analysis to address individual issues, such as: staffing issues business culture and image new product development organisational structure advertising financial resources operational efficiency.

Also consider Find out more ways to grow your business. Read about how to benchmark your business so you can identify where your business currently stands. Last reviewed: 18 Jul Last updated: 22 Jun Print Page Print Topic. You may want to consider putting in place contingency plans for dealing with them if they occur. They sell hot, ready-to-go pies and frozen take-home options, as well as an assortment of fresh salads and beverages. The company is planning to open its first location in downtown Yubetchatown and is very focused on developing a business model that will make it easy to expand quickly and that opens up the possibility of franchising.

After all, the exercise is about producing a strategy that you can work on during the next few months. The first step is to look at your strengths and figure out how you can use those strengths to take advantage of your opportunities. Then, look at how your strengths can combat the threats that are in the market. Use this analysis to produce a list of actions that you can take. With your action list in hand, look at your company calendar and start placing goals or milestones on it.

What do you want to accomplish in each calendar quarter or month moving forward? Can you also minimize those weaknesses so you can avoid the threats that you identified? I like to use the Lean Planning methodology for strategic plans as well as regular business planning.

The actions that you generate from your SWOT analysis will fit right into the milestones portion of your Lean Plan and will give you a concrete foundation that you can grow your business from. You can download our free Lean Plan template to help you get started.

You can find me on Twitter noahparsons. Gather the right people Gather people from different parts of your company and make sure that you have representatives from every department and team. Throw your ideas at the wall Doing a SWOT analysis is similar to brainstorming meetings, and there are right and wrong ways to run them. Strengths Strengths are internal, positive attributes of your company.

What business processes are successful? Some of the objectives of SWOT analysis: To make a summary analysis of external and internal factors. To identify key items for the management of the organization, which involves establishing priorities for action. To prepare strategic options: risks and problems to solve. It is through analysis that we can determine the diagnosis of the company: strengthening the positive points, indicating which points should be improved, chances of growth, increasing opportunities, etc.

To conduct a sales forecast in agreement with market conditions and study the capabilities of the company in general. Internal environment Strengths and Weaknesses — the integration and standardization of processes , the elimination of inefficiencies.

Focus on the core of the business. External environment Opportunities and Threats — to have reliable and trustworthy data , to receive information quickly to support management in strategic decision making and to reduce errors. You can also examine relationships with outside vendors and regulations.

By doing this, you will be able to find opportunities for growth that can help your business now and in the future. Threats that could have a negative impact on your business come from the outside of your company. When you predict possible threats, you can lessen the impact or avoid them completely.

Some threats that businesses may see when completing their SWOT analysis include:. One threat was natural and organic products gaining popularity. Health-conscious individuals viewed beverages containing high sugar content negatively. Federal regulators also added taxes to these drinks in an effort to turn consumers toward healthier options. Coca-Cola took steps to eliminate these threats by increasing its marketing, promotional and advertising efforts.

As of today, Coca-Cola remains a well-known beverage company. They have an expanding portfolio of low and no-calorie beverages, such as Coke Zero, which continues to grow in volume.

This example proves that it is best to deal with threats immediately so that they won't become a bigger issue in the future. The objective of a business meeting is to discuss company issues, make decisions, share ideas and create business plans. Completing a thorough SWOT analysis reveals key information for many people on the team.

It will guide the company in the right direction. With this information, the company can discuss effective business strategies and create recommendations. You will be able to seize opportunities and handle threats because of the information you obtain, which will make your business meetings more productive. Not only can SWOT analysis be useful for companies as a whole but also on an individual basis. Individuals can determine their personal strengths and weaknesses.

For example, a SWOT analysis can determine if you are trustworthy, reliable, creative, disciplined, technologically challenged or impatient. In order for a personal SWOT analysis to be effective, the individual must be honest with themselves. An individual can evaluate their weaknesses and work on eliminating them or turning them into strengths. Threats on a personal level can be any external factor that can hinder you from achieving your personal goals.