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SWOT Analysis
What is SWOT….????
• SWOT analysis is a tool for auditing an
organisation and its environment.
• It is the first stage of planning and helps marketers
to focus on key issues.
So what does SWOT mean?
• strengths,
• weaknesses,
• opportunities, and
• threats.
• Strengths and weaknesses are internal factors.
• Opportunities and threats are external factors.
Easy grid to use….
STRENGTHS
(internal)
WEAKNESSES
(internal)
OPPORTUNITIES
(external)
THREATS
(external)
So what could be a company’s Strengths?
• For example: A strength could be:
• Your specialist marketing expertise.
• A new, innovative product or service.
• Location of your business.
• Quality processes and procedures.
• Any other aspect of your business that adds value
to your product or service.
So what could be a company’s Weaknesses?
• A weakness could be:
• Lack of marketing expertise.
• Undifferentiated products or services (i.e. in
relation to your competitors).
• Location of your business.
• Poor quality goods or services.
• Damaged reputation.
So what could be a company’s opportunities?
• An opportunity could be:
• A developing market such as the Internet.
• Mergers, joint ventures or strategic alliances.
• Moving into new market segments that offer
improved profits.
• A new international market.
• A market vacated by an ineffective competitor.
So what could be a company’s threats?
A threat could be:
• A new competitor in your home market.
• Price wars with competitors.
• A competitor has a new, innovative product or
service.
• Competitors have superior access to channels of
distribution.
• Taxation is introduced on your product or service.
Rules….
Simple rules for successful SWOT
analysis.
• Be realistic about the strengths and weaknesses of your
organisation when conducting SWOT analysis.
• SWOT analysis should distinguish between where your
organisation is today, and where it could be in the future.
• SWOT should always be specific. Avoid grey areas.
• Always apply SWOT in relation to your competition i.e. better
than or worse than your competition.
• Keep your SWOT short and simple. Avoid complexity and
over analysis
• SWOT is subjective.
Other issues in SWOT
Marketing Objectives, Strategies &
Tactics
• Marketing objectives are the goals of the
marketing department which must ‘fit’ with the
overall company objectives.
• Marketing strategies are long term and medium
term plans set by management, designed to
achieve the marketing objectives.
What are they?
• Marketing tactics are short term marketing
measures adopted to meet the needs of a short
term threat or opportunity. Ideally they should be
in line with the marketing objectives, but this might
not always be the case.
Your task for this lesson…..
Get ready for action!
Your task….in pairs
• Choose a company you are familiar with.
• Decide which categories the issues belong to
(SWOT)
• Create a SWOT table and put the issues into the
correct ‘box’
• Decide on what the company’s main marketing
objectives are, what strategies they use and
identify the main tactics they have used recently!