How to Do a SWOT Analysis?

The world in the 21^st century is changing at an exponential rate and is never stopping. Every day one person or other is coming up with a better strategy, a better plan, a better product or a better way of crushing the opponent down. As a manager, your job role is to ensure that your organisation and product stays in the game. You have to propose the strategies that are better than the one launched by the competitor. You have to propose something that will set fire to the stage and make the people go mad with your wit and planning. One tool to display your intellect and make your stance more ironclad is called SWOT analysis. A lot of management and marketing students get their assignments where they have to conduct a SWOT analysis. My Assignment Services loves you all. So, here is a small guide on how you can conduct a SWOT analysis of almost anything by remembering these simple steps.

Never Forget What SWOT Is

The primary thing to remember is to never forget what SWOT is. Always remember. S – Strengths W – Weakness O – Opportunities T – Threats If you remember this full form, then your analysis becomes quite easy literally. No, we know that everyone knows this full form. But we are going to teach you how you can exploit this and turn the tables in your favour.

Strengths

This part is all about thinking and identifying. Look around. No, not literally. There are strengths all around you. Look closely in the question file and think, what they have that the others don’t? Look up the company on the web, see their website and you will be able to see all their USPs, key features, etc. lined up perfectly. This, right there, is a strength. Okay, let us bring it down a notch. Do you remember this scene from Avengers (2012)?

How could you not? You need to show this exact same confidence like Tony Stark when you are identifying the strengths. Strengths are what brings you closer to the organisational objective. Take care of choosing and manipulating the factors as per the convenience. Do not mention something that can come back to bite you. For example, your coffee shop uses only a specific type of coffee beans that are available with a single vendor. Hence, you can get the raw material quickly. It is a strength. But, you are 100% dependent on that vendor, so that makes it your weakness as well.

Weaknesses

Everything inside your organisation that puts your company or product at a disadvantage is a weakness. All the internal factors come into play here. Suppose your coffee shop is becoming famous and you are being asked to launch a franchise, do not think of launching where Starbucks already has an outlet. This will put you at a disadvantage. There are other scenarios as well. Maybe your competitor has installed some latest tech that helps them brew 20 cups of coffee at once instead of 10. Maybe they have hired professionals like Leonardo DiCaprio for their marketing and advertisement and you are still using the local cleaning lady who is sweet and did your ad as a favour. Identifying weaknesses is more important than the strengths. Yeah, why? Why do you want to focus more on the unhappy things and not see the better we have or are doing? Hold your thoughts lad. There is a simple mechanism here. If Einstein thought that I am already better than these dumb heads, would he have gone this far? No, because he would have eliminated his growth opportunity. When you focus on the weaknesses, you are compelled to eliminate them and become better. Weaknesses are what fuels your desire to excel, not a success. This is what makes you a phoenix, rising from the ashes.  

Opportunities

Every force in the universe that brings you closer to your goal is an opportunity. No, do not write “Fate wants is so” in your analysis, please. Your opportunities are not the same as strengths. With this, we mean that every external factor that gives you an advantage is called an opportunity. Do not write that you have the best manager in the world in your employment. Seriously, no. Having a committed team of employees is a strength, not opportunity. The latest government policies put you at a head start from others, that is an opportunity. Imagine that you are the manager of a coffee retail chain and competitor of Starbucks. California judge said that every coffee maker has to put a cancer warning on the cup. This is real, no kidding. You can even read the news here https://www.reuters.com/article/us-california-lawsuit-coffee/starbucks-coffee-in-california-must-have-cancer-warning-judge-says-idUSKBN1H5399. So, if you present to the people what is a natural and cancer free coffee, your business will definitely surpass the Starbucks. Hence, this judge ruling will be counted as an opportunity. The opportunities are external factors that are lifting you up and helping you reach your goal.  

Threats

All the external factors that stop you from hitting bullseye is a threat. You do not need a radar-like Batman that scans the place and points red dots for threats. This one is different. Here, you have to scan the entire world and identify what will stop you from achieving the target. It can be a strategy that you planned but misfired or a strategy by the opposition that makes them a favourite. If you are a tea manufacturing company and the taxes on tea went high, people will switch to coffee. Hence, this is a threat to your business. It was not caused by you or your company but by an external factor, the government. These threats are real and you need to propose your strategies keeping in mind these threats only.

Remember These Things

It is generally preferred that you write SWOT analysis in a box having 4 sections. Mention only one-liners that convey the same meaning. Do not write entire paragraphs for every input. This guide is compiled by management and marketing assignment experts at My Assignment Services. For any details, clarification or justification, feel free to reach us by writing to us at help@myassignmentservices.com. You can order your assignment and avail of a SWOT analysis helps here https://www.myassignment-services.com/order-now.html.