1. Marketing-Information Management LAP 8
Analyze This!
Marketing-Information Management LAP 8

2. Objectives Explain the reasons for conducting a SWOT analysis.
Demonstrate procedures for conducting a SWOT analysis for use in marketing planning.

3. Explain the reasons for conducting a SWOT analysis.
Objective
Explain the reasons for conducting a SWOT analysis.

4. Carl’s lawn-mowing service
Where to go from here?
Needs to see “the whole picture”

5. Discovering SWOT SWOT analysis
Looks at these factors in an organized fashion
Important part of the strategic planning process
SWOT
Strengths
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats

6. Discovering SWOT Strength Opportunity Threat Weakness Opportunity
Any favorable situation in the environment surrounding your business
Strength
Any resource or capability your business has that can help you gain a competitive advantage in your industry
Opportunity
Threat
Weakness
Threat
Weakness
Any unfavorable situation in the environment surrounding your business
Any limitation or shortcoming your business has that can keep you from achieving your objectives

7. Discovering SWOT Benefits of SWOT analysis: Prioritize
INFORMATION
Look at your business with the proper perspective
Discover issues you hadn’t thought of before
Filter for a great deal of information
Insight into competitors

8. Discovering SWOT Who should be involved in SWOT:
Top company executives
Employees at every level
Suppliers
Customers

9. Discovering SWOT When to conduct SWOT: Any time!
Especially helpful when you have a limited amount of time

10. Objective
Demonstrate procedures for conducting a SWOT analysis for use in marketing planning.

11. How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis
Should I expand my lawn-mowing business beyond my neighborhood?
First, establish objectives and goals.
For larger businesses, define the scope of the SWOT analysis.

12. How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis
Interviewing key contributors
One-on-one sessions work best.
You can give full attention.
People will feel more free to share information.
Explain the purpose of the interview.
Keep answers confidential.
No need to go in SWOT order.

13. How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis
Strengths
Internal organizational factors
Questions to help determine:
What are our advantages?
What are our assets?
Where are we making money?
Don’t downplay strengths.
Consider them in relation with the competition.

14. How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis
Weaknesses
Internal organizational factors
Questions to help determine:
What can we improve?
What resources do we lack?
Where are we losing money?
Avoid being too negative.
Weaknesses are different from mistakes.

15. How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis
Opportunities
External organizational factors
Determined through environmental scanning
Helpful questions:
What new needs of customers can we meet?
What economic trends are beneficial to us?
What niches have our competitors missed?

16. How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis
Threats
External organizational factors
Determined through environmental scanning
Helpful questions:
What obstacles do we face?
What is our competition doing?
Do we have money problems?

17. How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis
Key issues in each category

18. How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis
SWOT strategies:
S-O: focus on opportunities that are a good match with the business’s strengths
S-T: focus on using a business’s strengths to overcome its threats
W-O: focus on overcoming a business’s weaknesses so the business can pursue opportunities
W-T: focus on ensuring that a business’s weaknesses don’t make it even more vulnerable to the threats it already faces

19. How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis
CAUTION
SWOT cautions:
SWOT is subjective—there isn’t necessarily a right or wrong.
Live in the present—where is your business right now?
Be specific.

20. Kristen’s dilemma
She disagrees with her boss on SWOT analysis.
What should she do?

21. MarkED Acknowledgments Original Developers
Christopher C. Burke, Sarah Bartlett Borich, MarkED
Version 1.0
Copyright © 2006
MarkED Resource Center

22. Copyright:
All photographic digital images on this CD are owned by the aforementioned photographic resources or their licensors and are protected by the United States copyright laws, international treaty provisions, and applicable laws. No title to or intellectual property rights to the images on this CD are transferred to you. These sources retain all rights and are not to be used, digitally copied, transferred, or manipulated in any way. To do so is a violation of federal copyright laws.