7 Keys to Marketing Genius: Implementing a SWOT Analysis
The following is an excerpt from The 7 Keys to Marketing Genius by Michael Daehn
A SWOT analysis can be done on many levels. In my role as a university professor I have my students perform a personal SWOT in order to get a grasp on the concept. They list their individual strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. I then take them through the process for their school as a whole. I ask for input from the whole class and write their answers on the whiteboard. In organizations that have different departments, I advise having each department perform a SWOT, as well as a SWOT for the whole organization.
When creating a SWOT, it is best to get all the stakeholders into a room and create the SWOT together on a whiteboard. For larger organizations when this is not possible, distribute questionnaires to all the stakeholders. Gather the information and create an analysis based on their feedback. A combination approach involves giving questionnaires to all stakeholders and then getting team leaders and managers into a room to create a final version based on feedback from the managers’ and the other stakeholders’ input.
To begin the SWOT analysis, gather information from as many stakeholders of the company as possible. Stakeholders are any persons who have an interest in seeing the company succeed. This includes owners, managers, employees, partners and key customers. Once you have identified the stakeholders, present each with a SWOT questionnaire. Next, cull together all their input into a master analysis.
The SWOT analysis begins by having stakeholders list the strengths of the organization. These are internal elements that are positives for the organization. Things like products, people, and corporate culture are all strengths. Being first to market with a product, having a well-trained staff and organizational alignment with mission are all strengths.
Next, dig deep and honestly consider the weaknesses of the company. Even the strongest organization has weaknesses. It is better to be aware of these weaknesses and address them in the proper manner; otherwise they will fester in the background until they eventually take over and destroy the positives. Weaknesses are internal elements that are negatives for the organization. Weaknesses can also be people, products and corporate culture. Being last to market, a poorly trained staff and organizational misalignment are all weaknesses. Have participants write as many weaknesses as possible, but try to get at least five before proceeding.
Typically companies have two extremes when completing this portion. Either the participants are naïve and over positive, or pessimistic and negative. Neither is conducive to a productive analysis. Every company has a weak flank; it is best to understand vulnerabilities and take necessary precautions. On the other hand, do not allow this to become a gripe session for every disgruntled member of the company to complain. Make sure to bring forth realistic and useful information that can help the corporation create an action plan to succeed in the future.
The next letter of SWOT stands for the O in opportunity, but we will come back to these at the end and skip to the threats for now. Threats are external and negative environmental factors beyond the control of the company. The word threat connotes fear; as well it should, because these external elements have the potential to kill your company. Competition, changing consumer tastes, and copies of your product by others are all examples of a threat. Be honest, what threatens the livelihood of your company?
Talk of weaknesses and threats can leave you feeling deflated. Now is the time to turn that frown upside down and look at the many opportunities afforded the company. Opportunities are positives that can result by being proactive, capitalizing on the listed element. Go back to the list of strengths, weaknesses, and threats and decide how each can be a positive opportunity. This is an easy task for the strengths, but is more difficult with the weaknesses and threats so you will have to be creative. For example, how can lack of training be an opportunity? The company can train its people the proper way without their having to unlearn a great deal of information.