If you are a businessman or entrepreneur, a resource that has become a trend and is causing great impact to those who put it into practice will be useful. SWOT analysis. Why is SWOT analysis important in a company or venture? More information below.
What is SWOT?
It is an interesting resource or strategic tool that helps us to focus our mission and goals to achieve our stated objectives. Through the systematic analysis of the variables involved in the process, it contributes to better decision making.
Focus
Its acronym SWOT , also known as SWOT , indicates the analysis of Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats . This study is oriented on factors that are divided into internal (Strengths and Weaknesses) and external factors (Opportunities and Threats). If you are an Entrepreneur , the analysis is focused on yourself:
- For example. For your Strengths you can ask yourself these questions: What do you do well? What do you like? What skills do you possess that distinguishes you as a professional from the competition? What makes you different? As an exercise, you can create a professional cover letter . It allows you to better see your skills.
- For Opportunities : Study your environment. What can you take advantage of that will benefit your goals?
- Regarding the Weaknesses : What is it that costs you work? In a Creole way, what is your Achilles heel?
- And your Threats : Think about the factors that threaten your performance, such as a shortage of raw materials or hyperinflation.
If the study is focused on your Company , then the investigation will be broader, since you have to incorporate different areas or departments that make it up. If communication is difficult due to circumstances such as the Pandemic, you can count on resources such as video calls or video conferences . Here we will give you a brief example so that you can guide yourself.
- The Strengths of your business can guide it in the following way: How does it stand out, what distinguishes it from the competition? What positive points do you have? How does your company stand out to offer your customers? Something important and unfortunately overlooked, do human resources add value to the product or service you offer?
- Opportunities : Although you cannot control them, but you can make them play in your favor such as: What technology can help you generate possibilities to expand the company? How to take advantage of the benefits of Digital Marketing. Identify the market behaviors that can benefit you.
- Weaknesses : What can limit the growth of your business. You can ask these questions: What actions must be stopped to improve the business? Is the company responsive to customer needs?
- Threats : Obstacles proposed by the market that you cannot handle such as: What changes are customers experiencing? What new habits can threaten my sales? Will the change of government harm my interests? An advantageous resource that will allow you to visualize the problem from different angles is the Ishikawa Diagram .
Importance
In this business field, it is vital that you have the participation of your work team, namely the departments that make up your business. With all these points in mind, we can answer the question. Why is SWOT analysis important in a company or venture?
- Contribute to improve your skills and focus your capabilities as an individual or as a company, so that you achieve the objectives.
- Help you brainstorm . This makes it easier for you to see clearly the resources that you have or that you need to meet your goals.
- Helps you optimize your planning
- It encourages you to update in relation to the area in which you work or according to the competition.
- Another point with equal importance is that it makes it easier for you to make a decision . If you are clear about your weaknesses and threats, you can make the right decisions such as defensive, offensive or survival.
SWOT really is a great useful tool to achieve business success. The most important thing of all that we have mentioned is, put it into practice! Knowledge is useless if you do not execute actions. Remember that it will save you time and effort. Have you put it into practice? Tell us about your experience.
