• If you’re a marketer or small-business owner, you might be wondering if SWOT analyses are practical or even feasible for smaller companies and organizations. Although there is definitely a resource overhead involved in the creation of a SWOT analysis, there are many benefits in doing so, even for the smallest of companies.
    • Get a bird’s eye view: For one, conducting a comprehensive SWOT analysis provides a unique opportunity to gain greater insight into how your business operates. It’s all too easy to get lost in the weeds of the day-to-day workings of your company, and conducting a SWOT analysis allows you to take a broader, bird’s eye view of your business and the position it occupies in your industry.
    • Improve specific campaigns and projects. Another benefit of SWOT analyses is that this technique can be applied to a wide range of scenarios, not just as an overview of your business. You could use SWOT analyses to evaluate the potential strengths and weaknesses of a forthcoming advertising campaign, a planned content project, or even whether your company should be represented at a trade show or industry event.
    Here’s an example of a project SWOT analysis: project SWOT analysis example Image source
    • Develop tangible roadmaps. Obviously, it almost goes without saying that conducting a SWOT analysis allows you to identify what your company does well, where it could improve, and the opportunities and threats facing your business. However, conducting a SWOT analysis provides you with the opportunity to not only identify these factors, but also develop and implement tangible roadmaps and timelines for potential solutions. This can be beneficial in the creation of budgetary plans, identifying hiring needs and other mid- to long-term strategic planning.
     

    A full SWOT analysis example

    So, now we know what each element of a SWOT analysis is concerned with and the kinds of exploratory questions we can ask to get the ball rolling, it’s time to actually get to work and create your SWOT analysis example. To illustrate how it works, we’ll create our own SWOT analysis example: a family-owned restaurant, with a single location, operating in an urban area. Here’s the SWOT analysis example based on our fictional restaurant:
    SWOT analysis example matrix
    As you can see, this matrix format allows you to quickly and easily identify the various elements you’ve included in your analysis.

    Strengths examples

    • Excellent, well-trafficked location
    • Good reputation in local community
    • Seasonal menu, locally sourced.

    Weakness examples

    • Higher costs than comparable chain restaurants
    • Single location means limited reach
    • Modest advertising budget
    • Not currently using food delivery apps/technology

    Opportunity examples

    • Growing interest in/support for locally sourced ingredients
    • Seasonal menu keeps things fresh and interesting
    • Potential growth via food delivery apps/technology

    Threat examples

    • Intensifying competition from established chain restaurants
    • Uncertain economic environment
    • Rising cost of ingredients