In this post, I’ll discuss the next two elements of SWOT: Weaknesses and Opportunities.
Weaknesses
Next take a look at your company’s weaknesses. This is not only from your perspective, but also from your competitors’ perspective. Yes, it is sometimes tough to think about your weaknesses. But to clearly understand your competitive advantage, you must be honest with yourself now and face any unpleasant truths so they can be resolved as soon as possible.
- What does your company do poorly?
- What things or activities should be avoided?
- What do your competitors do better than you?
- What improvements can your company make?
- Is there a particular market or segment that your competitors have “cornered”?
Take a look at the list of weaknesses mentioned. Those that appear most often are the ones you need to concentrate on first, as they are your most critical. Work with your employees, business partners, vendors – whomever is involved or affected by the weaknesses – to develop a plan to correct the weakness. If you can turn that weakness into a strength that sets you apart from your competition, even better!
Opportunities
Now take a look a the areas in your market that offer you room to grow. Opportunities can come from any number of places – you need to stay aware in what is happening in your industry. This can take the form of changes in many areas that affect your business, such as: in technology and markets on both a broad and narrow scale; changes in government policy related to or impacts your industry; changes in social demographics, customer lifestyle and/or buying patterns; and key an eye on local events, such as the closing of a nearby store.
- What and where are the interesting opportunities in your market?
- What do your competitors do or offer that you can improve upon?
- What are the important trends occurring in your local area, as well as across the country?
- What do you anticipate happening in the future that may present an opportunity to stay ahead of your competitors?Carefully analyze the information you gather.
Choose three to explore and develop. (Choose only three because this is a quantity that can be easily managed. Once you complete one and it is either seamlessly integrated into your systems or has been discarded, then add another opportunity to take its place.)
In the third and last post, I will discuss the last element of SWOT: Threats.
Recommended Book
Here is a book that provides excellent guidance and a step-by-step process on conducting analysis of your competition, as well as tips and tools to find the answers you need.
Competitive Intelligence : How to Gather, Analyze, and Use Information to Move Your Business to the Top
by Larry Kahaner
This book is written in aa clear, no nonsense style that will enable you, the business owner, to immediately apply his insights in your company.
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