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“Give me six hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.” 

Abraham Lincoln knew the importance of researching and developing a wide context before important decision-making. So today, instead of worrying that our axes aren’t sharp enough, we are going to sharpen our axes. 

One of the most important marketing tools for understanding your own competitive position is the SWOT analysis. This analytic model is a four-pronged approach to assessing where you currently fit within the market. “SWOT” stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. We can use this framework both as an internal reflection – what we are doing right and wrong – and as an external reflection – what competitors and the market in general are doing that will affect us positively and negatively. This tool can be used generally for a business, however, it is especially useful for us marketers.

Strengths are the areas where we do better than our competition. Weaknesses, on the other hand, are where we can see improvement. Strengths can also become weaknesses, and vice versa. Let’s say you run a business that sells ready-to-eat meals. Adding a specific ingredient has become your calling card, and has given you undeniable brand recognition. This strength can become a hindrance if supply chain issues make it nearly impossible to source this ingredient, so now you’re left with no calling card. At the end of the day, keeping tabs on your strengths helps to prevent them from turning on a dime. 

Opportunities and threats are things that happen to you, not because of you. The way you respond to these external forces is what matters most. However, understanding what is currently happening in the market is always important. It’s also quite common to see an opportunity arise with a mirrored threat. For example, you may be interested in partnering with a celebrity for a new ad campaign. Research shows this person is well-liked among your target audience, so the opportunity to launch this campaign is in your hands. However, the underlying threat is how this celebrity will be viewed in the future. Do they say hateful things in an interview or are they accused of wrongdoings? Now, all of the work on these ads can be undone by the association of this person. That’s not to say you should never latch onto an opportunity out of fear of the risks. See an opportunity from various angles and understand how some olive branches may have thorns that you didn’t see at first. 

What are the benefits of conducting a SWOT analysis? It can cast your organization in a very precise and understandable light. We all have a general idea of how an organization is running, but seeing it laid out in black and white is very beneficial. SWOT analysis can also make sense of complex problems. Think of a SWOT as a pros-and-cons list on steroids. These analyses can put relevant details all in one place that can be listed in order of importance. Finally, implementing a SWOT analysis is a great way to align business strategy with content strategy, as both spheres can be directly compared and contrasted with each other.

Have you used a SWOT analysis before? It may just become your new favorite tool in the world of strategic planning.

Author: Ben Rosenstiel

Ben joined the NISM team as a Social Media Strategist Intern in June of 2024. He graduated from Northern Kentucky University with a Bachelor of Arts in Electronic Media & Broadcasting in 2022 and with a Master of Business Administration in 2023. Ben enjoys making content as a Social Media Associate for the Kenton County Public Library. In his free time, he enjoys playing live music in the Cincinnati area, writing music with his band, and spending time with his amazing girlfriend either reading or watching TV (usually Vampire Diaries).