—What Is SWOT Analysis?

SWOT analysis, which is based on internal and external competitive environment and situation analysis under competitive conditions, refers to various major internal advantages, disadvantages and external opportunities and threats closely related to the research object.

—My Understanding After the Investigation

· S stands for strength, W for weakness, O for opportunity, and T for threat, where S and W are internal factors and O and T are external factors. （What’s good/ what’s bad/ what’s the opportunity/ what’s the threat）

· It helps marketers focus on key issues. The core idea of analysis is to analyze the external environment and internal conditions of an enterprise, identify the opportunities available and the risks it may face, and combine these opportunities and risks with the advantages and disadvantages of the enterprise to form different strategic measures for enterprise cost control.

· SWOT analysis specific steps: Strength – weakness – opportunity – threat

· Basic steps of SWOT analysis：

(1) Analyze the internal strengths and weaknesses of an individual/organization both relative to the individual/organization’s goals and relative to competitors.

(2) Analyze the external opportunities and threats faced by individuals/organizations, which may come from changes in external environmental factors unrelated to competition, changes in competitors’ forces and factors, or both, but the critical external opportunities and threats should be identified.

(3) Match external opportunities and threats with internal strengths and weaknesses of individuals/organizations to form a feasible strategy.

· Four different types of SWOT analysis：

SO strategy is a strategy to develop individual/organization’s internal advantages and take advantage of external opportunities. It is an ideal strategic mode.

WO strategy is a strategy that makes use of external opportunities to make up for internal weaknesses and enables individuals/organizations to change their weaknesses and gain advantages. External opportunities exist but some internal weaknesses of individuals/organizations that prevent them from taking advantage of them may be addressed first.

ST strategy refers to that individuals/organizations use their own advantages to avoid or mitigate the impact caused by external threats.

WT strategy is a defensive technology designed to reduce internal weaknesses and avoid external environmental threats.

—Summary About What I Need To Think and Focus

S

Strength, internal favorable factors. You can make detailed comparisons with competitors in each area where you can capture value.
Focus Points: What advantages do you have? What are you good at? What are you good at? What relevant information is easy for you to obtain? How do others perceive your strengths? What are your strengths in the eyes of others?

W

Weakness, harmful internal factors. The results come from comparison.
Focus Points: What other areas do you need to improve? What else could be done better? What didn’t you do well? What are some areas you should avoid?

O

opportunity, favorable external factors. Changes in the external environment may create new opportunities.
Focus Points: What are the good opportunities facing you right now? What new trends are you aware of at the moment? What are the changes in supply and demand in all aspects of the field that you like or want to pursue? Are there any major social events, changes in forms, or changes in the way people live their lives?

T

Threat, harmful external factors. Changes in the external environment may pose a threat.
Focus Points: What are the obstacles you are facing? What are your competitors doing? Does the market place new requirements on your work standards? Are technological innovations taking place in your society or in your field affecting you? Are there certain weaknesses that have seriously threatened your development?