Creating Your Companies SWOT Analysis Workbook

Transcription

1 Creating Your Companies SWOT Analysis Workbook

2 Consider This Situation - Suppose you own a furniture store that specializes in custom-made furniture and your pricing is on the high end - The world s largest discount furniture retailers is about to open a huge furniture warehouse and showroom one block away, and they intend to also offer custom-made furniture as well Consider This Situation - How will this new situation impact your business? - Will this major retailer put you out of business for good? - Will they force you to drop your prices so low you can no longer remain competitive? - Or will their presence drive so many additional prospective furniture buyers into the area that this could end up being a windfall for your business?

3 Consider This Situation - The answers to these critical questions must be carefully considered and thoroughly weighed - A plan of action must be prepared for each and every contingency - You need a crystal ball that can provide you with the answers you need so you can create a proper plan of action SWOT Analysis - A SWOT Analysis is your crystal ball - SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats - A process to tap into your full potential as a business owner, and leverage your business to its maximum potential - An in-depth examination of the internal and external factors that can influence the performance of your business, both now or in the future

4 SWOT Analysis The information will prove pivotal as you begin developing a strategic plan for growing your business Serves as the core foundational element for your marketing plan and your financial plan Strengths and weaknesses are internal factors in your business Consider from two distinct viewpoints how they will impact you individually how they will impact your business SWOT Components Strengths and weaknesses are internal factors as they apply to both you and your business A strength could be: Your marketing expertise A new, innovative product or service The location of your business Your quality processes and procedures Any other aspect of your business that adds value to your product or service

5 SWOT Components Strengths and weaknesses are internal factors as they apply to both you and your business A weakness could be: A lack of marketing expertise Undifferentiated products or services The location of your business Poor quality goods or services A damaged reputation SWOT Components Opportunities and threats are external factors as they apply to both you and your business An opportunity could be: A developing market such as social media Mergers, joint ventures or strategic alliances Moving into new market segments that offer improved profits A new international market A market vacated by an ineffective competitor

6 SWOT Components Opportunities and threats are external factors as they apply to both you and your business A threat could be: A new competitor in your home market Price wars with competitors Competitor has new, innovative product / service Competitors have superior access to channels of distribution Taxation is introduced or government regulations are levied on your product or service SWOT Components A SWOT Analysis is very subjective Use it to get yourself thinking in future terms instead of present situations Create possible if this, then what scenarios Use it as a guide, not a prescription It s a tool to help you look at what you and your business do well, and what you don t do so well

7 SWOT Components Look ahead and extrapolate the potential damage your weaknesses may create, or how your strengths can be used to grow your business Uncover all areas of opportunities The same with threats become aware of potential landmines to your business, and create a strategy to deal with them SWOT Rules To Follow Be realistic about your strengths and weaknesses Should distinguish between where your business is at today vs. where you want it to be in the future Use it in conjunction with your Gap Analysis Make sure your SWOT Analysis is highly specific Apply your SWOT Analysis in relation to competition Keep it short and simple no complexity or over analysis It s highly subjective and wide open to interpretation

8 Consumer Attorney - DUI Thousands of attorneys handle DUI s Most compete on price Using his SWOT Analysis, he viewed present and future price competition as a major threat Opportunity column - noted he wanted to charge a minimum of double what others were charging, with prospects lined up to pay him

9 Consumer Attorney - DUI He first identified his strengths which are the areas he excelled at individually Then he identified his highest impact and highest income-producing activities which are activities that generate revenue Finally, he matched up his strengths with his high impact activities and his practice skyrocketed

10 Consumer Attorney - DUI Discovered his strengths using a personality profile Persogenics, DISC, or Myers-Briggs His profile was Analytical very detail-conscious and excelled at things like analyzing situations, creating innovative solutions and detail tracking Had a second degree in behavioral counseling Consumer Attorney - DUI Strengths Analytical personality style Attention to detail Innovative nature Counseling background High Impact & High Income-Producing Activities Sales Marketing Needed to create a business that s Unique Extraordinary value Wants Avoid jail time Avoid a felony conviction Guarantee results Target Customer year old kid Parents of kid

11 Consumer Attorney - DUI Strengths Analytical personality style Attention to detail Innovative nature Counseling background Weaknesses Lack marketing knowledge / skills Lack persuasion training Tendency to overanalyze Tend to procrastinate Threats Price competition Lack differentiation Lack viable marketing plan Opportunities Ten years as a prosecuting attorney Know all current prosecutors and judges personally Proposed Solution - Supply court with certificate of counseling completion for each client - Court agrees that clients receive no jail time a $1500 fine instead of $2500 kid pays an additional $5000 for counseling one year of probation felony charge reduced to misdemeanor

12 Consumer Attorney - DUI Strengths Analytical personality style Attention to detail Innovative nature Counseling background Weaknesses Lack marketing knowledge / skills Lack persuasion training Tendency to overanalyze Tend to procrastinate Threats Price competition Lack differentiation Lack viable marketing plan Opportunities Ten years as a prosecuting attorney Know all current prosecutors and judges personally Jail is overcrowded 3 day jail time costs $1500 Consumer Attorney - DUI Strengths Analytical personality style Attention to detail Innovative nature Counseling background Weaknesses Lack marketing knowledge / skills Lack persuasion training Tendency to overanalyze Tend to procrastinate Threats Price competition Lack differentiation Lack viable marketing plan Opportunities Ten years as a prosecuting attorney Know all current prosecutors and judges personally Jail is overcrowded 3 day jail time costs $1500

13 Small Business Owner Responsibilities Sales Management Customer Service Legal Compliance Finance Marketing Accounting Administration Bookkeeping Public Relations Why they do this? Lack funds More often than not MINDSET! Small Business Owner Mindset Most business owners are not entrepreneurs, but are actually workers in their business They believe they must work for a living, sell, answer the phone, clean up the mess, drive the truck, go to the bank, answer their prospect s questions, handle their customers complaints Their work is endless and their time is limited

14 Small Business Owner Mindset The way they justify their beliefs there isn t enough money to outsource they can t find & keep good employees their financial lives are at stake they can t trust anyone to do things they have to assume all responsibility Change Your Mindset Create systems & processes so your business operates exactly the same way, every single hour of every single day, with or without you You MUST start relying on your strengths Many areas needing systematized will be major weaknesses for you Weaknesses cause you to fail That s what SWOT is all about

15 Benefits Of SWOT Allows you to know and understand your strengths so you can focus on them Discover your areas of weakness so you can outsource as many of those areas as possible Uncover the threats to your business that may be lurking in the shadows Plan how to turn those threats into opportunities Child Care Example Profile type Expressive Strengths people-people communicators of the world love to talk understanding and empathetic love to socialize comfortable in group situations love to work with teams

16 Strengths Versus Activities Realized he was weak at marketing Converted prospects into clients when one-on-one Finally understood why strengths & weaknesses not detail-conscious uncomfortable dealing with detail excellent communicator excellent at establishing rapport Strengths Versus Activities Realized he needed to outsource his marketing Reposition himself in his area of strength meeting and speaking one-on-one Bartered his child care services Joined three large networking organizations Generated prospects with his elevator pitch New marketing partner began to generate additional leads which he closed using his face-to-face communication strength

17 Child Care SWOT Analysis Strengths People-person Good communicator Understanding Empathetic Great at building rapport Team player Threats Local tax reassessment Increase in property taxes Price competition Lack differentiation Lack viable marketing plan Weaknesses Lack marketing knowledge / skills Lack persuasion training Not detail-conscious Uncomfortable with detail Tendency to procrastinate Poor time management skills Opportunities Add additional services Increase monthly income Improve customer service Improve client experience Unique Abilities Your personal areas of strength Often referred to as your core competencies These create basis for unique selling proposition Uniqueness gives you your competitive advantage Allows you to manage your business more effectively by focusing on what you do best Outsource tasks that don t use personal strengths

18 High Income-Producing Activities As you evaluate your personal skills, you need to know if you have strengths or weaknesses in Sales Marketing These two drive revenue into your business Three additional areas that directly impact them Management Product knowledge Process knowledge High Income-Producing Activities In the area of sales Do you know and understand your sales process? Do you know how to generate leads for your business? Are you converting those leads into paying clients? Are you skilled in the methodology of consultative selling? Do you use a consultative, non-promotional selling style? Do you use a promotional and hype-driven approach to marketing and sales?

19 High Income-Producing Activities In the area of marketing Are you skilled in the buying and placement of media? Do you know the seven channels of distribution? Do you know the 20 marketing strategies? Do you know the 77 marketing tactics? Do you understand persuasion marketing? Do you know the marketing equation? Do you know how to effectively implement a social media marketing campaign? Do you know how much money you re leaving on the table? High Income-Producing Activities In the area of management Are you skilled in managing employees? Are you skilled in managing contractors if you outsource? How will you assist them when they come to you for guidance and mentoring? How will you train them to sell effectively? Are you capable of tracking their results? Can you provide constructive feedback for improvement? Do you know how to train them to solicit referrals? If not, how will you grow your business?

20 High Income-Producing Activities In the area of product knowledge Can you explain the benefits of what you sell, not features Do you know the exact price you can charge that will maximize your revenue? Do you know how to position your product or service using a consultative approach? Can you afford to lose precious clients and vast market share to your competitors who do possess this knowledge and these skills? High Income-Producing Activities In the area of process knowledge Do you know how to position your product or service as credible to clients wants and needs? Does your process account for prospect emotion, and emotion is based on wants? Can you sell them what they WANT, but give them what they NEED?

21 Analyze Each Area Are these your areas of strength, or are they areas of weakness? If weakness, create a compensation plan The key to business success is to know your strengths and weaknesses, and adjust your activities so you remain focused solely on your strengths. Then apply your strengths to your highest impact and income-producing activities Use Resources For Weaknesses Resources fall into three areas financial, human and intellectual If weak in any of those 5 areas, what resources are available to you to offset your weaknesses? Financial resources If weakness is sales, can you afford to hire a salesperson or sales staff to do the selling for you?

22 Use Resources For Weaknesses If weak at marketing, can you afford to hire a marketing specialist to help you? If in overwhelm, can you hire a virtual assistant? Can you acquire the knowledge, training and expertise to perform highest income-producing activities and build your business properly? Can you hire additional personnel to acquire and provide that information for you? Use Resources For Weaknesses If not financial, what about human capital? Offer an internship through your local college Students receive job experience in lieu of salary If human capital isn t an option, what about intellectual resources? Access to training programs to increase your competency in the 5 areas?

23 Use Resources For Weaknesses Past experience must be taken into consideration Do you have minimum amount of management experience to effectively manage a business? Are you experienced at training, mentoring and providing guidance to additional staff? Can you overcome deficient sales numbers, analyze sales mistakes, conduct sales training and recognize when someone is struggling and know what to do to help get them back on track? Use Resources For Weaknesses Do you have past marketing experience database marketing management experience previous experience with drip campaigns Are these strengths or weaknesses? Any one or combination of weaknesses can spell disaster for you as a business owner

24 Highest Income-Producing Activities HIPA s - these are activities you excel at The secret is to determine your strengths spend the maximum amount of time & effort in those areas and hire, barter, delegate or assign you re weaknesses Fail to do this you let weaknesses overshadow strengths Strengths must match highest income-producing activities Whether or not you do the work yourself isn t important That it gets done is important HIPA s Within Sales & Marketing Marketing HIPA s completing this SWOT Analysis developing an ideal client profile mapping out clients decision making process creating an elevator pitch creating unique selling proposition determining proper marketing distribution channels, strategies and tactics

25 HIPA s Within Sales & Marketing Sales HIPA s mapping out sales process prospecting developing effective presentations using persuasion architecture to guide your prospects as they move from ignorance, to awareness, into making a decision and through to the close HIPA s Many HIPA s will fit your strengths (unique abilities) Those are the only activities you should focus on Your responsible for the others - not for doing them Your job is to make sure they get done The key - match up your strengths your unique abilities with your highest income producing activities

26 Opportunities & Threats The areas that make or break the majority of small business owners today With the right mindset, a threat is nothing more than an opportunity in disguise It s nothing more than a change in your current situation Opportunities & Threats Child Care Example property taxes increasing threat to very existence of his business status quo was changing forced to reevaluate his offerings innovated - neutralized the threat turned it into an opportunity created niche market in daycare industry became the educational child care

27 Opportunities & Threats Attorney Example had very specific lifestyle goals price competition threatened his practice assessed his strengths and weaknesses matched up strengths with HIPA s outsourced areas of weaknesses turned a threat into a lucrative niche market Mindset Most threats are really an opportunity in disguise? You must develop the mindset to recognize it Be prepared to act on it Failure to act threatens income and growth If you fail to take advantage of opportunities, your competitors will Mindset is the key

28 Mindset Threat or opportunity - understand your perception of it as well as your response to it One person s threat is another person s opportunity It really comes down to your beliefs about the situation about yourself and your response Select your niche market Innovate your business to fit that specific niche Get yourself laser-focused on what you do best And what you do best are your HIPA s Threat Cash Flow Insufficient cash flow forces small business owners: - to think creatively - form partnerships and joint ventures - turned that threat into a golden opportunity Most businesses allocate a percentage to marketing When times are lean, consider new opportunities - tap into the immense power of social media

29 Threat Competition Has the ability to steal your sales and your market share The attorney viewed other attorneys as a threat to his goals By understanding his strengths & weaknesses, & matching them with his HIPA s, he reframed the threat into opportunity Compare your business with your competition - If the same, innovate your business & become unique - Create extraordinary value The Power Of SWOT SWOT Analysis - an if this, then what scenario for business Prepares you for all contingencies so you respond proactively Identifying SWOT elements allows you plan & prepare Then confront them head on if and when they happen Simple formula - Spend 90% of your time with strengths - Hire, delegate, assign, partner or barter areas of weakness - Analyze all possible threats & plan to minimize them - Innovate and turn all threats into opportunities

30 The Power Of SWOT Opportunities identify the ones that grow your business Put a plan into place to capitalize on every one of them Complete your SWOT Analysis immediately and put a plan of action into place that will guide you to success Procrastination spells death for small businesses Use Your SWOT Form In the meantime, use your own SWOT Analysis form to begin recording your own strengths and weaknesses and identifying your opportunities and threats Give your business that magic crystal ball The clarity and foresight you gain from this exercise will astonish you

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