Explain the process of SWOT analysis in Strategic marketing plan.

Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats Analysis

Strengths

·        List the strengths of your business approach such as cost effectiveness, service quality and customer loyalty.

·        List other assets of your operations such as flexibility, innovativeness, response to external pressures, creativity and company stability.

·        Relate your experience (professionalism, duration and diversity) and the contacts you have made in all areas of your businesses operations - from suppliers to clients, government officials to business professionals.

Weaknesses

·        Describe the areas of weakness in your company's operations, such as government policies and procedures, and management inexperience.

·        Capital financing, credit, loans and other financial debts should be identified, with strategies to control their effect on your business.

·        Recognize the limited impact of a new product on the market - its lack of recognition may be attributed to the companies inexperience in promoting.

·        Recognize that poor performance will mean lower than expected profits - which will result in a lot of the money going to reduce debts rather than improving business facilities, operations and expanding markets.

Opportunities

·        Examine how proper timing, as well as other factors such as your company's innovativeness, may improve your business's chances of success.

·        Use tools such as customer surveys to emphasize the need for product quality and after sales service.

·        Relate your company's focus to a segment of the present market that is being overlooked.

Threats

List the external threats to your business' success, such a existing and newly emerging competitors, performance of the overall economy, and your dependency on other businesses such as suppliers, retailers and distributors for market access and support.