Marketing 305:

SWOT ANALYSIS

A SWOT analysis is a structured planning method used to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses,

Opportunities, and Threats confronting a business. It involves specifying the objective of a business

and identifying the internal and external factors that are favorable and unfavorable to achieving it.

Please select a publically traded company and write a SWOT analysis on it. Your memo should focus on

identifying and describing your company’s strengths and weaknesses as well as its competitive

positioning. You should specifically discuss how the company positions its products/services and

ensures that they are competitive.

This memo should introduce and summarize for the reader the major strategic positioning of your

company and its position within the industry(ies) in which it competes. It also should identify and

describe the strengths and weaknesses of your company. It is important to explain the source of your

company’s strengths and weaknesses in your description.

This SWOT memo is essentially a competitive analysis with a stress on visions, goals, and strategies.

Remember an analysis is not a description; it requires some manner of prioritization and interpretation.

As we emphasized, you cannot know your company without understanding its competitors and the

trends within the industry. In addition, you must understand the particular strengths and weaknesses of

your company’s position.

Your SWOT memo should also recommend a realistic course of action for your company in the future.

Please draw upon theories and ideas discussed in class to explain what your company’s priorities should

be. Please be certain to explain why you selected the specific course of action that you recommend.

The memo should be no more than 600 Words long and submitted through Turn-it-in.

Assignment due on Tuesday, May 7, 2019.

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Here are some points that may help you analyze your company’s competitive situation as you write your

SWOT memo : •

Outline how your company competes (what is its value proposition), its brand image, and the

industries/markets/segments in which it competes. Be precise: a Toyota or even an Audi is not a BMW,

which is still not a Porsche or a Mercedes-Benz; a Corona is neither a Budweiser nor an Anchor Steam.

These differences matter in business. Even single sector businesses have other product segments or

industry presences. Go beyond consumer image and discuss their competitive differences. Present

them specifically for the reader. You need to know your company.

• What are the explicit visions, strategies, and goals of the overall company and its units? What

do they mean? What is your company doing to realize them?

• What are the overall trends in the industry or consumer demand and how does it specifically

impact your company? Do not forget materials costs, currency fluctuations, financial issues, etc.

We will have an environmental analysis due later, but the first memo should at least identify

them.

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