SWOT Analysis Template

What SWOT is for

SWOT is one of the oldest strategic frameworks still in use. Popularized by Harvard Business School in the 1960s, it's the first exercise most consultants run with a new company. Its strength is its simplicity: four quadrants that separate internal factors (strengths and weaknesses) from external ones (opportunities and threats).

The 4 quadrants with guiding questions

• Strengths (internal positive): What do we do better than anyone? What assets do we have that competitors don't? What do customers praise without being asked?
• Weaknesses (internal negative): What breaks when a new customer onboards? What processes live in one person's head? Where do we trail the closest competitor?
• Opportunities (external positive): Which trend plays in our favor (tech, regulatory, demographic)? Which segment is underserved? Which partner could multiply reach?
• Threats (external negative): Who could take share tomorrow? Which regulation could affect us? What if the economy contracts or CAC rises?

The step almost nobody runs: the TOWS matrix

Listing items in the four quadrants is only half the work. What makes the exercise actionable is crossing them. The TOWS matrix produces four strategy types:

1. SO (Strengths + Opportunities): how do we use what we're strong at to capture the opportunity? Offensive plays.
2. WO (Weaknesses + Opportunities): which weakness must we fix to not miss the opportunity? Adaptive plays.
3. ST (Strengths + Threats): how do we use strengths to absorb the threat? Defensive plays.
4. WT (Weaknesses + Threats): what to avoid or retreat from? Survival plays.

Mistakes that leave SWOT in the drawer

• Too many unprioritized items. 12 strengths means none.
• Mixing internal with external. A market trend is an opportunity, not a strength.
• Doing it solo. Value comes from putting marketing, sales, product and CS in the same room.
• Never revisiting the doc. A SWOT without a 6-month review is decoration.
• Using real brand names as examples without context. Stick to "Acme Corp" or "competitor X".

Running the workshop in 60 minutes

1. Send the template 24 hours ahead and ask each person to fill all four quadrants privately.
2. In session, cluster items by quadrant (15 min).
3. Vote the top 3 per quadrant (10 min).
4. Cross SO/WO/ST/WT into TOWS, pick 3 priority strategies (25 min).
5. Close with owner + due date for each (10 min).