Guides: Marketing: SWOT Analysis

What is a SWOT analysis?

A SWOT analysis is an internal analysis that outlines the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to a company or industry.

SWOT analyses provides insight to help determine strategies for overcoming barriers previously experienced by other companies and industries.

SWOT Tools

Find SWOT Analyses in Databases

Business Source Complete This link opens in a new window
Business subject coverage including management, accounting, marketing, economics, etc. Offers full text for scholarly business journals, magazines, trade journals, country economic reports, market research reports, and company and industry profiles.
License Details:
NOTE:Harvard Business Review does not allow printing or downloading of their 500 most popular articles, which changes frequently.
ABI/INFORM Collection This link opens in a new window
International business and trade information. Part of Proquest Central Collection.
Licence Details:

Find Strengths

Find or build a company profile to get an understanding of what a company does, types of business, and revenue streams:

Analyse company performance by reading the company's 10-K report to the SEC, and MD&A (Item 7 in the 10-K) for the company's analysis of its financial condition, found in EDGAR.

ABI/INFORM Collection This link opens in a new window
International business and trade information. Part of Proquest Central Collection.
Licence Details:

Find Weaknesses

To understand company operations read articles about the company in trade journals and business magazines:

Business Source Complete This link opens in a new window
Business subject coverage including management, accounting, marketing, economics, etc. Offers full text for scholarly business journals, magazines, trade journals, country economic reports, market research reports, and company and industry profiles.
License Details:
NOTE:Harvard Business Review does not allow printing or downloading of their 500 most popular articles, which changes frequently.
ABI/INFORM Collection This link opens in a new window
International business and trade information. Part of Proquest Central Collection.
Licence Details:

Rank a company against its peer:

Business Source Complete This link opens in a new window
Business subject coverage including management, accounting, marketing, economics, etc. Offers full text for scholarly business journals, magazines, trade journals, country economic reports, market research reports, and company and industry profiles.
License Details:
NOTE:Harvard Business Review does not allow printing or downloading of their 500 most popular articles, which changes frequently.
Lexis Nexis Uni This link opens in a new window
Provides the full text of news, business, legal, medical, and reference publications. Includes mainly U.S. newspapers, laws, business news journals, company financial information, and industry and market news. Limited Canadian and other international legal research sources.
Licence Details:

Find Opportunities

Look at industry surveys:

Identify consumer trends:

LexisNexis Academic: On the left sidebar select Subject Area and choose Consumer Information

Find Threats

Analyse financial trends by reading the company's 10-K report to the SEC, and MD&A (Item 7 in the 10-K) for the company's analysis of its financial condition, found in EDGAR.

Analyse competitors and the threats they might pose. Search for the competitors name and "new products", "strategic planning", "technological innovations", "market entry" and "investments."