How to Do an Effective SWOT Analysis for Your Marketing Campaigns

A SWOT analysis is a framework for analyzing and identifying key challenges affecting your business by considering your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

The goal of SWOT analysis is not just to track metrics or see which ads perform better but rather to get a high-level view of the impact of your marketing so you can improve it.

As much as I like SWOT analysis in marketing, it has some limitations. For starters, if you aren’t honest about your true shortcomings, a SWOT analysis won’t provide useful insights. This type of analysis requires self-reflection and honesty to be useful.

It can also be difficult to analyze very complex factors that could be either a weakness or a strength. For example, running ads on TikTok might have the highest cost and drive higher quality leads, which could be both a strength and a potential weakness.

A few other limitations to keep in mind:

• SWOT analyses can be time-intensive. Make sure you have the personnel and the time to invest before getting started.
• You might generate too many ideas on how to improve your marketing and get overwhelmed.
• It can generate a lot of data but doesn’t tell you how to use that data.

Understanding the limitations of a SWOT analysis can help marketers and business owners better prepare and improve their chances of success. Now that you know its limitations, how do you perform a SWOT analysis?

The first step in performing a SWOT analysis for marketing is determining the scope. Do you want to look at your marketing as a whole or a specific part of your overall marketing strategy? For example, you might want to focus only on your content strategy, SEO, or a specific ad campaign. Defining the parameters of your analysis helps keep you focused.

Keep in mind, there’s no one right way to perform a SWOT analysis, and that’s because every business has a different marketing strategy and faces different threats.

This guide can help you get started, but feel free to skip questions that don’t make sense for your business and add questions that provide a more thorough view of your marketing campaigns.

What do you do well? If you’re looking at a specific campaign, think about what elements of the campaign are really working. For example, does your landing page convert at a higher rate, or are ads with people more likely to earn clicks?

Start by asking these questions and documenting the answers. Adjust the questions as needed to focus on a campaign or your entire marketing strategy.

1. What does your company (or your campaign) do better than others in your industry?
2. What do your customers love most about your company/product/services?
3. What positive attributes do customers associate with your brand?
4. What is your unique selling proposition? Is it effective?
5. What resources do you have that competitors don’t? This includes people, financial resources, and expertise.
6. What campaigns are most successful? Consider not just conversions but also lifetime value and cost per acquisition.

Remember, your answers and the questions you ask might vary depending on whether you are analyzing a specific campaign or your marketing strategy as a whole.

Don’t answer the questions above off the top of your head. Instead, use data to inform your answers. Depending on your business, that might include the following steps:

This is often the most challenging part of a SWOT analysis. That’s because you have to be honest with yourself, and it can be hard to admit where campaigns have fallen short.

Start by asking questions. Again, feel free to adjust the wording to fit your campaign or overall strategy.

As you look for strengths (through customer and employee surveys, for example), also keep an eye out for weaknesses. Other places to locate weaknesses might include:

By now, you should’ve come across a few opportunities already. While reading customer reviews, looking at support tickets, and digging into GA data, you’ve likely already noted a few areas where you could improve.

Take a step back and try to look at the data with an open mind. What areas, platforms, or strategies are most likely to drive the best results? Make a list. You can also look at:

Over the years, I’ve noticed one thing the most successful brands have in common: the ability to see threats coming and adjust before they become a major issue.

For example, many websites were devastated when Google rolled out its Panda update, which targeted thin and spammy content. Those who saw it coming had already made changes and weren’t nearly as impacted. That should be your goal—to see threats on the horizon and take action.

Here are a few questions to consider:

The reports and surveys you’ve already done may have highlighted threats. Look back over those results and look for threats you might not have noticed. Other places to look for threats include:

• Technology blogs or publications.
• Competitive analysis reports. What changes are your competitors making and why?
• Newsletters and blogs of industry experts. What are they worried about?
• Have a brainstorming session with your team. Write down all of the possible threats you can come up with, no matter how unlikely. You can review it later to determine whether action needs to be taken.

How can a SWOT analysis help my marketing ROI?

It provides a high-level view of your marketing campaigns so you can better prepare for the shifting marketing landscape.

What does SWOT stand for?

Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

How often should I perform a SWOT for marketing?

Ideally, you should perform a SWOT analysis every 6 to 12 months or whenever you notice changes in your campaign ROI.

Can I use SWOT for marketing at my small business?

Yes, SWOT can be used to analyze the effectiveness of marketing for any sized business. It’s particularly helpful for small businesses to find ways to stand out from their competitors.

Once you’ve performed your SWOT analysis for marketing, it’s time to put that information to work.