An analysis organizing a brand or project’s situation into four areas: what we do well, what limits us, what external factors favor us, and what threatens us. The first two areas relate to ourselves; the next two relate to the market.
Why it matters
It forces us to separate what we can control from what we cannot. Without this distinction, plans mix aspirations with realities.
What's missing without it
Without SWOT, strategy is built on strengths alone — and threats emerge during campaigns, when it’s too costly to avoid them.
When it is used
When entering a new market, before a tender, during brand repositioning, and in annual budget planning.
How we use it
In briefs and strategies, we conduct it before choosing a direction, not after. A SWOT done at the end usually just justifies a decision already made.