A Wren Says

Finally, you have completed the first part of your SWOT analysis. You looked in to the strengths and weaknesses internal to your organization. Now it’s time to look outside: your opportunities and threats.

Opportunities and threats are those things that are happening that are external to your organization. Opportunities are those things that could help you or that could be your next big bet. Threats are coming for your livelihood and will make it harder for you to do business. It is very important to note this. They are external to your organization. They are the social trends, economic shifts, policy changes, etc. that will or could affect you. Let’s use Starbucks as an example, again.

At this current point, polling indicates that many American consumers, especially those in Gen Z are more likely to support those businesses that have a social impact and/or are vocal about supporting different causes. They view their wallet as an extension of their ethics. They want to support brands who align with their values.

If you were Starbucks, you could see that as an opportunity. From there, you could adopt a strategy to increase your social giving (and posting about it). Or you could pen op-eds about issues or officially take a stance. You might run the risk of alienating people who disagree with you, but you also risk gaining loyal, more supportive customers.

The other issue that will come up is the U.S. tariff situation. With coffee being a crop grown fully outside of the U.S., increased tariffs could lead to increased operating costs and higher prices for consumers. The trade war could make it hard to get shipments to stores on time, as the reduced volume leads to lower staffing at ports. The end result could be more expensive and less reliable coffee.

The U.S. trade policy changes are a clear example of a threat to the business. The way that businesses can adapt strategy around something like that is often working hard to find loopholes or lobbying the government for policies in their favor.

There are of course more opportunities and threats that are likely to affect the brand, but these the two examples I’ve come up with. What about you? What else do you think could hurt or help the brand?