HOW IS SWOT ANALYSIS PERFORMED IN E-COMMERCE?
SWOT is a method used to understand the internal and external factors that affect the success of a business and to analyze the good and bad aspects. SWOT can be used specifically to create a long-term strategy and analyze the business accurately.
SWOT, which stands for "Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats" will help you identify and identify your strengths, opportunities and competitors.
Why is a SWOT Analysis done?
There can be many ways to analyze a business. Even if we list some of the known methods;
SOAR (Strengths, Opportunities, Wants and Results)
SCORE (Strengths, Challenges, Options, Answers, Activity)
We can give examples like. Many, if not all, of these are based on SWOT Analysis.
Apart from these, another reason to use SWOT Analysis is; simplicity!
"Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats" are categories that everyone can easily grasp and generate ideas. These categories are also very flexible.
With SWOT, you can:
You can review your current strategy and define new strategies for the long term.
You can predict the status and future of your products or services.
You can better analyze your competitors, customers and market developments.
So what exactly is SWOT and how can you apply it to E-commerce?
What is SWOT Analysis?
The SWOT method believes that all factors affecting a business can be divided into four categories:
Strengths: Everything the business is doing right now.
Weaknesses: Anything the business is currently struggling with or lagging.
Opportunities: Resources or opportunities in the market that the business can take advantage of.
Threats: Market forces, such as a competitor or external factors (such as changes in local laws) that could threaten the business.
"Strengths" and "weaknesses" are internal factors. "Opportunities" and "threats" are external factors.
The key to your success is to analyze these factors well and determine the right strategies. Therefore, SWOT Analysis is of great importance for E-Commerce companies.
SWOT Analysis for E-commerce
In order to make SWOT Analysis in E-Commerce, there are points you need to determine first.
Collect Your Data
Gather information about your performance such as General Statistics, Sales data. If you have an existing E-Commerce system, get data such as what is the traffic, the number of visitors per month.
Apart from that, your traffic on social media is also of great importance. Keep track of factors such as the number of followers and likes.
How and where you get your customers is an important part of your business's success. Do a study on whether your customers find you from social media, search engine or different sources and strengthen your resources.
You need to do the Competitor Analysis well. You need to be able to follow your competitors' product range, estimated sales volume, which product they sell the most, and of course pricing strategies. According to this data, you can organize campaigns or go over the featured products. Apart from that, situations such as your competitors' payment system and E-Commerce infrastructure are also factors that can put you ahead. The shorter the payment process, the more comfortable the customer makes the purchase and remains loyal to you. Likewise, the more facilitating you are in your e-commerce infrastructure, the more likely you will be ahead against your competitors.
Do market research. Determine the demands for your products. Look for external factors that can reduce this demand.
And try to answer the following questions in your SWOT Analysis based on this data.
Strengths
Examine your data and answer the following questions to find your strengths:
What do you do better than anyone else in your e-commerce system?
What are the aspects of your company that make a difference?
Do you bring innovations to the sector? What are these innovations?
What are your advantages compared to your competitors?
Can you provide customer satisfaction in customer support, payment systems and shipping process?
Weaknesses
Find answers to questions such as:
What are your insufficient points?
What are the aspects that your competitors have an advantage over you?
Is your delivery time long?
Is your E-Commerce site slow and cluttered?
What are the factors that reduce your sales?
What are your aspects you need to improve?
Opportunities
You can identify your opportunities by asking questions such as:
Are you familiar with the updates and developments related to the sector?
What are the trends of the industry?
What are the shortcomings and disadvantages of your competitors in the industry?
Are you competent to respond to users' requests and do you have enough resources?
What technologies can you use to increase productivity?
Threats
What are the challenges facing your business? Where do these difficulties arise?
Do competitors face the same challenges? What kind of solutions do they provide for these?
Are your products always up to date? Are you falling behind the trend?
Do the quality of your products meet the industry standards?
Do you have a weakness that could endanger your business?
To narrow down the threats, find answers to questions like the following.
These are just one of the few questions to start your SWOT Analysis. You have to identify your strengths and weaknesses in order to grow.
RESULT
SWOT analysis is not an absolute must for e-commerce success, but it definitely helps you succeed. Conducting a thorough SWOT analysis instead of going into a blinded industry will help you identify a long-term strategy for success. That way, you'll be able to better spot the latest developments and focus on your weaknesses.
