SWOT analysis, Larkfield Books, October 2026
SWOT analysis template with evidence for every item and an actions table
A SWOT analysis has to sort what a business controls from what it does not, prove each point, and end in decisions rather than a list. This three page SWOT for a regional bookshop puts 16 items in the four box matrix, backs every one with a figure, and turns them into six actions, each pairing an inside factor with an outside one.
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Section by section
What each section is for, so you can keep the ones you need and drop the rest.
- Context
- The shop, its town, its sales and why the analysis matters now, with four figures.
- 1. The SWOT matrix
- Four cards, four numbered items each, and the most important pairing.
- 2. The evidence behind each item
- A figure or dated fact for all 16 items.
- 3. What to do about it
- Six SO, WO, ST and WT actions with the items they use, a date and a cost, and the first priority.
How to adapt this document
First, number every item as this one does, S1 to T4, because numbering is what lets the actions table point back to the matrix. Second, if you are writing a SWOT for a project or a product rather than a whole business, define inside as what the project team controls, and keep the evidence table, which matters more for a project because people have less shared history. Third, for a board or a lender, add a short final section showing how the actions change the forecast, so the reader sees the strategy in money as well as words.
Why a SWOT needs evidence
Most SWOT analyses fail the same way: four boxes of adjectives that everyone agrees with and nobody acts on. Adding a figure to each item does two things. It drops the points that turn out to be untrue or trivial, and it ranks what remains, so the planning session can see that a contract worth a quarter of sales matters more than a shopfront grant. The actions then follow from the evidence rather than from whoever argued hardest.
What makes this document work
Every item has a number behind it
S1 is not just knowledgeable staff; the staff picks shelf sold 1,940 books, 11 percent of units from 4 percent of the floor. T1 is not just online competition; 40 bestsellers averaged 22 percent cheaper online. Evidence turns opinions into a shared starting point.
Actions are built from pairs
Each action is labelled SO, WO, ST or WT and lists the items it uses, such as W1, O2 and S2 for the online shop with book list ordering. That is what stops a SWOT ending as four boxes nobody acts on.
It says what comes first and why
The callout names the online shop as the first priority, because the school book lists are 24 percent of sales and three of four schools want online ordering. Six actions costing $8,500 in total are easier to fund in the right order.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between strengths and opportunities?
Strengths are inside the business and under its control, such as skilled staff or a contract it holds. Opportunities are outside it, such as new visitors arriving or a customer asking for something new. A useful test is whether the business could make the point untrue tomorrow by its own decision; if it could, the point belongs inside.
How many items should each SWOT box have?
Three to five each is usually enough. More than that and the important items get lost among trivial ones; fewer may mean the thinking stopped early. Rank each box and drop anything you cannot back with evidence. This analysis keeps four per box so all sixteen fit on one page with their evidence.
What does TOWS or SO, WO, ST and WT mean?
It is the step that turns a SWOT into strategy. SO actions use a strength to take an opportunity, WO actions fix a weakness to take one, ST actions use a strength to blunt a threat, and WT actions limit a weakness that a threat would make worse. Labelling actions this way shows which pairing each one answers.
Who should be involved in a SWOT analysis?
The owner or managers who will make the decisions, plus staff who see customers every day, because they often know the weaknesses best. An outsider such as an accountant or adviser can challenge comfortable assumptions. Gather the evidence before the meeting, so the session spends its time on what to do.
How often should a SWOT be updated?
Once a year as part of planning, and whenever something big changes outside the business, such as a new competitor, a lost contract or a lease ending. Keep the evidence table, because next year's SWOT can then show which items moved and whether the actions worked.
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