Market Research
SWOT
Strengths and Weaknesses (Internal Factors)
These relate to the company's internal operations, resources, capabilities, and limitations.
Find Company reports and data
- Business Source Premier This link opens in a new windowUse Advanced Search type in the company name. In the pull down, you will find Company Entity - CO.
On the results page, under the search bar, limit the Source Types. You won't want Academic or Peer Reviewed Journals.
- ABI/INFORM Complete This link opens in a new windowUse Advanced Search type in the company name. In the pull down, you will find Company/organization - COMPANY.
On the results page on the right hand-size, limit your Source Type to Reports. You can review other source types, but you don't want Academic or Peer Reviewed Journals. - Business Market Research Collection This link opens in a new windowCompany profile information on 40,000 public and non-public companies, includes: overview, history, fact sheet, financial data, competitors, products & operations, subsidiaries & affiliates, and key executives.
- Statista This link opens in a new windowStatistics, infographics, industry reports, and more! This statistics portal provides an extensive collection of statistics, reports, and insights on over 80,000 topics from 22,500 sources in 170 industries
Opportunities and Threats (External Factors)
These focus on the external environment, such as market trends, competition, regulatory changes, and economic conditions.
Find industry reports in IBISWorld, ABI Inform, Business Source Premier
Industry & Consumer info in Statista.
Find consumer info in trade publications, in ABI Inform & Business Source Premier.
- IBISWorld - Industry Market Research This link opens in a new windowDetailed U.S. Industry research reports including industry performance, outlook, major companies, supply chain, demand drivers, cost structure, barriers to entry, and key statistics
- Statista This link opens in a new windowStatistics, infographics, industry reports, and more! This statistics portal provides an extensive collection of statistics, reports, and insights on over 80,000 topics from 22,500 sources in 170 industries
- Business Source Premier This link opens in a new windowUse Advanced Search, type the company name in the first box, SWOT analysis in the second box, and hit search.
- How to: Access Company SWOT Analyses in a Business Source database:The SWOT Analysis data indexed in Business Source Premier is provided by MarketLine, a leading provider of online database and analysis services.
- IBISWorld - Industry Market Research This link opens in a new windowMany of IBISWorld's Industry Research reports have a SWOT analysis section for that an particular industry. To view this, search for an industry, open the report, and expand the "Industry at a Glance" section in the left column.
Not finding the SWOT analysis you want?
- Search for the parent company
- Determine if the company is Public vs Private.
- Use single keywords instead of the full company name (i.e. Marriott Hotel).
- Find a competitor's SWOT, Opportunities and Threats are about the industry, not the individual company, you may or may not have the same S&W's).
- Business Market Research Collection This link opens in a new windowCompany profile information on 40,000 public and non-public companies, includes: overview, history, fact sheet, financial data, competitors, products & operations, subsidiaries & affiliates, and key executives.
- ABI/INFORM Complete This link opens in a new windowUse the Advanced Search and type in the company name in the first box and SWOT in the second box and hit search. If not easy to find, limit to Reports under Document Type on the left hand side.
If there isn't a SWOT analysis, you can create your own SWOT analysis by collecting information from multiple sources, such as company profiles, industry & market information, and news.
- Your Opportunities and Threats are about the industry, not the individual company. Look at industry profiles and a SWOT analysis for your competitor (you have the same O&T if you are in the same industry and you may or may not have the same S&W's).
- Your exact search terms to locate articles (in Business Source Premier, ABI Inform) will vary per your company. Consider using the advanced search. In one row, include the company name and use the pull-down box to select Company. In another consider the phrases you'd like to find in your article. You can try strengths OR advantages. If that doesn't work, try customers OR consumers as the articles about the customers might discuss what they like or don't like about the products or services.
