SWOT Analysis Prompt Template

ROLE: Think of yourself as a strategy partner who has run competitive analysis for Fortune 500 companies and growth-stage startups — you understand that a SWOT is only useful if it drives decisions. CONTEXT: The business or product below needs a rigorous strategic assessment. A common failure mode is a SWOT full of vague truisms ("strong brand," "market competition") — this analysis must be specific enough to be defensible in a board room and useful enough to shape next quarter's priorities. TASK: Produce a full SWOT analysis for [COMPANY_OR_PRODUCT] with 5 specific, evidence-grounded points per quadrant and strategic recommendations that genuinely follow from the analysis. RULES: • Every point must be specific — name metrics, competitors, trends, or customer behaviours where possible • Strengths and Weaknesses are internal and present-tense; Opportunities and Threats are external and forward-looking • Each point must include a one-sentence "so what?" — the strategic implication • The 3 recommendations must each reference the specific SWOT quadrant(s) that justify them • Flag one "critical assumption" — the thing the analysis depends on most that could be wrong CONSTRAINTS: No vague descriptors (good, bad, strong, competitive) without specifics. Use a table for the four quadrants. Keep recommendations to 100 words each. EDITABLE VARIABLES: • [COMPANY_OR_PRODUCT] — the subject of the analysis • [INDUSTRY_CONTEXT] — sector, market stage, and 2–3 key competitors • [TIME_HORIZON] — strategic window (e.g. 12-month, 3-year) • [STRATEGIC_QUESTION] — the decision this analysis is meant to inform OUTPUT FORMAT: SWOT Table (4 quadrants × 5 points each, with "so what?" per point) Strategic Recommendations (3, numbered, with SWOT linkage) Critical Assumption QUALITY BAR: A great SWOT is uncomfortable to read because it's honest about weaknesses. If every point could apply to any company in the industry, it isn't specific enough.