AI-Powered SWOT Analysis and Business Planning

A SWOT analysis is only as good as the honesty inside it. The trouble is that most SWOT workshops end with weaknesses written in soft, defensive language — "could improve our agility" instead of "we ship too slowly". AI, when prompted well, has no ego to protect. This tutorial shows you how to use that.

1. Introduction

SWOT — Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats — has been a staple of business planning for decades because the 2×2 grid forces a specific kind of clarity: internal versus external, positive versus negative. The trouble is that filling it in by yourself is hard. You under-state weaknesses, you over-state strengths, and threats tend to be vague things like "competition".

Used carefully, AI becomes a useful sparring partner. You feed it your situation, and it pushes back with sharper, more specific entries. You then prune and rewrite. This tutorial covers how to brief the AI, how to read the output critically, and how to turn the four boxes into an actual plan.

2. The Concept Explained

The SWOT matrix has two axes. The horizontal axis is positive vs negative. The vertical axis is internal vs external. Strengths are positive and internal (assets you own). Weaknesses are negative and internal (things you control but do poorly). Opportunities are positive and external (market trends you could ride). Threats are negative and external (forces that could damage you).

Where SWOT analyses usually go wrong

Three common failures: weaknesses written as soft euphemisms, opportunities that are really just wishes, and threats that are too generic to act on. A good prompt explicitly attacks all three.

3. The Problem Without This Technique

do a SWOT analysis for my coffee shop

4. The Solution

Act as a no-nonsense business strategist who is paid
to be honest, not polite.

I run a specialty coffee shop called Common Grounds in
Koregaon Park, Pune. We have been open 18 months. Two
locations are in walking distance. Our average ticket
is INR 320, footfall is 95% locals, weekday mornings
are strong but weekends are flat. We employ four staff,
including the founder. We do not run paid marketing.

Produce a SWOT analysis with these rules:

1. Exactly 4 items per box. No more, no less.
2. Each item must be ONE sentence and START with a
   concrete verb or noun phrase — no vague adjectives
   like "good" or "weak".
3. For Weaknesses: write them the way a competitor
   would describe us, not the way I would describe us.
4. For Opportunities and Threats: each item must be
   tied to a specific external trend, customer behaviour,
   or competitor move — not generic statements like
   "the market is growing".
5. After the matrix, add a "SO WHAT" section: two
   2-sentence priorities for the next 90 days, each
   labelled with which SWOT items they address.

Tone: direct, specific, no consultant fluff.

5. Step-by-Step Breakdown

1. Give the AI a real business profile. Location, age, customer base, basic numbers. The more specific, the sharper the SWOT.
2. Cap each box. Four items per box prevents the AI from listing 12 weak entries. Forced scarcity creates priority.
3. Demand verb-led sentences. "Ship product changes slowly" is useful. "Could be more agile" is not.
4. Reframe weaknesses through the competitor's eyes. This single instruction removes 80% of the politeness that ruins most SWOTs.
5. Anchor opportunities and threats to specific external facts. A trend, a regulator, a competitor's recent move — not a generality.
6. Always demand a "so what" section. A SWOT that does not lead to two or three priorities is a wall poster, not a plan.

Tip: Run the same prompt twice — once with role "no-nonsense strategist", once with role "long-term board member who cares about culture". Compare the two SWOTs. The overlap is your real priority list.

6. Practice Exercises

7. Key Takeaways