Question

A small business has hired you as a business analyst. In this activity, you will create both a SWOT analysis of your small business ideas and a presentation of your findings.

Step 1: Select a small business

Step 2: Research the Business
Conduct research of that business using online tools, such as trade associations and business research websites. During your research, take notes and organize them based on the SWOT model of both internal and external factors: strengths, weaknesses, threats, and opportunities.

Step 3: Prepare a presentation that includes the following:

A title slide with the name and description of the business you selected
A slide containing a graphic that illustrates the SWOT matrix with summary descriptions of the strengths, weaknesses, threats, and opportunities for your selected business
Four additional slides for each one of the factors providing a bulleted list of your SWOT analysis
A recommendation slide that summarizes your findings—focused on potential crises in the business and recommendations based on your analysis
A slide citing the sources you used for the assignment

make it a simple presentation

Answer 1

Below is a simple slide-by-slide presentation you can paste into PowerPoint, Google Slides, or similar. I selected a small business idea and prepared a SWOT analysis with brief supporting notes and recommended sources.

Business selected: Sunrise Bakery & Café
- A neighborhood independent bakery and café offering fresh-baked pastries and breads, made-to-order breakfast sandwiches, specialty coffee drinks, a small savory lunch menu, local delivery and light catering for nearby offices and events.

Slide 1 — Title
- Sunrise Bakery & Café
- Description: Independent neighborhood bakery and café serving artisan pastries, breads, breakfast sandwiches, specialty coffee, small lunch menu, local delivery and catering.

Slide 2 — SWOT Matrix (graphic)
- [Top-left: Strengths]
- Strong product quality & fresh-baked appeal
- Local brand and community relationships
- Diversified revenue: retail, delivery, catering
- [Top-right: Weaknesses]
- Limited marketing budget and small staff
- Dependence on morning traffic / peak hours
- Limited seating and capacity
- [Bottom-left: Opportunities]
- Expand delivery, catering, and subscription boxes
- Partnerships with local businesses/events
- Social media marketing and online ordering
- [Bottom-right: Threats]
- Rising ingredient/labor costs
- Competition from chains & third-party delivery fees
- Local economic downturns or public-health events

Slide 3 — Strengths (bulleted)
- High-quality, freshly-baked products with house recipes — differentiates from mass-market chains
- Strong local identity and repeat customers from neighborhood foot traffic
- Multiple revenue streams: in-store sales, takeout, delivery, small catering orders
- Flexibility to change menu seasonally and test new items
- Opportunity to offer loyalty program and in-store experience (smell/taste) that chains can’t replicate

Slide 4 — Weaknesses (bulleted)
- Small staff — vulnerable to absences and limited service hours
- Tight cash flow / limited working capital for expansion, equipment, or slow months
- Limited seating capacity reduces in-store revenue and group business
- Minimal online presence or digital ordering system (if not implemented)
- Reliance on morning and lunch peaks — slower afternoons/evenings

Slide 5 — Opportunities (bulleted)
- Launch or expand online ordering, local delivery, and subscription boxes (weekly pastry boxes)
- Build partnerships with local offices, caterers, and event planners for regular catering contracts
- Use targeted social media (Instagram/Facebook) and local influencers to increase reach
- Introduce seasonal or limited-time products, classes (baking workshops) or pop-up events
- Apply for small-business grants or microloans to fund equipment/marketing

Slide 6 — Threats (bulleted)
- Increasing costs for flour, dairy, and labor squeezing margins
- Competition from national coffee/bakery chains, grocery store bakeries, and third-party delivery platforms
- Public-health events, supply-chain disruptions, or local construction reducing foot traffic
- Negative online reviews can have outsized impact for a small neighborhood business
- Regulatory changes (food safety, minimum wage increases) that raise operating costs

Slide 7 — Recommendations & Potential Crises
- Potential crises to prepare for:
- Sudden staff shortages (illness/resignations)
- Ingredient supply disruption or sudden price spikes
- Major negative online review or food-safety incident
- Spike in delivery fees from third-party platforms or temporary shutdown of in-store service
- Recommended actions:
- Build a short emergency operations plan: cross-train staff, identify backup suppliers, and outline adjusted hours/menu for lean staffing.
- Improve cash reserves and access to a small line of credit for short-term cost shocks.
- Implement basic food-safety best practices and an incident-response plan (who handles customer complaints, refunds, communications).
- Reduce dependency on high-fee delivery platforms by enabling in-house online ordering and local delivery or pickup discounts.
- Invest in low-cost marketing (consistent social media posting, local partnerships, loyalty program) to strengthen customer base and offset competitive pressure.
- Monitor costs monthly, adjust pricing and portioning where needed, and communicate quality/value to customers transparently.

Slide 8 — Sources / Research tools used
- U.S. Small Business Administration — sba.gov (small business planning, finance, crisis planning)
- National Restaurant Association — restaurant.org (industry trends, labor & cost issues)
- Local Chamber of Commerce / city business resources (local market info and networking)
- Yelp / Google Reviews (competitive landscape and customer sentiment for nearby cafés)
- Statista / IBISWorld (for broad industry data and trends) — statista.com, ibisworld.com
- Sample local bakery/café websites and social media pages for competitive benchmarking

Notes and next steps (optional)
- If you want, I can:
- Turn this into actual slide text boxes or a simple PPTX/Google Slides file.
- Customize the SWOT for a different small business idea or for your local market (give me the city/zip).
- Create a one-page emergency operations checklist or sample social-media calendar.

Would you like me to build a downloadable slide deck (PPTX) from this content?