Two of the most common interview questions are likely to be "What is your greatest strength?" and/or "What is your greatest weakness?" It can be difficult to find the perfect answers as you don't want to come across as 'bragging' or that you are completely incapable of certain tasks. I believe if you are weak in a particular area of business, it is most likely best to mention it during the interview process before any problems arise later on. This will then show the interviewer you are honest and how your skills can be used best throughout the company. Identifying weaknesses also means you can discover new ways to help overcome them. Again, this portrays that you are willing to improve your skills and expertise and work hard.
As a result, I have decided to compile my own list of strengths and weaknesses for today's blog post. However, I thought I'd do it slightly differently and lay it out in the format of a SWOT analysis. My strengths which I believe I obtain have been listed as well as my weaknesses and the opportunities available to overcome these weaknesses. And finally, external threats.
Firstly, what exactly is a SWOT analysis and why is it useful?
A
SWOT analysis researches the internal and external factors influencing a
brand’s marketing and business activity. According to Brassington & Pettitt
(p.436, 2007), it generates “a huge amount of material that has to be analysed
and summarised to sift out the critical issues that will drive the marketing
plan forward”. The critical analysis includes strengths & weaknesses (internal)
and opportunities & threats (external).
Strengths
& Weaknesses focus mainly on the present and past as well as internally
controlled factors including the 4 P’s and marketing material (including
customer service and public relations) offered to the target market. These
internal factors can also be compared amongst how competitors have performed.
Opportunities
& Threats focus mainly on the present and future, “taking a more
outward-looking strategic view of likely development and options”; (Brassington &
Pettitt p.436, 2007).
These external factors can be easily reflected in market situation, competition
etc. Many other opportunities and threats emerge from the marketing
environment, when shifts in demographic and cultural factors are taken into
consideration.
Now, let's get on to my personal SWOT analysis...
My Personal Strengths
- I believe my best strength to be my written and communication skills. I achieved an A* grade in English Language a few years ago so I have very good English and written skills which helps greatly with blogging and social media strategies. During summer 2012, I started working for a wedding photography business where I created a blog which I would upload new posts at least twice a week. It was extremely successful and as a result, helped the company gain more customers as well as ROI.
- I am very independent. I can work well on my own but can also work well within a team or large group of people. I would definitely describe myself as a "people person" as I love meeting new people and talking!
- I am extremely social media savvy and there is not a day that goes past where I don't check my emails, Facebook news feed, Twitter homepage and more. I understand the key importance of social media within businesses in the 21st century today and can implement these strategies for companies to help build awareness and improve consumer relations. As a result, this can then improve long-term success.
- I regularly keep up-to-date with key media trends and issues within the news. I probably visit The Mail Online website at least three times a day and love reading what is happening in the news. I believe this is a strong advantage in the PR and Marketing industry as it is key to take notice of what is happening within the UK media and how this can affect the business, clients work, new campaigns and more.
- Finally, my last strength I obtain is organisation. I am extremely organised and manage my time extremely well. Anyone who knows me on a personal level has a little joke that I am always at least 20 minutes early for everything and can be like Monica from Friends sometimes. I always meet important deadlines and am a very organised and reliable individual.
My Personal Weaknesses
- I believe one of my weaknesses to be public speaking in front of a large audience. I suffered from a stutter for many years which was a great loss to my confidence and verbal skills. As a result of this, I can become quite nervous and mix my words up a little. Since attending university, I'd like to think I am improving by receiving positive grades and feedback on essential presentations. Please see "Potential External Opportunities" on how I hope to improve this weakness further below.
- Although I received a C Grade at GCSE Level for Mathematics, I can often find large sums or financial figures hard to understand. I have never been the Maths type and always performed much better at English Lanugage & Literature skills. However, during university there has been a few times where I have been faced with creating financial plans, break even analysis', budget sheets etc. As a result, facing these issues have helped me to further my knowledge in this area and made me feel slightly more comfortable dealing with "big numbers". Please see "Potential External Opportunities" on how I hope to improve this weakness further below.
Potential External Opportunities
- As explained previously, I consider public speaking to be one of my weaknesses (reasons why are outlined above). An opportunity to help improve this is lots and lots of practice. Personally, I don't believe in the "practice makes perfect" mantra as there is always room for improvement but practice can greatly help to build confidence when speaking in front of a large audience. As I also suffered from a stutter for many years, some classes are available to help decrease this and improve verbal skills. Although this doesn't happen as frequently anymore, it is a potential opportunity to think about in the future if the issue continues to arise.
- As explained as one of weaknesses, I can often find extensive financial figures and/or mathematical sums quite difficult to comprehend. As a result of this, the opportunity extra study within the numeracy field can help to improve this for any budgeting or financial work I may have to come across at a later stage during my PR/Marketing career.
- Firstly, the currently poor economic climate could be a threat for myself (as well as other students/graduates) as it can have a negative effect on the PR and Marketing industry and job roles and becoming less available due to many losses in profit for a number of businesses. As a result, many agencies have unfortunately had to cut back on employee numbers and wages.
- Course Leader and Senior Lecturer of my Public Relations & Marketing Communications degree once said during a seminar; "Look at the person to your right. Look at the person to your left. Your fellow students/friends will be in direct competition with you for a job when you graduate university" and he couldn't be more correct. Many agencies and companies within the PR, Marketing and Advertising field are extremely likely to receive thousands of applications, CVs, covering letters and emails during the graduation period and the industry can be tough to be a part of. You have to essentially beat all other applicants for one final job role in a desired environment and some of these are likely to be the people you studied with whilst at university. Competition can be tough but hard work certainly pays off in the long run.
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