SWOT Analysis, Overview of Findings

From conducting the SWOT analysis of the organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, there have been many findings. Overall, there are plenty of strengths. Next.co.uk receives an average of 94.4 million website visitors in a three-month period, according to Similarweb, 2022. This organization's website gains a large number of visitors when compared with other competitors. For example Marksandspencers.co.uk (82.3 million) and matalan.co.uk (23.4 million). However, Asos remains the largest number of visitors in 2022, with 185 million visitors (Similarweb, 2022). Therefore, making Asos.co.uk the largest competitor threat online. 

Another strength is having a large online reach, which is also evident via social media on mobile devices. Next Plc, have a significant amount of followers, likes, and interaction with its customer base. For example on Instagram, there is a following of 2.4 million and almost 10,000 posts to date (Instagram, 2022). This is significant as the increase of mobile device users continues to grow each year. Strugar (2022) claims 78.9% of adults in the UK owned a smartphone in 2021.  

Next, have invested in their digital marketing, for example hiring a skilled team, quality photography, and technology systems. As a result, they have shown a return from it. Spanier (2019) suggests for the year 2019 the digital marketing budget was at £46 million and continues to rise every year.  

The investment in technology at Next PLC has driven sales forward by creating an easy customer online experience as well as investing in technology within stores to match this same experience. For example, a new self-service online return machine has been installed in the majority of Next stores. Therefore reducing the waiting time at tills and improving the experience and convenience of the customer. As a result, continual staff training will be required to keep up with all the technological advances (Authors Own, 2022).  

As well as strengths, there are weaknesses within the organization. Firstly, there is an absence of an online blog. Missing out on improving SEO and redirecting new potential customers to the website. However, according to Next.co.uk, this is currently being worked on and due to be released in October 2022. 

From creating a blog, the mailing list for email marketing should increase, as this would reach new potential visitors. Currently, signing up for email marketing is not obvious and not easy to use. This should be made more evident when reaching the landing page, to help gain retention of potential customers. 

When looking at the next.co.uk website, the bounce rate is 39.96% (semrush, 2022) it doesn't seem to be particularly high. However, the loading speed could be improved to help the customer experience and lower the bounce rate. According to Lahey (2020), an optimum rate is between 20-40%.  This could be done by optimizing the imagery on the website resulting in a faster loading time.  

In terms of new opportunities for Next PLC, there could be further product development and expansion into new markets to reach increasing customer demand and interest. For example, Next PLC has recently seen a high increase in sales of newborn clothing and tailored suits. This may be due to competitors having to close and therefore driving sales to a larger customer base. There is also evidence that the recent drive for sports/leisure wear, especially during the pandemic with people often working from home, has become a popular demand with customers. Investing in new shop display fixtures and celebrity collaborations are helping to sell this type of product (Authors Own, 2022).  

The opportunity for Next will continue to grow, now currently stocking ‘over 500 other brands on their website’ (Next, 2021). This figure could continue to grow, as further brands are released online. This will result in directing visitors to their own ‘branded 200 million products from many different countries’ (Next, 2021)

The issue of climate change and being environmentally aware of our energy supply and sustainability is an opportunity for Next to gain a more environmental reputation. According to nextplc.co.uk (2022), there is evidence that the amount of packaging is being reduced. As well as disregarding any unrecyclable materials, the company encourages the use of reusable bags and the use of LED store lighting. However, there is very little evidence that recycled or sustainable materials are used to produce Next products. For example, organic cotton could be used to produce clothing, according to Fabrics galore (2021) they claim that organic cotton does not have a harsh manufacturing process, saving energy.  As well as using organic methods a ‘huge 1,982 gallons of water is saved per cotton t-shirt (Fabrics Galore, 2021)’ 

The recent pandemic in 2020/2021, was seen as a large threat to the majority of organizations. Many of the physical brick-and-mortar stores were forced to close. During this time, spending habits and consumer demands shifted online to cater to staying at home in lockdown. The organization's website was now more important than ever. ‘Near 500 shops have not been open for a single day in 2021 (wood and Jolly, 2021)’ However, it has been suggested the organization is now on track to make a recovery.  Wood and Jolly, have also suggested that online sales have increased by 60% compared to pre-pandemic times. Therefore, gaining and maintaining an online presence that will continue to grow.  

Overall, after conducting this SWOT analysis it is evident there are many strengths and new opportunities for the organization. By being one of the top retailers on and offline, they are in a great position to build on their existing following and customer base. However, there are also surrounding threats and weaknesses to be improved on in the future to help gain the attention of customers and create an even better user experience.

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