Set SMART Marketing Goals

Marketing goals are an important part of any business. If you’re not setting goals you’re unable to measure how marketing is working for you and your business. How do you know if you’re spending your money in the right places? The answer is to set SMART goals.

The acronym SMART stands for:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Timely

And it has everything to do with your marketing success.

Start out by being specific. You have a new marketing plan that you are excited to start on. How will you know if it’s working? Target a 2% increase in sales. Or retaining a certain number of customers. Increasing repeat purchases by a particular number. Don’t just say you want to increase good will or see new sales. Be specific in what your marketing plan is supposed to do.

Next, your goal should be measurable. And that means it must be quantifiable. Both you and your employees need milestones to work toward. What’s more measurable, a sales increase, or a 5% increase? More repeat customers or a 10% return rate? Set yourself up for success by making sure you can measure your progress.

A marketing goal needs to be attainable. A 100% increase in revenue in the next month isn’t exactly attainable, unless your revenue was $10 and you’re hoping to double it. What’s attainable in a reasonable time frame? Be realistic about what you and your employees can accomplish with the time you have. Pushing hard for success is one thing, but setting an overly ambitious goal can set you up for failure and decrease your motivation. And who really wants to feel like a failure anyway?

The next step in goal setting is making it relevant. In order for you to reach it, make sure it’s under your control. It should be a task that you can complete. You don’t have control over the current state of the economy. But you do have control over your prices and how you treat your customers. You can’t control your suppliers, but you do have say over the promises you make.

And finally, your goal should be timely. It needs a deadline. Give yourself a start and end date. It’s too easy to put something off if you don’t have a concrete start date. And without an end date, a time to stop and measure your effectiveness, how can you tell how you’re really doing? But don’t just go for an arbitrary due date. Stop and consider how much time you’ll need to put a good marketing plan in place and have time to watch for results. Don’t rush yourself. It’s so easy to be in a hurry for instant gratification. Give yourself and your team ample time to measure your results.

With a little extra planning time, your marketing goals can work even better for you. And you’ll have the tools to measure that success. So what are you waiting for? Do yourself – and your business – a favor and set those SMART goals today!

(photo credit: morgueFile)