How to set marketing goals according to the “SMART” law?

One of the most daunting tasks for marketers is setting goals. You should aim high, but you may find it difficult to balance your goals because they are meaningless if they are unrealistic.

Or perhaps you have no idea what “high goals” are and think it’s a hunch for marketers to implement new marketing initiatives and set and track the right goals.

So, we created a mechanism that allows the marketing team to set optimal goals according to the SMART principle, rather than just guessing. Set marketing goals for the year, quarters, months, or even days and learn how to plan and actually achieve realistic and measurable goals.

Take advantage of SMART by following the steps in this blog post. In this article, we’ll take each element of SMART one by one and show you how you can use templates to grow your marketing in a big way.

Table of Contents

It goes without saying that you should set goals. This is because it makes it easier to identify the effectiveness of marketing, clarify what to focus on, and lead to improvements. However, if the goal is not realistic, it will be of no use at all. That’s why it’s important to set your goals according to the SMART principle (SMART is an acronym for each of the five key points in goal setting, but the goal itself must be “smart” as well). . Goal setting based on the SMART principle means:

• S. … set a real number, a specific deadline. “I want more visitors” is not enough.
• M. easurable… Set goals that you can track. Don’t let fancy terms like “brand engagement” or “social media influence” fool you.
• A. ttainable: Set goals that are challenging but achievable. Don’t set yourself ambitious goals like taking over the world overnight.
• R. elevant (conformity with management goals): Set goals and intentions that are directly linked to your business. Be sure to clarify the relationship between the business and the goal (goal), as it will also serve as a criterion for judging whether the direction of measures and efforts is correct.
• Time -bound: Set a time limit by when you want to achieve your goals. Avoid setting goals that you will achieve someday.

Now that you have a basic understanding of SMART, it’s time to tackle templates.

The first step is to clearly write down your goals. It may be more difficult than you think because marketers don’t always have clear goals, but writing them down while struggling at the beginning will help clarify your goals and make it easier later on. In the orange box, set a number-based goal (remember the SMART principle).

If you can’t come up with something right away, just leave it blank for now and fill it in again after completing the worksheet. As you work through the template, you may find that the specifics come to mind, making it easier to fill out.

( Note: this example has HubSpot’s name and logo, so feel free to replace it with your own company’s)

Marketers generally fall into one of three categories: Attracting visitors to your website, attracting visitors and generating leads, and increasing leads and converting them into customers. Click on the template white box and you will see the following dropdown:

From the dropdown menu, select the one that best applies to your current situation.

Once you have categorized your goals, decide on specific numerical goals to aim for. It’s the most difficult step, but this template should make it easy. If you’re new to inbound marketing or don’t know what to aim for in setting your goals, try using one of the three calculators in this step. It should help you come up with concrete ideas about what to work on.

For example, let’s say you’re new to marketing and want to increase the number of leads you convert from your website visitors.In that case, take advantage of the second calculator tool (outlined in orange). 

Here, enter your average number of website visitors per month (10,000 in our example) and your current visitor-to-lead conversion rate. Add in those two numbers and the rest will be calculated automatically so you can see at a glance how many leads you need to generate.

Even if you set a goal, it’s still a dream if you don’t set a deadline to achieve it. Decide how long you think it will take to reach your goal. It gives you a measure of how aggressively you should be engaging in your target marketing efforts.

Now that you’ve set your marketing goals (don’t worry, you’ll get there), it’s time to get down to business. We all want to make a lot of progress in a short amount of time, but how much of your time can you actually dedicate to achieving your goals?

Here you select the hours per week that you will be working on your inbound marketing. Choose hours that you can realistically engage in, not ideals, and break them down into tangible numbers that will help you achieve your marketing goals. Keep in mind the goals you set here and work to reach them each week.

It’s not uncommon for obstacles to come up that prevent you from achieving your goals. By writing down these factors and understanding them, you can plan workarounds in advance. You will also have no excuses for not reaching your goals. Accomplishing your marketing goals should be much easier if you’re prepared for the obstacles you’ll face.

Once you have your goals and schedule in place, you’ll be able to formulate a holistic strategy for your best year yet. And no matter what your strategy is, it’s all about celebrating when you reach your goals. Don’t forget to plan for that! If you want to set your next goal or get new ideas, please use this template.