Building a business is hard enough, especially when you’re thinking about goals you need to reach. We get it, but hear us out! Setting goals is not only necessary for the direction of your business, but it’s the basis of your marketing plan and strategy. If you’re having trouble meeting or focusing on the goals you set, don’t worry - just get SMART with them.
SMART is an acronym for specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. By making sure your goals check off each of these points, you’ll be more likely to achieve them!
Specific
Specific goals are clear and easy for anyone to understand. You should include who is involved, what you’re trying to accomplish, and when it needs to be accomplished. Imagine that you’re throwing darts and the clearest and most concise goal is the bullseye. If you’re not taking the time to focus, prepare, and aim to hit your goal every time, the result is darts all over the board. Save yourself the frustration and get as specific as possible!
Remember, once you choose a problem, you’ll need a detailed plan on how to solve it. For example, instead of saying, “I want to make more money,” say, “I want to generate $5,000 in revenue in Q1 from “x” service or product.”
Measurable
Every goal needs measurable values that help track progress. We refer to those values as Key Performance Indicators or KPIs. They are a good way to know if you’re close to hitting your goal or if you need to re-evaluate things. Considering how long it’ll take to reach the goal, consider using milestones to keep you engaged and on track.
Let’s go back to our last example of “I want to make more money.” How much is ‘more’? A hundred? A thousand? Use values to make it measurable!
Achievable
When it comes to setting goals, make them realistic. It’s nice to set the bar high, but is it actually helping your business when you can’t reach it?
Let’s say you want to increase your revenue for the upcoming year. Don’t rush and decide on a number with too many unrealistic commas. Instead, track your sales progress for that previous year and set a goal amount that reflects a realistic revenue!
Relevant
A relevant goal should fit into what your business is currently working towards and always complement the overall mission of your brand. Make sure the timing is right, and your business would benefit from the achievement.
At Iron City Social, we’re on a mission to empower, educate, and support business owners and our community. So while we want to grow our business, we also want to improve our community and send the elevator down to other women.
Time-bound
Set those deadlines! We have all set a goal and never gotten around to reaching it. A deadline for achieving your goals will help you stay on track and keep you accountable. At Iron City Social, we like to set goals quarter by quarter and then analyze those goals before making any adjustments to our plan and strategy.
Once you set the goal, start breaking it down into smaller tasks you can complete on a daily or weekly basis. This avoids any due date slip-ups!
And that’s how you make SMART goals! Once you start incorporating these into your marketing plan and strategy, hopefully, you’ll realize how easy it is to reach goals. Click here to get a SMART Goals Checklist from our website. If you have any questions or would like to chat with us about your business goals, you can email us at contact@ironcitysocial.com.