Your key to creating business success

Have you ever wondered why some businesses seem to grow by leaps and bounds while others struggle just to stay afloat?

A big part of the answer lies in goal setting. 

It’s a frustrating to feel like your just spinning your wheels and not going anywhere. And unfortunately, it’s something we all experience from time to time. One of the best ways to avoid this feeling is to set goals. 

Businesses that set goals for themselves have a clear roadmap to follow. They know exactly where they want to go and what they need to do to get there. On the other hand, businesses that don’t set goals tend to flounder. They may be doing a lot of things, but they’re not focused on the things that will really move the needle forward. 

Setting goals will help you focus on what is most important and prioritize tasks that are necessary for success. Goals are the key to measuring progress and they give you an idea of where your business is heading. 

• Goal setting involves taking stock of where you are now versus where you want to be. When done properly, it helps keep things organized so that each step towards achieving your end goal is crystal clear.
• It also creates accountability as there are always deadlines attached to each milestone. This helps ensure that tasks get done on time, helping you stay on track with your overall plan. 
• Goal setting provides a sense of motivation; Without specific goals to strive for, it can be easy to lose sight of what’s important and get bogged down in day-to-day tasks. When you have specific goals in mind, however, you’ll be more likely to stay on track and motivated to achieve them. 

When it comes to my business and marketing I plan for goals in both areas. 

In business, I look at my revenue, what is good, better, and best for the year. I always want to have a stretch goal, which is the best goal. And I also have a minimum revenue goal I want to be able to accomplish. This helps me to focus on creating a plan to reach those goals. 

For me, business goal setting doesn’t stop there. I also ask myself, “What do I need to accomplish in the next year to achieve my vision? What are my team goals? What staffing am I going to need in order to reach these revenue goals? How many clients do I want to take on and in what timeframe? How am I going to reach those clients?” 

And this is where my marketing goals come into play. 

When it comes to my marketing I look at my funnels and paid traffic. What was my marketing investment for last year and what is my investment going to be for this coming year? 

Here’s the thing, I know if I want to increase my revenue, I’m also going to need to increase my marketing investment. It just goes hand in hand. HOWEVER, I also want to make sure that I’m setting realistic KPI goals surrounding my marketing. 

Your marketing goals should include things like, “How am I going to grow my brand? What are the tactics that I’m going to use? Am I going to do lives, or reels, or podcasts? And if so how many of those each day, a week, or a month?” Setting these types of goals will also help you to achieve that success in revenue. 

Setting goals gives you a vision of where you want to be.

When used correctly, goal setting can propel you towards success by keeping you focused and motivated in the right direction. 

For example, if one of your long-term goals is to increase sales by 10%, then breaking this down into smaller goals—such as creating a new product line, creating a new lead generation funnel or starting to run paid traffic —will make this more achievable over time.

By doing this, each small win will help build momentum as you move closer towards achieving your ultimate goal. 

Bonus: goal setting creates a sense of urgency. In order to achieve a goal, you usually want to take action sooner rather than later. This sense of urgency can help push you to take more risks and make more progress in a shorter amount of time. 

How to set goals that work for your business

The first step in effective goal setting is defining what exactly it is that you want to achieve and why.  Ask yourself questions such as “What do I hope my business looks like in 12 months, 3 year, 5 years?” or “What do I need to do today in order for me to reach my desired level of success?” 

Once these questions have been answered, start breaking down these larger goals into smaller ones that can be achieved within a certain timeframe (e.g., daily, weekly or monthly). Having measurable objectives makes it easier for both yourself and others involved in the project (if applicable) so everyone knows exactly what needs to get done when and how often. Lastly, write down all of these goals—seeing them written out makes them seem more tangible than just having them stored away in your mind!  

Setting goals is easy but actually executing them is the hard part. That’s why it’s important to create SMART goals when setting out on any new project. ‘SMART’ stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timely and using this simple formula will help you achieve your goals more easily and efficiently.

• Specific – Your goal should be specific enough so that it’s clear what exactly needs to be achieved. It should be concise but still answer all of the “who, what, where, when and why” questions about the task at hand.

For example: I want to launch my first online course by December 15th this year

• Measurable – You should also include measurable milestones along with your goal so that you can track your progress as you go along. Without any metrics in place, there’s no way to tell whether or not you’re on track for success.  

For example: I want to have 5 paying students within 3 months of launching my course 

• Achievable – Goals should always be realistic and achievable – otherwise they can become overwhelming or lead to burnout if they seem too hard to reach. Aiming too high can also cause disappointment if they remain unmet after long periods of time. Make sure your goal is something that is within reach given your current resources and capabilities.   

For example: I plan on reaching out to 10 potential partners per week who might be interested in promoting my course    

• Relevant – Goals should also align with your overall vision and mission as a business owner or service provider – otherwise they could end up wasting valuable time and energy as well as money if resources are misallocated towards unimportant tasks or objectives that don’t contribute anything towards long-term success.   

For example: I will spend 2 hours every day working on marketing activities related to the launch of my online course 

• Time-bound – The last component is time-bound which means having a timeline in place so that you have a timeline for completing each milestone associated with the goal as well as a deadline by which the entire objective must be achieved by (or else risk not reaching it). Having deadlines helps keep momentum going throughout the process while providing motivation along the way when things get tough! 

For example: I will complete all marketing activities related to launching my online course by November 30th this year   

Oftentimes, goal setting is left behind, but it shouldn’t be. It’s important for business growth, so it should be a focus for your business. You need to have a clear picture of where you want to go and how you want to get there in order to reach your destination. 

Setting realistic yet challenging goals plays an essential role in the growth of any business—large or small. Having clearly defined objectives with measurable milestones attached throughout the process helps create structure while providing motivation along the journey toward success. So take some time today to define your end game and break this down into smaller steps—you never know where this could lead! Good luck!