Marketing objectives are measurable goals that outline what the end results of your marketing strategy should be. Their sole purpose is to define the aim of the marketing team, provide understandable flowchart for team members to follow, providing the right information to higher management for better development, review and support. Before working on any great marketing plan, a list of strategic and comprehensive marketing objectives is created which are then reduced to a smaller list of goals to achieve in every quarter.
Marketing objectives are thus, the most vital part for designing a marketing strategy. Without these goals defined clearly, a brand will struggle in accomplishing the plan because the goal is undefined. Therefore, an open, transparent, and clear list of goals are required to be discussed among all the teams to know what you hope to achieve as a team, and how are you planning on working on it.
When selecting a marketing objective for your business, it is advisable to use the S.M.A.R.T criteria which includes;
Specific: In order for your marketing objectives to be specific, it needs to clearly define what you’re setting out to do.
Measurable: Once the foundation of your marketing objective becomes clear, you want to make sure you can track your progress. The success of a measurable objective can be supported by quantitative data, so you never have to second guess whether or not you’re on the right track.
Attainable: Your marketing objective must be attainable, which means it must be feasible to achieve even if you’re trying to challenge yourself. This is because a realistic objective will help you and your team members envision the path you need to take, whereas an idealistic one will end up hindering your commitment and accountability.
Relevant: Most objectives take at least a month to achieve, which means you will be putting in a significant amount of resources toward it. A strong marketing objective must be worth this effort otherwise, you may mistakenly set goals that end up pushing you backward instead of forward.
Time-bound: Lastly, your marketing objectives should be tied to a specific time frame. Setting a deadline is the best way to keep yourself accountable and on track, as it puts a greater sense of urgency behind your goals.
When marketing objectives is selected according to the SMART criteria, here are how it can keep your business on track
It focuses on New Products and Services
Suppose you have an upcoming project where new products are launching, new offerings or new products are introduced. Your marketing objectives in this case should focus on promoting the upcoming products and new services.
Breaks Down the Goals and Benchmarks
It breaks down business goals and benchmarks to the team and this accelerates the progress. The development team knows what they need to do to take the company to the set benchmarks and so does the sales team and all other teams. With your employees all aligned behind the same, specific goals, your team will function like a complete unit organized toward a clear direction.
Brand Awareness
For a new brand or a not so famous brand, it enables you to reach a larger audience and make more people learn about the brand.
Accountability
It adds a greater level of accountability to business, especially the marketing team, because the goal is measurable and it naturally helps you produce key performance indicators (KPIs) that tell if you are working effectively or if changes need to be made.
Brand Loyalty
For those brands that are well known in the market, their objective could be to focus on building not just awareness, but dive deeper into spreading about their brand and providing knowledge to customers to maintain the loyalty.
Sales And Revenue Increase
If your business is related to selling products or services, focus on selling more of those products or services. This is one of the marketing objectives that have to be focused on by a brand to increase revenue and the amount of money coming in from your business.
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