Making resolutions, setting goals, KPIs, campaign metrics. Who doesn't love these things?? Ah yes, most people.
All this goal-setting has a place, but it also almost always FAILS!
In a study by the University of Scranton, only 8% of people achieve their New Year's resolutions.
This doesn’t surprise me because I have made the mistake so many others have.
Setting myself up to do too much at one time. Changing too much, expecting too much, doing too much.
New goals are not “too much” - we just make too much out of them.
Take a newsletter for example…
I love strategy and I know what goes into a good one (you don’t want to get me started about my email marketing thoughts), but every time I go to execute my own marketing strategy I bite off more than I can chew.
But I kicked off a my own newsletter in 2023 and decided I can't do that anymore.
The strategist in me said “send a newsletter once a week or at least every other week” and the realist in me said “hold up, I can’t keep up with that pace…but I still need to be sending regular newsletters.”
So I settled on monthly and haven't missed a month yet.
So how can you do the same?
Set your (attainable) marketing goals and reach them with these 4 tips:
1- Know what you want to achieve
To achieve success, you first need to know what you want.
That may sound like common sense, but it's not as easy as it sounds. It's all too easy to get bogged down in the day-to-day tasks of business and lose sight of your goals.
OR
Have such broad goals that it’s unclear if you’ve reached them.
One example can be “I want more Instagram followers!” - what does more mean? Did you achieve it with one or 1 million?
Instead of having a goal such as “I currently have 400 Instagram followers, I want to double that by March and increase my engagement by 30%.”
Not only does this second goal have a number attached to it, but it also has a timeline in order to reach it and an affect of what those new followers should attain for you.
Take some time to reflect on what you want from your business and your marketing efforts. Once you have a clear vision in mind, the path ahead will become much more clear
2- Understand the tactics that will help you achieve it
It all starts with research (this is my favorite part). Spend time reading through various trustworthy content or working with a marketing consultant to understand what tactics will not only help you reach your goal but best works for you.
For example, if you are wanting to increase online sales, you might be recommended to start posting on TikTok, but you don’t have the time to learn a new platform or understand what goes into great video content. So instead of making “TikTok content” part of a marketing strategy and setting yourself up for failure before you’ve begun, look for alternatives - such as Pinterest or partnerships.
This tactic piece takes the most amount of work - it’s getting your goals off the ground.
To not be discouraged while working through this step, make sure to set aside time to research and learn.
3- Set a schedule of when you will complete those tactics - remember to start small
I hate doing social media. I enjoy being on social media, I keep up with the platform trends, and I know what works and doesn’t on social media…but executing the strategy is just - bleck!
But I also know social is important for my strategy and business, so I scheduled time weekly and monthly to accomplish this task (until the day I hire out for the work!).
It’s vital you do the same for your tactics. Look at the work you need to do and how often, now look at your schedule.
Where can you fit the work in? When can you commit to spending time JUST working on that one objective?
Add these items to your schedule or calendar and don’t schedule over it! Remember, this work is a priority to achieve your goals!
4- Commit to consistency
Achieving your goals really comes down to one thing - consistently working towards them. Without this, you won’t get anywhere!
On top of the three steps above, here are my favorite tips for consistency:
- Prioritize your tasks. Inevitable roadblocks and incidents will arise. Before that happens, identify the most important activities that need to be completed in order to reach your goals and focus on those first before tackling any other tasks or projects. This will help ensure that you stay on track and maximize your productivity.
- Hold yourself accountable for results. Set up regular check-ins with yourself (or with an accountability partner) where you review progress towards reaching your business goals and celebrate successes along the way as well as identify any areas where further improvement is needed.
- Have a system in place for tracking your progress. Whether this is an Excel spreadsheet or a project management software like Asana (that’s what I use) - keeping track of your work and progress is vital to forward progression.
- Celebrate small wins. Don't forget to reward yourself whenever possible- even if it's only a small step forward towards reaching your business goals - it's still worth celebrating! Doing so will encourage further motivation and enthusiasm around achieving success which will ultimately result in greater overall returns over time! Like setting up your goals and tactics - celebrate that!
- Ask for help when needed. Asking questions or seeking advice from experienced mentors, peers or business professionals can often provide additional insight into how best to achieve certain objectives quickly and effectively - this type of support can be extremely helpful during times of uncertainty or difficulty!
A bonus step is to not beat yourself up for missing a deadline to not achieving the goal you expected. Priorities can change over time, as well as your ability to accomplish your goals. Unlike in larger businesses who have discretionary funds and a full staff, if you're building your own business or managing marketing all on your own, leave yourself some grace! At the end of the day, you want to achieve your goals, but whether you do or not does not define you as a person.
What are you going to go achieve?