Ready Set Send Challenge Week 1: Goal Setting

[TraceyLeeDavis]

How Goal Setting Can Transform Your Marketing

Get ready to level up your marketing game with Constant Contact's Ready, Set, Send Challenge! This week, we're kicking things off with the cornerstone of successful marketing: goal setting. Having clear, well-defined objectives is the foundation for success. By setting focused and achievable goals, you'll stay on track, make informed decisions, and measure your progress effectively.

I am Tracey Lee Davis, founder of ZingPop Social Media. I help small business owners become online marketing rock stars by discovering and acting on their goals. So, whether you're looking to boost sales, build brand awareness, or nurture customer relationships, this week I will help you discover how goal setting can transform your marketing efforts. If you’re not measuring, you’re not marketing, so let's discover the power of well-defined goals by watching the video, following our tips for goal setting, and then filling in our goal-setting worksheet. 

Tips for Goal Setting

Well-defined goals help guide your decision-making and keep you on track. You will use these goals in the following weeks to guide how you design your emails, how you manage your contacts or grow your subscribers, and how you create engaging campaigns.

Your goals, as an email marketer, will vary based on your business needs  Maybe you want to communicate with your contacts, but many new customers that come to Constant Contact have the goal of creating a brand presence. Because that’s a really big goal, it can feel daunting, and they may give up before they start. And setting those big goals isn’t SMART goal setting. 

SMART Goal Setting

The goals of an email marketer will vary based on a business’ needs.  The goal could be as simple as wanting to communicate with contacts, or as complex as starting a new business. If a goal is too broad, however, it can feel daunting and impossible. And setting those big goals isn’t SMART goal setting.

Hold on, I’m not yelling, at you, I promise. SMART goal setting is an acronym that will help you break down your big goals into those smaller, more well-defined objectives I talked about with Dave in the above video. SMART goals are:

• Specific: What are you trying to achieve?
• Measurable: What data will you collect to measure your success?
• Achievable: Is your goal possible?
• Relevant: Does your event goal align with your broader marketing goals?
• Time-bound: What’s your timeline to achieve your goal?

So what does it mean to have a SMART goal? Let’s put it into perspective. 

Examples of SMART Goal Setting 

Maybe you send a regular newsletter letting your association members know about upcoming events. In this case, your Specific, Measurable, and Achievable goal might look like more opens on your regular newsletter in the next month (Time-bound), which could translate to more people at your events (Relevant). 

If you’re selling goods on an Etsy store, your goal could be to sell more products, which you can easily Measure. However, the goal still needs to be translated into an Achievable goal, such as selling more products in the next two weeks by targeting repeat customers or selling more products in the next three days with a limited-time offer.

What if your goal is to significantly build your brand presence? You have to start somewhere, and growing your subscriber list is a solid beginning. The next question is “how?” You could launch a campaign on your social media that directs users to a sign-up landing page, or use a QR code in your store that leads to an online opt-in form. If you already have a list, ensure your emails align with your brand. Additionally, consider creating an email content calendar that complements your social media strategy.

You can see how breaking your big goal into a few SMART goals can give you the focus you need, help you stay on track, and measure your progress effectively. 

Your assignment:

• Complete the Creating Goals and Measuring Success worksheet to create your SMART goals. This should take 15 minutes or less.
• Reply below with a screenshot of your worksheet.
  • What influenced you to choose this goal?
  • If you had marketing goals set at the beginning of this year, have you seen any successes so far?

How you’ll earn your badge: 

Reply below with your assignment, and you’ll receive the Week 1 badge and it will be proudly displayed on your Community profile! Keep an eye out in your inbox for a larger image to share on your own social channels once Week 1 is finished.

Extra credit: Want to learn more about goal setting? Watch our webinar: Decoding Online Marketing Success: Your Guide to Planning, Reviewing, and Executing

Resources:

• Handout: Foundations for Online Marketing Success worksheet
• Blog: SMART Goals
• Community link: Q&A: Decoding Online Marketing Success: Your Guide to Planning, Reviewing, and Executing

TL;DR

Transform your marketing by setting SMART goals. This week, learn how to set Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound objectives to guide your campaigns. Watch the video, follow the tips, and fill out the goal-setting worksheet to kickstart your progress.

Your Assignment: Complete the worksheet and comment below with a screenshot! Once done, earn your Week 1 badge.

Not yet a Constant Contact customer but want to start crushing those goals? Start a free trial. 

We’re excited to see your responses and develop your marketing strategy together!

[TraceyLeeDavis]

Hi @AnnaN33,

Could you please clarify for me? Do you mean you want to see 60 clicks going to your Facebook page from your email, or do you want your posts on Facebook to get at least 60 clicks? 

[user386358]

[Chris-S]

Look at these goals—10/10, would SMART again! 🌟 @user386358 

Wow, you’ve really done your thinking here, and it’s obvious. Wanting to reach students and pros in healthcare? That’s a group that’s all about learning! 🎓 And your plan to bump up your reach, impressions, and engagement by 10% by July 1, 2025 is rock solid.

Using email, social media, LinkedIn, newspapers, and our website, you’ve got all your bases covered. I also love how you're focusing on increasing awareness about your organization’s programs. Seriously, with that kind of ambition, you’re not just going to raise awareness—you’re going to throw a spotlight on it! 💡

Checking how many people saw, interacted with, and were interested in your stuff is really important too. You’ve got a fantastic timeline to watch these goals grow.

[user386358]

Thank you for the kind words! They mean a lot. 

[NikRUVC]

Even in nonprofits, and where 'services' may not necessarily be a 'product' of what we do, it is important to attain a high number of 'followers'

[Caitlin_M]

Hi @NikRUVC I certainly agree! Even if you are not selling a product or service, setting goals applies to everyone. Gaining followers is a good goal to have. Define some steps to take to set that goal into action. What will bring them in and keep them around to remain on your contact list? What makes you unique? Just some thoughts for you!

[user80626]

We are looking forward to more targeted marketing efforts to round out 2024 and enter into 2025! 

[Nick_S]

Thank you for participating!

Do you have data of previous sales of packages/gift certificates? Is that something you had already been promoting in the past? I'm just curious, because it could be good to reflect on how many you were selling previously and if it's been, say, less than the 3/week you're aiming for, you can review your previous messaging to see how effective it was or areas of improvement.

One thought that came to mind, if you aren't already doing it, is if you've collected birthday information of your clients, you could send out a targeted happy birthday message with an offer for a discount on the package/gift certificate (if you can swing it). Or even just a promotion that's something like, "Receive x% discount on one package/gift certification when you buy one for someone else!" 

Otherwise, you know your clients best. What do their day-to-day lives look like? Are they busy? Possibly stressed? Could you try to anticipate and appeal to their concerns and how indulging in one of your clinic's packages could alleviate or help manage their concerns? I don't fully know what type of clinic you're running, but I took a glance at your account so I have a little idea.

Or maybe you could leverage segmentation, to identify which contacts have previously purchased packages/gift certificates. Maybe they would be most likely to do so again? Or you might not want to bother them if they've bought them recently?

[Oceanairservices]

[Caitlin_M]

Great goal @Oceanairservices ! I saw you were only going to be using email as a marketing channel. You may need to get creative with this. You can use your already existing list to promote a referral program if you have one and offer a discount or free consultation if they are planning on updating their HVAC systems. Two goals in one!

[perintonamb]

We chose this goal as an initial beta test of finding new supporters for our mission. It will also be a way for us to determine whether we can expand this initiative in the coming year.

~ J. LeRoy

[Abigail_S]

These are well curated and thought out goals @perintonamb! I love that you know your audience and have a clear path in mind on how you want to achieve the goal of getting your participants to convert to first-time donors. I also like how you have a plan to make a specific landing page just for your target audience. This will be HUGE! I can't wait to see what you contribute in the coming weeks for the next challenges. Keep me posted! 

[RobertB7888]

I filled out and  printed the worksheet. What do i do with it? i can't find instructions about where to send and get feedback? Sounds silly, I know, but I can't find the button for "send"

[Chris-S]

Hey @RobertB7888 

Feel free to ask any questions, no matter how silly they may seem. Just send over your worksheet in a reply to this thread. https://community.constantcontact.com/t5/Campaign-Feedback/Week-1-Goal-Setting/td-p/425914

[RobertB7888]

color me confused. i filled out the worksheet. i get a badge. yet i cannot find a way to send it/attach it so that i can get some advice/help without going through all this???   here's the copied content:

[Caitlin_M]

Hi @RobertB7888 . I moved your post over to our Week 1 thread. These goals are SO well thought out and I can tell you took the time to really think about them. Thank you for what you are doing and I wish you the best of luck.

[JANEPA]

[Caitlin_M]

Hi @JANEPA. Great goal! Volunteers are always needed for organizations. Social media is a key way of finding new volunteers since you are advertising opportunities in a place where people may not know you. It's also easy for your followers to share your posts on their profiles. If you haven't done so already, check with schools or clubs. I remember needing volunteer hours and looking everywhere for places that needed help.

I found two blog articles that may be of interest:

• Engage, Inform, Recruit: How Nonprofits Can Use Social Media to Recruit Volunteers
• Nonprofit Call to Action Examples for Fundraising, Volunteers, and More

If you're sending an email this week that relates to the goal you're setting for yourself, check out Week 2 of the Ready. Set. Send challenge where we're giving tips on designing the perfect email.

[RichieC87]

[TraceyLeeDavis]

Hi @RichieC87,

This is a great start! In order to be a SMART goal, this needs to be specific and measurable. So, think about specific numbers you want to hit. Examples: Increase our overall following by 10% between all of our platforms; Reach 200 followers on all accounts, etc. That way, you know if you hit your goal when you reach the time designated!

[PatF5]