Every marketing strategy that strives for success begins with clearly defined S.M.A.R.T. goals. This acronym represents intelligent goals, and is formed by words that establish the criteria which determine the purpose of your business and guide your business towards establishing a mission. That's why we're going to talk about why you need to establish S.M.A.R.T. goals for your e-commerce.

S.M.A.R.T. is a method based on the idea that you can only know where to start your project if you know where you want to go. Sounds reasonable, right? It's essentially a guide that helps you reach your goals, a personalised map that helps you find the treasure chest.

For the goals to be powerful they should be clearly established, and for we use the S.M.A.R.T. technique. You start out by establishing intelligent goals represented in 5 key ideas that you can apply throughout your strategy. It's a very effective way to start your project, which is why you need to establish S.M.A.R.T. goals for your e-commerce.

It's important to establish S.M.A.R.T. goals for your online shop, because it creates a framework in which you can create your marketing plan. It becomes a point of reference that helps you measure your return on investment (ROI) as well as the results from your actions.

What is a S.M.A.R.T. strategy?

SMART is an acronym that stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Timely.

Specific:

What exactly are your goals with this project or business? Be as precise as possible. The more specific you are, the clearer your next steps will be and the easier to achieve your goals. Avoid being vague and set goals that are realistic.

Measurable:

Your goals must be tangible and measurable so that you can know if it is achievable or not. These measurable indicators will provide evidence to support you in achieving your goals.

Attainable:

Goals are intelligent if they are viable. Reasonable goals for the business are those which allow you to develop a strategy to reach them. What are your options to reach your goals?

Relevant:

You pick a particular goal because it's important to your business' success. If you don't set out the right goals, you'll waste time and energy going the wrong way.

Timely:

A goal without a deadline in mind is pretty useless. When you decide when you'll achieve your goal you must decide the "when" with the goal in mind.

Why you need to establish S.M.A.R.T. goals for your e-commerce

Example: An online toy shop that wants to boost sales.

If goal is to increase orders 30% more than the previous year you need a clear plan. To achieve a 30% boost in sales based on the sales experience:

• Invest in publicity in Google and Facebook
• Add a blog to the online shop to boost the shop's organic positioning.
• Create email marketing campaigns (1 per week) to share blog posts and new products in the shop.

This strategy works because it is:

Specific? Yes, 30% in the number of orders
Measurable? Yes, based, on the previous year's sales, it would be a 5% increase.
Attainable? Yes, according to the business and the market, it can be realistic.
Relevant? Yes, the business decided to boost the orders because they will obtain more profit when purchasing from their suppliers due to purchasing larger volumes.
Timely? Yes, 12 months implies a 2.5% monthly increase.

Any business can implement S.M.A.R.T. goals in order to start in the right direction. The realities are different from business to business, but the honesty with which you need to respond to each question applies to any business. Now that you understand why you need to establish S.M.A.R.T. goals for your e-commerce, what are you waiting for?