With 80% of shoppers doing product research online before starting the buying process, digital marketing is more important for your business than ever. And for your marketing efforts to be successful, you need to set clear goals for your business.

But what kinds of goals should you set? Below, we’ll cover the top 10 marketing goal examples for 2021.

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Marketing goal examples for 2021

Here are 10 online marketing goals you’ll want to set this year.

• Build brand awareness
• Rank higher in search results
• Increase website traffic
• Establish authority in your industry
• Boost brand engagement
• Generate qualified leads
• Convert users
• Increase revenue
• Improve customer lifetime value (CLV)
• Make smarter business decisions with marketing data

Keep in mind — these are broad, longer-term goals, so you’ll want to break them down into SMART objectives that are:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Relevant
• Timely

Let’s look at each marketing goal example below, as well as some SMART objectives that will help you reach your overarching goals.

1. Build brand awareness

First up on our list of marketing goals is building brand awareness. This goal is simple — you want to get your brand in front of more people.

If nobody knows about your business, they can’t contact you or purchase. So, building brand awareness is crucial if you want to generate sales and revenue (more on those goals later).

Digital marketing strategies like search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click advertising (PPC) can help you gain visibility in search results, so more people can discover your business, products, and services.

SMART objectives for building brand awareness

• Rank on page one for 100 new keywords this quarter.
• Earn 20 new Facebook followers this month.

*Keep in mind, the SMART goals in this post are examples. Your unique goals and budget will determine the goal numbers you set.

2. Rank higher in search results

Next up on our list of marketing goals is ranking higher in search results.

Higher search rankings translate to increased brand awareness and contribute to your lead and revenue goals since more people will find your business online and contact you or purchase.

When setting search ranking goals, make sure to focus on targeting keywords related to your business. This will ensure your content appears in front of qualified leads — people most interested in purchasing your products and services. And ultimately, it’ll earn you a higher return on investment (ROI).

SMART objectives for ranking higher in search results

• Earn three featured snippets this month.
• Improve ranking for 50 keywords this quarter.

3. Increase website traffic

Ranking higher in search results helps more people find your business, and it sends more traffic to your website — the ultimate destination for converting leads.

Once on your site, visitors can check out the content that answers their questions and helps them learn more about your business, products, and services.

Be sure to include internal site links and calls-to-action (CTAs) to help visitors navigate your site and take the next step.

SMART objectives for increasing website traffic

• Increase website traffic by 25% this year.
• Improve PPC click-through rate (CTR) by 5% this quarter.

4. Establish authority in your industry

Getting people to recognize your business is great, but you know what’s even better? Getting them to trust you.

If you want people to buy, you need to show them you’re an authority in your industry.

How do you build authority online? Consider creating helpful, informative content that answers searchers’ questions and positions you as a trustworthy source.

Sharing SEO-optimized content is also a great way to boost your rankings in search results, which also helps you earn more website visits.

SMART objectives establishing authority in your industry

• Earn 10 blog post shares this month.
• Earn 20 backlinks this month.

5. Boost brand engagement

When people arrive at your site, you want to keep them engaged.

If they don’t like what they see on your site, they’ll waste no time hitting the back button — which can contribute to high bounce rates. And high bounce rates send negative signals to Google that hinder your ability to rank in search results.

So, make sure you set some achievable goals related to boosting engagement and interaction with your brand.

SMART objectives for boosting brand engagement

• Respond to 90% of new social media comments this month.
• Increase average time on your site to three minutes by the end of the year.

6. Generate qualified leads

One of the main things you’re going for is to create leads — or, more specifically, to create qualified leads.

What that means is that you need to attract the interest of people who have an interest in what you offer. You need to target keywords that will be looked up by people who are likely to buy.

SMART objectives for generating qualified leads

• Gain 50 new email subscribers this month.
• Earn 100 guide downloads this quarter.

7. Convert users

Once you have your leads, you need to get them to take that final step and buy from you.

Online marketing strategies like SEO, PPC, and more focus on attracting people to your site, but once they’re there, you have to turn them into loyal customers.

Be sure to include plenty of conversion opportunities on your website and online marketing materials — and make it easy for people to take the next step.

SMART objectives for converting users

• Earn 100 new quote requests this quarter.
• Increase first-time customer purchases per month by 3%.

8. Increase revenue

This next marketing goal example is the primary goal of most marketing campaigns — generate revenue.

Ultimately, all of your marketing efforts are aimed at generating revenue. And setting revenue goals helps you more accurately evaluate your marketing campaigns and identify channels that drive the best results for your business.

SMART objectives for increasing revenue

• Improve PPC ROI by 5% this month.
• Increase total revenue by 25% this year.

9. Improve customer lifetime value (CLV)

Many businesses also set marketing goals to improve customer lifetime value (CLV) or the total value of customers from first to last purchase.

It costs 10 times more to reach a new customer than it does to retain an existing customer. So, improving customer loyalty and lifetime value is an extremely valuable goal.

Loyal customers can also provide great word-of-mouth recommendations and boost awareness of your business.

To accomplish this goal, focus on providing quality customer service. Treat your customers well, and you’ll inevitably have some that do the same for you. Of course, quality site design and content play a role in inspiring customer loyalty too.

SMART objectives for improving customer lifetime value

• Obtain 15 customer testimonials in six months.
• Find and respond to 10 Google reviews this month.

10. Make smarter business decisions with marketing data

The final marketing goal example focuses on evaluating your marketing efforts and using data to improve your campaigns and overall business decisions.

Basically, make sure you learn from your marketing process. Track what’s working and what isn’t with tools like Google Analytics and MarketingCloudFX, and learn everything you can about your customers. This will help you be more effective at everything you do.

SMART objectives for making smarter business decisions with marketing data

• Analyze your SEO campaign and use data to improve SEO conversions by 25% this year.
• Identify and fix five weak points in your conversion funnel this quarter.

Achieve your online marketing goals with WebFX

Setting clear digital marketing goals is the first step to success, but achieving those goals is another battle.

Fortunately, that’s why WebFX is here. With over 1000 clients, we offer services in SEO, PPC, web design, social media, and more to help you accomplish your business goals.

Give us a call at 888-601-5359 or contact us online today to get started!