Some things in life require goals while others do not. Napping – in most instances – doesn’t require a goal (although you could argue that falling asleep is the goal of napping, and slumber is the measure of a successful nap attempt). Wandering is another activity that doesn’t really call for goals. In fact, if you have clearly defined goals while wandering, you’re not very good at it. Climbing a mountain doesn’t just require a goal — it is a goal.
When you decide to work on your website, you should have specific goals in mind, so you can tell when you succeed.
Why does my website need business goals?
Goals are good. They give you something to aim for, or something to exceed. Goals can encourage progress and help push you to accomplish challenging tasks, meet deadlines, or overcome obstacles.
Of course, they also help you measure success. If you don’t have a clear sense of what you’re trying to accomplish with your business website, then it’s very difficult to make improvements, track progress, or tell whether or not your website is successful.
Without goals there’s no cohesion in your decision making. While this is fine for napping, it’s no way to run your business.
Crafting your goals
You need to have good goals for your business website. For example, “I want to succeed” is a bad goal. Not that succeeding is bad, but it’s just not specific or measurable enough to call a goal.
You’re just stumbling, lost in the Alps, rather than moving towards Mont Blanc. You’re just going to wander around aimlessly getting frostbite until you die of hypothermia. There’s no way to work towards your goal because it’s not specific enough. You need SMART goals.
- Specific: “More traffic!” is not specific. “Steadily increasing traffic” or “30% more traffic year over year” or “10% increase in traffic with no drop in conversion rate” — these are specific goals.
- Measurable: Traffic is measurable; that’s one reason that it’s a common website goal. But your goals might be “5 new leads per month” or “Add answers to 10 common patient questions each month.”
- Aligned with your organization’s goals: If you want increased sales, having a goal of more Likes or a 20% increase in blog comments isn’t a sensible goal. Take the time to figure out how you can configure your website or Google Analytics goals to see the improvement you want.
- Realistic: The goals for your website should also be accurate – not too lofty to achieve yet not so attainable that you’re not pushing to improve. If you’re getting 100 views a day this week, you probably won’t be getting 1,000 views a day next week.
- Time-based: A 12% increase this month is different from a 12% increase this year. A goal of a 12% increase with no time attached to it could be reached in a month, a year… or in a decade. Are all those outcomes equally successful? Usually, setting a timeline for your goals helps you decide on strategies better.
Revisit your goals
Goals shouldn’t be established and forgotten. There’s always room for improvement, and “making it” should never be one of your goals. You should revisit and adjust your goals to ensure that you keep striving for success.
Let us help you establish specific goals for your website.
Leave a Reply