How to Set Business Goals that Work

Are you looking for the best strategies for setting business goals that work for your sales team? Here is a guide on creating SMART goals, leveraging data to inform your decision-making, and reviewing them periodically for maximum success.

Setting business goals for your team is a critical step in any company’s success. With the right objectives, you can easily track your progress, recognize areas for growth, and ensure that your team is all on the same page. The problem is that it isn’t always easy to figure out which targets are realistically achievable and which aren’t. So how do you set goals that actually work in the first place? 

Here are some simple steps you can take to establish practical sales goals for your team. 

What are sales goals?

Setting sales goals is an effective way for a business to achieve sustainable economic growth. These objectives can involve specific strategies such as:

• Increasing average sale size
• Increasing the customer lifetime value
• Developing and maintaining relationships with customers
• Generating leads from new sources
• Improving customer satisfaction and loyalty ratings
• Increasing customer retention rates
• Implementing upselling strategies 
• Monitoring sales performance against targets 
• Utilizing feedback to improve sales processes 

Properly setting sales goals is vital to understanding the effort required to achieve them and how long it will take to reach your desired outcomes. This gives you a realistic idea of where your business is headed and can also help you identify weak spots that need improvement.

How to Set Achievable Goals

Now that you understand the purpose and value of setting sales goals, let's look at how to create them.

1. Define your goals

Start by setting long-term goals that will help keep you on track and focused. Then break the long-term goals into short-term, more manageable steps that you can use to achieve your objectives. Make sure these goals are realistic but also challenging enough to move your company forward. If they're too easy, there won't be much motivation to achieve them.

The Harvard Business Review recently published an interesting article suggesting that if most salespeople are struggling to meet their goals, it might not be the salespeople who are at fault but the goals themselves. In their words: "When 10%–20% of salespeople miss goals, the problem might be the salespeople, and vice versa is true."

2. Set SMART goals

Setting SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timely) goals involves breaking each objective into smaller, more manageable milestones that are specific, measurable, and relevant to your overall plan. For example, you might set a goal to increase your monthly revenue by 5% over three months or reach out to 100 new customers each week. By setting these small but achievable targets, you can easily track your progress and stay motivated as you work towards achieving them over time.

SMART sales goals help companies focus their efforts and resources on attainable objectives that can be monitored through analytics and metrics. And here is how it works. 

• Specific goals: Set specific sales goals that are clear and concise, such as “Increase revenue by 10% within six months” or “Grow customer base by 20%.” This allows for more effective resource management and an easier way to measure progress.
• Measurable goals: To improve the success of your business over time, it’s essential to set realistic and measurable goals. These goals should be challenging enough to motivate your team but not so complex that they become overwhelmed or burnt out. To ensure you’re on track toward meeting your goals, you can use key performance indicators such as customer satisfaction scores or the number of products sold over a specific period.
• Achievable goals: Setting realistic goals that can be accomplished within the given timeline is essential. Setting unrealistic expectations can lead to disappointment and unmotivated employees.
• Relevant goals: When setting business goals, stay true to your core values and purpose. While pursuing new opportunities or expanding too quickly may be tempting, it’s vital to remain strategic and focused on what aligns with your vision. For this reason, before investing time and money into new goals, ensure they are relevant to your overall business objectives. 
• Timely goals: Creating a target can be a powerful way to increase motivation, particularly regarding sales. Instead of simply stating that you want to “boost revenue,” try setting a more specific and measurable goal, such as “increase revenue by 20% this month.” This provides a clear objective for your team to strive towards and can help increase their motivation and drive to succeed.

3. Assess your current situation.

When setting sales goals, start by assessing your current situation. Take a look at factors such as the size of your team, the available resources, and the strength of your customer base. Understanding these variables can help you set realistic targets.

One helpful tool for assessing your current situation is historical data analysis. This can provide valuable insights into patterns and trends that can be used to inform both short and long-term planning. Armed with this information, you’ll be better positioned to set achievable goals for your sales team.

4. Provide required resources to the sales team.

By determining what your team needs to attain success, you can work with them to meet their goals. Sustainable economic growth occurs when companies invest in their employees and provide them with the tools and training they need to succeed. 

By setting sales goals and equipping your team with the resources they need to achieve them, you can have confidence that they will thrive. Clear objectives and the right tools help employees understand what they need to do to drive sustainable business growth. 

5. Monitor progress

Keeping track of progress is essential to achieving sales goals. It allows you to adjust and pivot as needed to ensure continued success. Regularly monitoring performance lets you identify what’s working and what’s not, making it easier to adapt your approach and tactics accordingly.

Additionally, monitoring progress helps you assess whether you’re on track to achieve your long-term goals. It provides valuable insights into which activities contribute to success and where improvements can be made. 

And that’s it. Just by following those simple steps, you can start setting realistic, achievable, measurable goals that will help your sales team drive your business to the next level. Of course, you don’t have to do it by yourself. Why not call in the experts to handle the details for you?

Launch your sales goal-setting journey with MetaGrowth Ventures

While there’s no magic formula for success, seeking the guidance of experienced professionals like MetaGrowth Ventures can make all the difference. Our expert team can provide valuable insights, tips, and cutting-edge technology to help you set and achieve strategic goals for your business.

We’re passionate about helping entrepreneurs succeed, no matter how big or small their aspirations are. Our portfolio includes some of the most successful companies in the world, such as Facebook and Google, and we want to see you join their ranks.

To find out what MetaGrowth can do for your business, get in touch with us today.