How to Set Business Goals Effectively? Short and Long-Term Business Goals 40 Examples Included

Business goals are the targets, objectives, or results that a company aims to achieve over a specific period. They serve as a roadmap for the company's direction and provide a benchmark for measuring success. Goals can focus on various aspects of the business, such as increasing sales, improving customer satisfaction, or expanding into new markets.

To set up effective business goals, you will have to ask yourself:

  • What does your company aim to achieve?
  • How can you measure if you're on the right path?
  • Who are the key stakeholders or variables driving success?
  • How to track short and long-term goal achievement?
  • What is the timeline we're about to follow?


Why Business Goals are Important?

To succeed as a business, you must set goals. Goals are one of the most important elements in the success formula; however, there are additional reasons why business goals are pivotal:

  1. Direction: Goals provide a clear direction and define the path for the entire organization.
  2. Motivation: They serve as a motivation for staff, encouraging them to advance towards a common objective.
  3. Measurement: Goals allow for tracking progress and measuring success.
  4. Resource Allocation: They aid in determining where to allocate resources.
  5. Risk Management: By setting clear goals, companies can better anticipate potential challenges and create mitigation strategies.
  6. Accountability: When you set and track goal progress, you will know who your strongest performers are and who the laggers are, and as a manager can make the right decisions to advance with initiatives that are stuck.
  7. Decision making: When you know what is important and contributes to the business's overall vision, you know where to prioritize, focus and invest.


Common Frameworks for Writing Business Goals

There are several frameworks for setting business goals. Here are two of the most common:

1.    SMART: This stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound. 

An example of a SMART goal is: "Increase our market share in the 18-24 demographic by 10% over the next 12 months."

Read on: How to set SMART goals? Template included.

2.    OKR: This stands for Objectives and Key Results. Objectives are what you want to achieve, and Key Results are measurable ways to track the achievement. 

An example of an OKR goal is: "Objective: Expand our product line. Key Results: Launch 3 new products and achieve a 15% increase in total sales by the end of the fiscal year."

Read on: How to set OKRs? Examples provided.

Other types of setting business goals that we can mention are:

  • MBO: Management by objectives. 
  • BHAG: Big Hairy Audacious Goal
  • NCT: Narrative, Commitment, and Task.


Types of Business Goals

Business Goals can be broadly classified into two categories:

  1. Short-Term Goals: These are targets set for the near future, typically within a 1 to 12 months.
  2. Long-Term Goals: These goals are set for over one year.
 

Time horizon

Also callended

Short-Term Goals

1 to 6 months

Business Objectives

Mid-Term Goals

 6 months to 2 yearsStrategies, Annual Goals

Long-Term Goals

2 years or greater; usually not more than 5 years  Vision

Let's expand into each one of them:

Short-Term Business Goals

Short-term business goals focus on immediate outcomes and typically span a few weeks to a year. They often serve as stepping stones toward long-term goals. To set short-term goals, identify the necessary steps to reach your long-term objectives, ensure they are SMART, and communicate them clearly to the relevant teams.

Short-Term Business Goal Examples

  1. Hire 5 new sales team members within the next two months.
  2. Increase Q2 sales by 10% compared to Q1.
  3. Implement new customer service software by the end of the quarter.
  4. Reduce production errors by 15% in the next six months.
  5. Revamp the website and launch a new marketing campaign in the next 3 months.
  6. Launch a new marketing campaign before the holiday season.
  7. Transform the leave management process by implementing an ESS system by Q3.
  8. Reduce costs by 15% for the next month.
  9. Increase customer satisfaction ratings to 4.5 out of 5 within the next 4 weeks.
  10. Launch a new product or service within the next month.
  11. Expand into a new market within the next 3 months.
  12. Improve website traffic by 20% through organic search within the next 6 months.
  13. Host an annual event with 100 guests to increase brand awareness and customer engagement.
  14. Implement a referral program to incentivize current customers to refer new business before Black Friday.
  15. Offer a limited-time discount to boost sales and attract new customers between Christmas and New Year period.
  16. Conduct a customer survey to gather feedback to improve customer satisfaction and gather 100 inputs.
  17. Launch a social media advertising campaign to target a specific demographic with a budget of [$X] for the next six months.
  18. Offer a loyalty program to reward repeat customers and increase customer retention.
  19. Launch a free email course to educate customers on the need for your products or services until summer.
  20. Partner with a complementary B2B business for a joint marketing campaign.
  21. Enhance the company's online presence by creating 12 videos yearly, a new one every month.
  22. Test three new funnels to attract customers and validate the best to potential customers within the upcoming three months.
  23. Conduct a competitive analysis to identify new growth opportunities.
  24. Implement a customer feedback system to gather insights and improve operations regarding mobile use in Q4.
  25. Launch a limited-edition app version of your service to understand if customers need this.


Long-Term Business Goals

Long-term business goals reflect the company's vision and are often focused on expansion, large-scale projects, or significant shifts in company operations. They generally span several years. To set long-term goals, align them with your company's mission and vision, ensure they're ambitious yet achievable, and break them into manageable short-term goals.

Long-Term Business Goal Examples

  1. Expand operations to a new country within the next three years.
  2. Double the company's revenue within the next five years.
  3. Develop and launch a new product line in the next two years.
  4. Increase market share by 20% over the next four years.
  5. Implement a fully automated production line in the next three years.
  6. Increase profit margin by 10% within the next fiscal year.
  7. Achieve a customer retention rate of 90% within the next year.
  8. Solidify our brand presence by joining and sponsoring the top 3 events in our country until the end of the year.
  9. Double our social media following in the next 12 months.
  10. Acquire a competitor in 3-5 years.
  11. Expand your business premises by creating a new warehouse in 202X. 
  12. Maintain a healthy financial balance by implementing ongoing cost-cutting measures and effective budgeting strategies.
  13. Develop a strong workforce through ongoing training and development programs. 
  14. Protect the company's intellectual property through patent application and effective legal protection for our core offerings.
  15. Establish sustainable, eco-friendly practices throughout the supply chain and workplace.
  16. Expand into global markets through international strategic partnerships and product distribution.
  17. Become a leading innovator in the industry through technological advancements and continuous investments.


Essential Tips for Setting Realistic Business Goals

Setting effective business goals requires a thoughtful approach since such an exercise has multiple variables, like as resources involved, expectations, challenges, and people involved. Find below our process for developing business goals: 

1.    Align goals with business vision and mission

Depending on the business type, some will be short-term, others long-term. These goals must be divided and set at the team/department level and further on to each of your employees according to their roles and responsibilities.  


2.    Involve team members in the goal-setting process

Setting goals is not an exercise created in a vacuum; it requires collaboration, brainstorming, and reflection among your coworkers. Suppose a director sets goals for a team without the team manager being consulted. In that case, it might lead to overambitious goals and stressed employees, which could lead to resignations from top performers.  


3.    Make sure goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART)

You might also use a different framework for setting clear goals, such as OKRs. Consider that writing a goal in the SMART way takes more time than just a task; however, it will lead to better results.

AcronymCriteriaExplanation
SSpecific

Goals should be written with clarity to indicate what you intend to do.

MMeasurable

Goals should be qualifiable so that you have actual data that you have met your objectives.

AAchievable

Goals should be attainable; they should stretch you little enough that you feel challenged but are well-defined enough for you to achieve them.

RRealistic

Goals must be achievable and realistic with available resources.

TTime-bound

Goals should have a well-defined schedule, including a start and finish date.

Learn more about SMART goals: their meaning, and how to set them like a pro.


4.    Prioritize your goals to focus on the most impactful ones

Not all goals you will be set will have the same importance. Some of them would have more impact on your overall ambition, while others will just keep your workers busy. Sometimes executives will spot clearly where more energy is needed. However, a balance across the company is recommended.  

If we're making an analogy from Pareto Principle, 20% of your actions will bring 80% of your results.


5.    Break down larger goals into smaller, manageable actions, tasks, or objectives

Ok, you want to double your revenue. That is great. However, consider that you must double your marketing efforts, launch a new product, expand to a unique geography, or hire some additional developers. You must assign people to drive each action and have measurable outcomes to do all these actions.


6.    Have a roadmap to achieve your goals

Rome wasn't built in a day. Google didn't become the leading search engine overnight. It took many years until they improved their technology and positioned themselves as the key tool to find the answer to your question. This is why a clear timeline being shared with different team members and with different milestones will help to stay on track and constantly progress towards achieving the key goals.


7.    Refine and revise business goals

By measuring progress regularly, you ensure you stay on track with your big goals and that nothing slips behind the cracks. Using a project management tool to share your goals with coworkers will help ensure that your business is on track to achieve the quarterly goals and adjust if needed. Of course, discussing the bottlenecks during the weekly meetings, and having 1-on-1s with your people running the actions, will help unblock initiatives that did not move forward.

Asana goal tracking platform



FAQ Business goals

Why Do You Need Business Goals?

Without business goals, companies lack focus and direction. Goals serve as a strategic compass, allowing businesses to navigate toward success. They foster alignment across the organization, ensure effective use of resources, and provide a means to measure and celebrate success.


What Types of Business Goals to Set?

There are all kinds of business goal types you can set. However, there are three main categories of goals relevant to any business:

  1. Financial goals: When you have a for-profit business, aspects related to revenue, spending, and profit-making are relevant. 
  2. Growth goals: This type of goal focuses on the method your business expands: new market expansion, additional products, and increased brand awareness. 
  3. Operational goals: When considering operational goals, managers focus on process improvements, eliminating repetitive tasks, implementing automation, creating better workflows, and boosting the skills of the employees.


How to Measure Progress Toward Business Goals?

To measure progress, you need to:

  1. Define key performance indicators (KPIs): These quantifiable insights reflect how well a corporation meets essential business objectives.
  2. Use the right tools: Use project management and analytics tools to track progress.
  3. Regularly review progress: Set a schedule to review progress towards goals.
  4. Adjust as necessary: If you're off track, adjust your strategy or even the goal itself if necessary.


What are the Challenges of Setting Business Goals?

We often encounter people working on the wrong goals when discussing with operators at companies from various parts of the world. This is just one of the challenges faced; however, there are more than you need to be aware of and consider in your goal-setting strategy:

  1. Alignment: Ensuring that goals align with the company's overall strategic direction.
  2. Communication: Communicating goals effectively to all levels of the organization.
  3. Measurement: Defining clear metrics to track progress towards goals.
  4. Attainability: Setting goals that are both challenging and achievable.
  5. Adaptability: Adjusting goals in response to changing business environments or unforeseen circumstances.


What is the Frequency of Reviewing and Revising Business Goals?

Business goals should be reviewed and potentially revised regularly. Generally, a quarterly review is a good starting point, but the frequency might vary depending on the nature of the goal and the pace of change in your industry.


What is the Difference Between Business Goals and Business Objectives?

Business goals are broad, overarching targets that a business aims to achieve, while business objectives are specific, quantifiable tasks that can be taken to reach these goals. In other words, objectives are the steps taken to achieve the goals.



Key Takeaways

  1. Business goals provide direction, motivate employees, and serve as a measure of success.
  2. Use frameworks like SMART and OKR to set effective goals.
  3. Differentiate between short-term and long-term goals; both are important for the growth of a business.
  4. Review and adjust your goals regularly.
  5. Measurement is crucial. Define KPIs and use the right tools to track progress toward your goals.

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