Each member of your team should know what a goal is and what an objective is. In business strategy, terminology confusion is one of the most common causes of misalignment.
No matter how you define goals and objectives, whether you use OKRs, KPIs, the Golden Circle, or another method, it is imperative that the distinction is made as clearly as possible. If teams lack this shared knowledge, they may waste time on irrelevant activities, at best, or work against a common objective, at worst.
The purpose of this post is to explain the difference between goals and objectives and discuss some of the most effective goal-setting frameworks used by marketers today.
We will also discuss measurement tactics to track your progress. If you follow the steps outlined in this post, you won't have to worry about ambiguity when it comes to your long-term and short-term marketing strategies.
Goals vs. Objectives
Goals are long-term and broad outcomes that can be achieved. It is possible for a company to use goals to inform the annual strategies that each department will implement. In contrast, an objective defines the specific, measurable actions each team member must take to achieve the overall goal. Essentially, a goal provides direction, whereas an objective measures how to follow that direction.
Your business's success depends undoubtedly on its goals. To ensure that your employees' actions and decisions are guided by your vision and mission, your company's goals should align with them.
As an example, let's say your company's leadership team has outlined four broad goals this year:
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Improve the workplace culture by making it more inclusive.
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Increase brand awareness internationally.
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Retain 40% more customers.
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Assist staff in achieving their professional goals.
What's next?
Essentially, objectives are measurable actions you can take to achieve your overall goals.
Use the SMART criteria. Ensure that your goals are relevant, measurable, attainable, and time-bound in order to set impactful goals.
"Create a more inclusive workplace culture" is an admirable and important goal, but it is too vague to be measured. "More inclusive" means one diversity and inclusion panel discussion or 10% more women in leadership positions?
Ultimately, your objectives will help your employees understand exactly what you expect from them.
Let's say your marketing department informs you that your overall goal is to "grow international brand awareness."
When your social media marketing manager is planning her quarterly video campaign, she'll think, “How can I increase international brand awareness?” She can tailor her objectives to meet the company's goals as well as her own vision. She may decide, "To demonstrate my success in increasing international brand awareness, my video marketing campaign objectives will be:
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Forms submitted from outside the United States make up 10% of all submissions.
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An increase in engagement from Spanish-speaking Facebook fans by 5%."
Using her unique objectives, your social media marketing manager can then assess whether she is contributing to the company's larger goal of increasing international brand awareness.
Objectives can be tailored to meet each department's needs, and allow for a lot of flexibility.
If you establish clear, firm company goals, you'll be able to feel confident that your employees are heading in the same direction, but taking largely different paths (e.g. objectives) to get there.
One more term to know is objectives versus strategy.
Strategy vs. Objective
An objective is a measurable, specific action that an employee or team needs to take to achieve a larger company goal. In contrast, a strategy defines how each employee or team will achieve the objective. An objective should not change during the course of a campaign, but a strategy can. Perhaps your goal is to increase website traffic by 10%. If you want to ensure success, you could invest more money in paid advertising, re-design your website, or focus heavily on SEO efforts.
Let's say your social media marketing manager decides one of her objectives will be to increase engagement by 5% from Spanish-speaking Facebook fans.
Your company's goal of increasing international brand awareness aligns with this. In other words, a strategy tells your employee or team how to achieve her objectives. Using Facebook's location targeting features, your social media marketing manager might focus her paid efforts on Spanish-speaking countries.
Maybe she decides to cultivate partnerships with international companies and post videos specifically highlighting their work on Facebook in Spanish.
The two options above are examples of strategies.
Over time, her strategy may change. It is possible that she will decide that her paid efforts aren't working, and will try something else. Ultimately, her goal (to increase engagement from Spanish-speaking Facebook fans by 5%) should remain the same.
Types of Goals and Objectives
In my experience as a content marketer, I've learned that communicating goals and objectives isn't one-size-fits-all. Businesses want to measure many things, especially from a marketing perspective, so it is important to have several types to choose from.
Types of Goals
Time-Based Goals
A time-based goal is the first type of strategic goal used by businesses. In this goal type, teams or individuals provide a high-level explanation of what they should strive for within a given period of time.
Depending on your organization's needs, time-based goals can be short-term or long-term. Planning and executing urgent tasks is made easier by them.
Goals that are time-sensitive must be completed on time to achieve their primary outcome. One can track these goals in a variety of ways, such as with note-taking software and timeline maker software, depending on the organization's needs.
Example of a time-based goal: “Increase revenue by 10% to qualify for the best-in-class awards ceremony in August.”
The award ceremony has a fixed date, and the goal stated in it is a requirement of the ceremony, so this goal should be time-bound to increase its likelihood of success.
Suitable for: We’d recommend this goal type for time-sensitive situations where there is an end date by which the goal must be attained (this can be in three months or ten years). Keeping stakeholders accountable and on track is easier with a time-based goal.
Outcome-Oriented Goals
A business's outcome-oriented goals are independent of a specific timeline and describe what it aims to accomplish in the future. In outcome-oriented goals, the objectives provide more information about when the goal should be completed and how to measure its success.
To communicate a new vision and era within a company, outcome-oriented goals are used for major business milestones, leadership transitions, and other major changes.
A goal of this type communicates actionable changes to employees, and therefore pairs well with the next type of goal we will talk about.
Example of an outcome-oriented goal: “Reduce average customer acquisition cost (CAC) from $29 to $22.”
The purpose of this type of goal is to get a particular result in situations where it is crucial to get that result. To achieve the desired result, it allows for flexibility in the methods (and sometimes time) used.
Process-Oriented Goals
In order to set the direction for new workflows, a process-oriented goal is the best option. The outcome of a process-oriented goal is not explained. Rather, this goal type is prescriptive and outlines what the team must do in order to achieve a goal.
Additionally, there are process-oriented objectives that provide employees with tactical guidance as they go about their day-to-day work.
Generally, process-oriented goals are short-term or even temporary because once they've been achieved, the new and improved processes can be applied regularly.
'Roll out a department-wise suggestion portal, 'Your Voice, Your Impact,' encouraging employees to suggest operational micro-improvements that can be implemented in under a month. Every quarter, a reward is given to the top idea in each department."
Types of Objectives
Strategic Objectives
A business can achieve an overarching goal by setting high-level objectives with a longer perspective.
Often, strategic objectives and goals are confused because both have a long-term perspective. A key difference between strategic objectives and goals is that strategic objectives turn a vague ambition into something concrete. In a two-tier pyramid, the top level represents the goal and the bottom level represents the strategic objectives.
A strategy objective might be to build 70 affordable housing units in disadvantaged neighborhoods over the next three years in order to increase an organization's social involvement.
A good objective type to give shape to a goal would be this one.
Operational Objectives
An operational objective is a small, bite-sized actionable step that can be completed every day, every week, or every month to achieve a larger goal. Essentially, they are the nuts and bolts of a machine, ensuring that each part functions smoothly to accomplish the overall goal.
A good operational objective can be developed using the SMART framework, which was discussed earlier in the article.
In order to grow a museum's YouTube channel subscribers by 35% in one year, an operational objective might be to "publish two new videos every week."
This objective type would be appropriate in situations where short-term activities or SOPs must be outlined. To reach the larger goal, it helps ensure that all stakeholders are on the same page regarding the near-term work that needs to be done, by when, and by whom.
Financial Objectives
Finance plays a crucial role in an organization's success. The business stays aloft like a kite in a breeze.
The financial objectives of an organization are those that help the organization achieve its monetary goals.
Revenue, profitability, cash flow, investment, liquidity, costs, debt and risk management, return on investment (ROI), taxes, shares and dividends, sales, accounting, and budgeting are examples of these objectives.
An example of a financial objective would be to "increase quarterly loan payments by $50,000 to clear debt faster" in order to improve a company's creditworthiness.
A business should use this objective type when setting any finance-related objectives.
How to Measure Goals
SMART goals require measurement, but how do you measure them? There's no need to worry. In order to determine whether your actions achieved your goals, there are a few things you can do. Here are some of them.
1. Ask a closed-ended question
The simplest way to measure a goal is to ask whether it was achieved. You should be able to accomplish this fairly easily if your goal was written clearly. It is easiest to measure process-oriented goals this way since they are usually either yes or no.
Example: If my goal was to hold a quarterly alignment meeting between my department and another, I’d answer either:
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There was a quarterly alignment meeting between the two teams."
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"The quarterly alignment meeting did not take place."
Note the reasons why goals weren't met so that you can revisit the goal at the next planning session and decide if it's worth trying again.
2. Use a points system
It can be difficult to measure multifaceted goals, but if you follow a guideline when writing them, you can follow the same guideline when measuring them.
Example: If my goal was to launch a new website by Q3, I’d split this goal into two measurable parts:
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The action
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The deadline
In the event that the team launches the website on time, the goal can be measured by awarding two points - one for the action and one for completing it on time. A late launch of the website can be measured by awarding only one point for completing the action and none for meeting the deadline.
The points system should be tailored to your organization and align with a larger measurement system tied to revenue or performance. Make sure everyone is aware of the points system before you begin planning goals.
3. Follow a rubric
Because there are fewer numbers involved, qualitative goals and goals without strict deadlines are difficult to measure. To measure these types of goals, a rubric system can be useful. The rubric provides an opportunity to evaluate the context surrounding the goal and adjust its measurement accordingly.
Imagine that a team was working toward a process-oriented goal that wasn't making the process easier. As a result, the team has reported longer workflows and more bottlenecks than before. To report this goal as unsuccessful, you should use a rubric to establish what you expected the outcome of this goal to be.
How to Measure Objectives
The reason objectives are more straightforward to measure is that they are more specific than goals. The following concepts can be used to measure objectives.
1. Measure attainment
It is common for objectives to include quantitative data such as numbers, units, and figures. By doing this, you can track your progress toward your goals.
As an example, let's say your team managed to generate 475 leads from a marketing campaign. The attainment of that original 500-lead goal is 95%.
(475/500*100) = 95% Goal Attainment
Depending on the department or team, your organization can determine what is below average, average, and exceptional achievement.
2. Measure qualitative data with surveys
For objectives that aim to change behavior or are affected by people in another way, quantitative measurements may not tell the whole story. Measurement of success can be done through surveys, focus groups, or other behavior measurements.
Example: In HR functions, the team may want to improve employee satisfaction within the sales team. This objective cannot be measured by a single quantitative metric. An eNPS survey can be a great way to measure a shift in culture that leads to changes within the company.
3. Measure past performance versus current performance
Some objectives provide valuable insight but are difficult to measure. How can we solve this problem? Create your own metrics that you can use to compare previous performance with current performance.
Example: Let’s consider brand awareness. Is there a company out there that doesn't want to improve its product? Neither can I. Marketing teams measure this objective frequently, but it is also one of the most challenging to calculate.
It is tracked differently by everyone, so how can you be sure you are measuring it correctly? You can't ask every single person in your target audience whether they are aware of your brand now compared to a month ago.
It can be measured by comparing how many direct searches or branded search terms you receive now to when you were at a previous point in time. Though it's not perfect, it's constant - so you'll have a fixed benchmark to compare against.
Measuring these types of objectives isn't so hard once your stakeholders agree on what metrics and numbers to compare.
Examples of Goals and Objectives
Scenario 1: A Milestone Goal
Goal: Open a new company HQ in Phoenix, AZ by Q4.
Objective: Obtain all licensing and permit documents by Q2.
In order to open a new HQ, you’ll need to do a lot of planning before Q4 to achieve the goal. Objectives will help keep you on track so that every step of the way is accounted for.
How to Measure a Milestone Goal
Depending on the goal and objective, I might use either the "closed-ended question" framework or the "points" framework.
Have you opened your new headquarters? According to the "closed-ended question" measurement, you've met the goal. Did you open the new headquarters on time? You will receive one point for completing the activity on time, and zero points for completing it late.
The overall goal of opening the new headquarters will be achieved by the end of Q4.
Scenario 2: A Growth Goal
Goal: Increase company market share by 10%.
Objective: Grow customer base by 22% month-over-month for the next 12 months.
We see that the goal and the objective are dependent on one another, and one way to grow market share is to acquire new customers.
How to Measure a Growth Goal
As this goal is high-level and vague, you may try to measure it on its own using the "closed-ended question" framework, but I wouldn't recommend that.
There are several factors that can affect a goal like this that aren't outlined in your objectives. Some of those factors may even be beyond your organization's control.
With its chicken sandwich campaign, Popeye's didn't expect to gain market share in the chicken sandwich category so quickly. Despite factors beyond its control, the company achieved its goal, but that achievement probably had little to do with the objectives it originally set.
While it's not a bad thing that the company achieved its goal, it's crucial that your objectives explain how it was achieved.
The attainment framework will not only show your stakeholders how closely you met the goal due to activities within your control, but it will also reveal any factors that affected your goal but weren't included in the objectives.
During the next goal-setting session, your team will know what to include.
Set effective goals and objectives for your team this quarter
In business, goals and objectives are often used interchangeably, but they serve different purposes. When you use the same language to describe the direction and progress of your organization, everyone will be on the same page.
There are specific definitions for both of these terms, but I have learned not to get too hung up on the semantics - recall that the most important part of goal-setting is getting the work done and showing results.