What Goals Should You Set For Social Media Growth?
This can be stressful if you make it stressful
Social media growth is more than just amassing followers. Whether you're a brand, a business, or an individual creator, understanding how to set goals for your social media presence is the foundation of a successful strategy.
When setting goals make sure they are
Clear
Simple
Measurable
Identifying Clear, Measurable Goals
When it comes to social media, setting specific and measurable goals helps you focus your efforts and resources effectively. Without clear targets, it’s easy to get distracted or lose sight of what really matters. There are several types of goals you might consider, depending on your broader objectives.
1. Brand Awareness
Brand awareness is all about getting your name out there and ensuring people recognize your brand, products, or services. It’s the first step in building a strong online presence, but it can be difficult to measure. The goal is to increase visibility and ensure that your content reaches new audiences.
For example, you might set a goal to increase your follower count or the reach of your posts.
Measurable Goal Example: Increase Instagram followers by 20% over the next three months.
KPIs to Track: Impressions, reach, follower growth, mentions, brand recall.
2. Lead Generation
Lead generation refers to turning social media followers into potential customers or clients. This goal is especially important if you’re trying to convert interest into business opportunities.
The objective here is to get users to take action—whether that’s signing up for a newsletter, downloading an ebook, or joining a webinar.
Measurable Goal Example: Generate 100 new leads per month via LinkedIn campaigns.
KPIs to Track: Click-through rates (CTR), landing page conversions, email signups, form submissions.
3. Sales and Conversions
For businesses, social media is not just about building relationships; it's also about driving sales. Whether you're selling products directly through your social channels or guiding users to a website to make a purchase, setting sales-related goals helps you tie your social media efforts to bottom-line results.
Measurable Goal Example: Increase sales from Facebook Ads by 15% over the next quarter.
KPIs to Track: Conversion rates, website traffic from social media, return on ad spend (ROAS), sales volume.
4. Community Engagement
Social media is, at its core, about building a community and engaging with your audience. Engagement goes beyond likes—it includes comments, shares, direct messages, and even user-generated content. This type of goal focuses on fostering deeper connections with your audience, encouraging discussions, and creating a loyal following.
Measurable Goal Example: Increase the average engagement rate per post by 10% in the next 30 days.
KPIs to Track: Likes, shares, comments, overall engagement rate, responses to polls or surveys.
5. Customer Retention and Loyalty
The power of social media doesn’t stop once someone has purchased or interacted with your brand. Keeping your audience engaged over the long term is essential for fostering loyalty and turning customers into repeat buyers. This type of goal might focus on maintaining your current audience's interest or increasing lifetime customer value.
Measurable Goal Example: Increase customer retention by 25% through exclusive content or rewards on Instagram.
KPIs to Track: Repeat interactions, lifetime value (LTV), customer satisfaction (CSAT) surveys, retention rate.
Understanding Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
KPIs are the metrics that help you track progress toward your goals. Without KPIs, it's impossible to know if your social media efforts are successful. Here are some of the most important KPIs to consider when measuring your social media growth:
Reach and Impressions: These metrics track how many people have seen your content. Reach measures the total number of unique viewers, while impressions count how many times your content has been displayed (including multiple views by the same person).
Engagement Rate: This KPI shows how engaged your audience is with your content. It’s typically calculated by dividing the total interactions (likes, comments, shares) by the total reach and multiplying by 100.
Click-Through Rate (CTR): CTR measures the percentage of people who clicked on a link within your social media post, typically leading to a landing page or a website. This metric is crucial for lead generation and sales goals.
Conversion Rate: This is the percentage of users who take a desired action, such as filling out a form or completing a purchase, after interacting with your social media post or ad.
Follower Growth Rate: This metric measures how quickly your follower count is increasing over time. A higher growth rate can indicate that your content is resonating with your target audience.
Social Shares: Shares are one of the strongest forms of social proof and can help you reach new audiences. The more shares your content gets, the more likely it is to go viral.
5-Step Action Plan for Setting and Achieving Social Media Goals
Now that we’ve discussed goal setting and KPIs, it’s time to put your plan into action. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you set effective goals and measure your social media success:
Step 1: Define Your Objectives
Start by identifying what you want to achieve through social media. Are you focusing on building brand awareness, generating leads, driving sales, or fostering engagement? Your overall objectives will guide your goal-setting process and ensure that your efforts are aligned with your business outcomes.
Step 2: Set SMART Goals
Make sure your goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound (SMART). For example, instead of saying, "I want more followers," say, "I want to increase my Instagram followers by 20% in the next 60 days." This makes your goals concrete and attainable.
Step 3: Identify Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
For each goal, identify the KPIs that will help you track progress. Choose metrics that directly reflect your objective. For example, if your goal is lead generation, focus on KPIs like form submissions, click-through rates, and conversion rates.
Step 4: Monitor and Analyze Performance
Once your goals are in place, continuously monitor the relevant KPIs. Use social media analytics tools like Google Analytics, Facebook Insights, or Instagram Insights to track your progress. Keep an eye on trends and adjust your strategy based on what’s working and what’s not.
Step 5: Refine and Adjust Goals Regularly
Social media trends change rapidly, and your goals might evolve too. Regularly assess your goals and KPIs to make sure you’re staying on track. If you’re consistently meeting your objectives, consider increasing your targets. On the other hand, if you’re falling short, analyze what’s working and adjust your approach.