Once you’ve completed your mission, vision and values … once you’ve figured out what benefits your business offers … once you’ve identified what opportunities and threats your business faces, you can start creating a plan of action for how you will grow your business. The first step in creating the action plan is to identify your objectives.

What goals do you want to achieve for the next year? These are your big goals and they need to be measurable.

One way to create measurable objectives is to make them S.M.A.R.T.

Specific – an objective needs to be a precise goal that is relevant to your business.

Measurable – Assign a specific measurable value to the goal, such as a quantity or a percentage.

Attainable – Can this goal be achieved?

Realistic – Very similar to attainable … but more specific to your business.

Timed – Include a date by which you want to achieve that objective.

Here’s an example of a measurable objective:

Write a 5-page special report to provide as an opt-in incentive by January 15, 2011.

Can you see how this is a S.M.A.R.T. goal? This is a specific task (create a special report), it is measurable (it is five pages long), it is attainable and realistic (it can be done in three months) and it has a deadline (January 15, 2011).

You’ll want to include no less than three and no more than nine big goals for a one-year business plan. Less than three goals and you are not stretching yourself … more than nine and you are more than likely going to be frustrated by your inability to accomplish them all.
 

---

Create a Business and Marketing Plan You Can Use!

Create a business and marketing plan that is agile enough for you to actually use it. Plan Your Business Vision was created with creative small business owners and entrepreneurs in mind … its simple, effective and gives you the flexibility you need to express your creativity.

Grab your copy of Plan Your Business Vision today!