MKTG3033 Chap.7 Communication Goals and SMART Objectives
Communication Goals and SMART Objectives
Week 7 turns the situation analysis into commitments. This chapter teaches the goal ladder from the course’s work-in-progress tracker, organisational goal, communication goal and SMART objectives with supporting evidence, and gives a five-check routine for writing objectives.
It works a tax clinic objective from the brief’s own baseline, distinguishes communication objectives from tactical ones using a creative brief, and shows how leading indicators fill the gap when the real outcome arrives years later. Practice items test classification of goals and repair of weak objectives.
What this chapter covers
- 01
Organisational goal, communication goal, objective
- 02
The five SMART checks
- 03
A sentence frame for objectives
- 04
Setting targets from a baseline
- 05
Communication versus tactical objectives
- 06
Leading and lagging indicators
Worked example · free
Writing a SMART objective for a research lab’s awareness goal
- +1Specific: name the public, marketing academics researching technology, creativity or consumer behaviour, and the change, starting a conversation with the lab.
- +1Measurable and time-bound: by the end of the campaign window, a stated number of enquiries or expressions of interest from that public, counted through the lab’s contact records.
- +1Achievable and relevant: set the number from current enquiry levels and the small budget, and link it to the goal of collaboration.
- +1Why awareness alone is weak: the brief’s primary measure is publications, so awareness must convert into conversations to count.
Key terms
- Organisational goal
- The broad result an organisation exists to achieve, which communication supports but does not deliver alone.
- Communication goal
- A statement of the part communication will play in reaching the organisational goal.
- Tactical objective
- An execution target, such as producing three video concepts, that serves a communication objective.
- Leading indicator
- An early, measurable signal, such as enquiries, that predicts a slower outcome like publications.
- Baseline
- The current or past level of a measure, used to set and judge a target.
Communication Goals and SMART Objectives FAQ
What is the difference between a communication goal and an objective?
A goal states direction, such as making eligible residents aware a free service exists. An objective states proof: a measurable change in a defined public by a date, such as a target number of appointment requests in a season. Goals sit above objectives in the course tracker, and tactics come last.
How do I make an objective SMART?
Check five things: one specific public and change; a number and a measurement source; a target achievable with the budget and baseline; relevance to the goal above it; and a deadline or campaign window. A sentence frame helps: by a date, a number of a public will know, feel or do something, measured by a source.
Where should campaign targets come from?
From evidence: a baseline, a past result or a stated client need. The course tracker pairs every objective with the evidence supporting it. If the brief gives no figure, say how you would set one rather than inventing a precise number, and flag clearly which targets are your proposals.
Is raising awareness a good communication objective?
Only when it names a public, a measure and a deadline. On its own, awareness is a goal rather than an objective. The NHS case in Week 9 shows the contrast: its aim to raise awareness of falling donor numbers is vague, while its target of 40,000 new donors in one month is specific and measurable.
What are leading indicators and when should I use them?
Early, measurable signals that predict a slower outcome. The research lab brief gives the example: publications can take a year or more, so it tracks academics reached, website traffic, enquiries and expressions of interest. Use them whenever the true outcome would arrive after the campaign has to report.
Exam move
Take three vague aims from the client briefs, such as more clients, more awareness or more shares, and rewrite each with the five SMART checks. Practise the arithmetic of baselines: current level, target and gap on one line. Learn to sort a list of statements into organisational goals, communication goals and objectives quickly.
Finally, pair every slow outcome with a leading indicator, as the research lab brief does with publications and enquiries. In every practice answer, flag which numbers come from the brief and which are your proposals, as the worked example does. Keep a list of strong verbs for objectives, such as register, book, share or enquire, because measurable actions make measurement plans easier to write.
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