How to Write SMART Marketing Communication Objectives (That Actually Drive Sales)

By Dr. Carlos Valdez – MercadotecniayVentas.com
📅 Videoblog – June 21, 2025

Do your marketing goals actually drive sales?
👉 If they don’t, they’re not SMART.

Hi there! I'm Carlos Valdez, founder and director of MercadotecniayVentas.com, and this is our blog post for June 21st.

Today we’re going to talk about a key topic: how to write SMART objectives in marketing communication that not only sound good, but actually help you achieve business results. Because getting likes, views, or mentions isn’t enough. If those efforts aren’t aligned with your company’s strategic goals—especially sales—then you’re not communicating with purpose.

⚠️ The Most Common Mistake: Vague, Impactless Objectives

One of the most common mistakes we make as communication professionals is writing generic objectives like “Increase brand visibility,” “Generate awareness,” or “Boost engagement.”

And while they may sound fine, they’re neither actionable nor measurable—and worse, they’re not clearly linked to business outcomes like sales.

According to the blog MDirector, failing to set clear objectives is one of the top reasons why 9 out of 10 companies don’t survive past five years. This applies to strategic and communication goals alike. That’s why the SMART model has become so essential.

🧭 The Core of Every Marketing Plan

Every marketing plan should focus on two essential goals:

1. Attract new customers by generating value from the very first interaction.
2. Retain those customers by continuously delivering value.

Everything we do—advertising, PR, content, social media—should support those two goals. And that’s where SMART objectives come in.

✅ What Is a SMART Objective?

A SMART objective meets five key criteria:

• S – Specific: Clearly states what you want to achieve and in what context.
• M – Measurable: Includes concrete metrics, percentages, or KPIs.
• A – Achievable: Realistic, considering your resources and capabilities.
• R – Relevant: Aligned with business goals.
• T – Time-bound: Has a defined deadline.

This framework was introduced by George T. Doran in 1981, in his article “There’s a S.M.A.R.T. Way to Write Management’s Goals and Objectives”, published in Management Review. Since then, it has become a global standard for creating clear, measurable, and strategic goals in business, marketing, and communication.

📌 How SMART Communication Objectives Actually Drive Sales

A solid communication objective doesn’t just create emotional or visual impact: it helps move the consumer along the conversion funnel. For example:

• Vague objective: “I want to increase visibility.”
• SMART objective: “Increase click-through rates on welcome emails from 8% to 15% in the next two months by improving copy and segmenting by interest.”

👉 In this case, improving click-through rates isn’t just a nice metric—it’s a clear step toward real conversions. A better CTR means more traffic, more interaction, and more purchase opportunities.

As explained by sources like Dircomfidencial and Agencia Bloody, SMART objectives are critical because they translate communication efforts into measurable behaviors: visits, registrations, sales, referrals, and more. In short, they connect what you say with what your customer actually does.

🤖 Using AI to Write Your Objectives

Artificial intelligence can be a powerful ally—if you know how to use it strategically.

For example, imagine you’re promoting our new free course for our anniversary. A well-designed prompt could be:

“Act as a digital marketing consultant. Based on this positioning statement and the launch of a free course, write a SMART objective to attract at least 50 registered users during the anniversary campaign.”

AI might generate something like:

🎯 “Attract at least 50 new users registered for the free course ‘Marketing Communication with AI’ on MercadotecniayVentas.com, between June 7 and July 5, 2025, through a short-video campaign on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn.”

This objective hits all five SMART elements:

• Specific: focused on registrations for one specific course.
• Measurable: clear number: 50 new users.
• Achievable: realistic for a new course with no prior promotion.
• Relevant: aligned with the anniversary and brand growth.
• Time-bound: clear time frame for execution.

This kind of objective not only guides your communication actions—it lets you measure real results and adjust strategies based on data.

🧪 Real-World Examples That Work

Here are a few well-formulated real-life examples:

• Digital advertising: “Increase website visits from 5,000 to 10,000 through the Christmas campaign, with a deadline of December 31.” (Dircomfidencial)
• Lead generation: “Increase qualified leads by 45% during the first half of the year through content and targeted ad campaigns.” (MDirector)
• Public relations: “Increase media coverage by 20% in six months through a press campaign.” (Agencia Bloody)

Each one includes a clear metric, defined time frame, specific action or channel, and a clear business purpose.

🙌 Thank You for Being Part of Our Community

This first year has been amazing—thanks to you! To everyone who signed up, shared our content, or recommended our courses: thank you.

We’ll see you next week with the next topic in the course:
How to Write Your Branding Brief with Help from AI.

💡 And remember: in marketing and sales, we must always create value.

📚 References Cited

• Doran, G. T. (1981). “There’s a S.M.A.R.T. Way to Write Management’s Goals and Objectives.” Management Review, 70(11), 35–36.
• MDirector. “Crea objetivos SMART para tu estrategia de comunicación.”
• Dircomfidencial. “Objetivos SMART: qué son, ejemplos y cómo aplicarlos.”
• Agencia Bloody. “Plan de acción de relaciones públicas con objetivos SMART.”
• Curso gratuito: Comunicación de Mercadotecnia con Inteligencia Artificial, MercadotecniayVentas.com