E-commerce has spread worldwide, and selling products online can be a great idea to get rich. However, due to this type of business’s vastness and the presence of strong competitors, your competition will be tough. The other small stores may even pose a challenge for you. One of the main goals you should set when you have an online store is to appear in a few positions on the first page of Google. That’s why you need to be familiar with smart targeting.
When a customer is looking for a product or service that you offer, your store should be one of the first sites on the search; otherwise, your business will never grow. Smart targeting helps you achieve more success and profitability by integrating SEO and e-commerce techniques. In this article’s continuation, we will learn more about intelligent targeting and its features; Stay with us.
What is smart targeting?
Smart targeting is the use of artificial intelligence technology algorithms to predict website visitors’ interests and provide content related to their purpose at the right time and optimally.
Using artificial intelligence or smart targeting -as part of a digital marketing strategy- allows you to deliver the content you want to your audience.
Have you ever noticed that the content of a website is interacting with you? For example, when you visit a site, a message titled “Welcome, Harry” is displayed. This is because the website has used your details and information to interact with you in a more personal and positive way.
As another example, when visitors browse the vehicle detail pages, after a few moments of study and research on the subject, the site displays them a pop-up offer to buy the vehicles.
If you are looking to target your potential customers and want to stop spending money on advertising in places that have nothing to do with your business, the best option is to use smart targeting. To do this, you must first collect user data.
Data management, the key to smart targeting
Marketing giants, such as Facebook and Google, use data to target audiences for marketing their services accurately. These companies believe that targeting should be person-centered, not channel or product-oriented.
Individual targeting is based on information such as online behavior, search history, purchase history, frequent purchases, and loyalty to online stores. Also, note that smart targeting needs to be continuously modified. You should never think of what you are creating as a permanent algorithm or a done deal; otherwise, you lose your platform’s agility. Some of the questions you should always ask yourself about targeting your audience are:
- Do we reach the audience we want?
- If we do not reach the target audience, what kind of audience will we get?
- Do our target audiences act according to our wishes?
- Are there other target audiences to help us reach our goal?
But how can you collect and manage data purposefully? You can use social analysis and psychology tools to create content in alignment with different users’ lifestyles, preferences, and attitudes. Finally, when you choose how to collect, track, and manage your data, you can improve your smart targeting.
SMART targeting framework
The SMART targeting framework defines a way to identify and achieve long-term goals. This structure transforms the goal-setting process from an intellectual approach to a process that all involved parties have specific expectations and tasks.
SMART goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely
Specific
Broad goals that are not explicitly defined will not bring you much success. That’s why you need to downsize your goals and set them in line with an enormous destination. Only this approach will guarantee your success. This is because small plans are more comfortable to achieve than big goals. The following questions will help you establish your small goals for a smart targeting plan:
- Who helps me achieve this goal?
- What do I need to complete?
- Where is this goal achieved?
- When should I not reach this goal?
- Why do I want to achieve this goal?
For example, if your overall goal is to create a software project for your business, your Smart goal may be: “I will develop an app for buying and selling vehicles by the SOJECT team until the end of the summer so that I can increase the number of my customers. I will do this in a virtual environment.”
Measurable
Creating measurable goals is essential; This will help you keep strategies and tactics on track to achieve your goals. In other words, Measurability allows you to have a measure of your progress! When setting goals, always ask yourself the following questions:
- What exactly am I going to achieve?
- How should I measure this smart goal?
For example, if you sell items in your software, you need to specify how many things you intend to sell in a given time. And what are suitable key performance/result indicators?
Learn more: Three types of key performance indicators for software projects
Attainable
You need to be realistic as you set smart goals. With enough knowledge of your resources, make sure you have set goals that are achievable by the deadline. Ask yourself the following questions to set achievable aims:
- Is the goal realistic and achievable?
- What resources and capabilities do I need to achieve the desired goal?
- Given the resources and time available, can I achieve the stated goal?
- Have other people already done this successfully? If so, what are their strengths/weaknesses?
- Can I guarantee and commit to this goal?
Relevant
Your smart goals should be connected to your company’s mission and match one or more company’s values. If you want to have plans that can impact your business, so focus on the things that matter most.
For example, your goal in increasing traffic and directing users to your store should be to increase sales and conversion rates, not just increase visitors’ number. Also, the purpose of creating blog posts should be to encourage users to buy your products.
Compete, Alexa, and Quantcast tools help you view users’ behavior online and use the information you receive to promote and increase your products’ sales.
Timely
Creating a realistic, limited time frame for achieving a goal will focus your thoughts and actions on achieving it within that time frame. A smart plan must be limited to a specific start and end date. If the goal is not limited in time, there will be no sense of urgency and motivation to achieve it.
At this stage, you should ask yourself the following questions:
- Does my goal have a deadline?
- How long do I have to complete this goal?
For example, your smart, timely goal may be to make your online store more popular within the next year, in addition to earning good Google search results and monetization.
Why do we need smart targets in a professional environment?
Setting clear goals for your job – and yourself – is essential; because it allows you to achieve the desired results while doing your best to succeed.
Smart goals do not come from a complicated formula but are more than just a checklist to include in your work plan. Also, if your goal is to work with other people, they should be aware of this.
Now that you are somewhat familiar with smart targeting, it’s good to talk a little about its history.
The beginning and early formation of smart goals
In 1981, an article was published in Management View magazine entitled “There’s a Smart Way to Write Management’s Goals and Objectives.” This article explained that every company needs to have smart goals for its business.
Perhaps the only thing that has changed since creating this method is converting “assignable” to “achievable” concerning the “A” letter.
In the beginning, large companies and factories used this method. For this reason, the smart goals had to be assigned to a specific person or team. However, in recent years, this goal-setting method has been used for all types of targeting – personal or professional. Therefore, achieving these goals may not require assigning them to another person. This caused the word “assignable” to replace with “achievable.”
The development of the smart targeting method into its current form
Although, as we have said, there have been few formal changes in this method, nevertheless, each individual and company has changed and optimized this method according to their needs.
For example, Morrison critiques this type of targeting and offers solutions to its problems in Why SMART Objectives don’t work.
Today, people change and personalize smart targeting based on their needs. They follow the basic policies of this framework and change the details according to their taste.
Where can we use smart targeting?
Since smart targeting is not so weird and complicated, you can use it in different areas. This framework has been prototyped in the fields of management, finance, industry, and personal life.
What are the benefits of this method?
When using smart targeting:
- You have a specific plan to achieve your goals.
- You never get confused and will quickly find your way in life or business.
- You know what you need to do every day to achieve your goal.
- You know what you have to do this week to achieve your goals.
- You wake up with more energy every morning.
- You will reach your goal sooner.
Disadvantages of smart targeting:
Although this type of framework seems to be a good start, in many cases, smart targeting is not enough for successful goal setting. You can make the most of it by adding the following features.
- Sensation
In this method of goal setting, everything is logical, and the feeling has no place. We act on sensations, so we have to set our goals in a way that we can perceive with the five senses.
- Assessment
Evaluate your goal before you start anything, and as you strive to reach your destination. Do this daily, monthly, and annually to get the best results. This is something that has not received much attention in smart goals.
- Examination
To see the results of your efforts to reach the goal and walk in a more transparent atmosphere, you must carefully examine your steps and actions along the way and after getting the goal.
You need to do this so that you can find your positive actions to continue, and on the other hand, recognize your mistakes so that you do not do them again.
