Setting Amazon SMART Goals for the New Year

2024 is nearly here, and it’s time for Amazon sellers to reflect on past achievements and strategically plan for the year ahead. One of the best resolutions an Amazon brand can make is to embrace the effective and tailored approach of SMART goal setting.

With an emphasis on strategic goal-setting, this guide features valuable insights, actionable advice, and practical strategies to help you navigate the complexities of Amazon selling. It all starts with SMART goals that can pave the way for your success and set the stage for a breakthrough year for your business. 

Start with SMART goals

SMART goals are a strategic planning tool that can provide clarity, focus, motivation, and the ability to track progress for Amazon sellers. The acronym stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound, each of which plays a critical role in effective goal-setting.

Being Specific is about ensuring your goals are well-defined and unambiguous. For an Amazon seller, this could mean identifying a precise number of product listings you want to have live by a certain date or pinpointing a specific sales target.

The Measurable aspect involves quantifying your objectives so you can track progress. For instance, you might aim to increase your monthly sales by 15% or boost customer reviews by a certain number.

Achievable goals are realistic and attainable. They should stretch your abilities but still remain within reach. An Amazon seller might set a goal to rank among the top 10 sellers in their category, provided they have the resources and capabilities to do so.

Relevant goals should align with your broader business objectives and market trends. As an Amazon seller, if you’re selling winter apparel, setting a sales goal for the winter season would be relevant.

Finally, Time-bound means your goals have a deadline. This creates a sense of urgency and helps you stay focused. For an Amazon seller, this could mean aiming to achieve a specific sales target by the end of the quarter.

Let’s take a closer look at each of the five categories of SMART goals.  

Specific Amazon goals

When setting Specific goals, sellers must focus on what they want to achieve in explicit, clear terms, leaving no room for ambiguity.

For example, instead of setting a vague goal like “I want to sell more products,” an Amazon seller who wants to increase their sales should strive to develop a Specific goal such as, “I want to increase my sales of product X by 20%.” This goal is clear and pinpoints exactly what the seller wants to achieve.

In defining these Specific goals, sellers must understand their business objectives thoroughly. If a seller’s overarching objective is to expand their product line, a Specific goal could be to launch five new products in the next six months.

In addition, understanding market trends and customer behavior can further help set Specific goals. For instance, if an Amazon seller identifies that eco-friendly products are trending, they might focus on a Specific goal like, “I want to introduce three new eco-friendly products in the next quarter.”

It’s also beneficial to break down larger goals into smaller, more manageable ones. If a seller’s broader goal is to become a top seller in their category, a Specific smaller goal could be increasing the average customer rating to 4.5 stars in the next two months.

Measurable Amazon goals

To ensure that your goals are Measurable, you need to attach quantifiable data to them. For example, instead of setting a goal like improving customer satisfaction, you could set a Measurable goal such as increasing positive customer reviews by 15% over the next quarter. Here, the percentage increase in positive reviews provides a straightforward metric that you can measure.

Tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) is another effective strategy for creating Measurable goals. KPIs are specific metrics that indicate the performance of various aspects of your business. For Amazon sellers, these might include sales volume, conversion rate, average order value, and customer retention rate. By monitoring these KPIs, you can set Measurable goals related to improving these figures, such as increasing the conversion rate from 2% to 3% by the end of the year.

Utilizing Amazon seller analytics is also critical in setting Measurable goals. Amazon provides a wealth of data through its Seller Central platform, including sales data, traffic data, and advertising performance. Using these analytics, you can set specific, data-driven goals. If analytics show that a particular product has a high view rate but a low conversion rate, you might set a Measurable goal to increase the conversion rate for this product by implementing changes to the product listing or pricing strategy.

Establishing benchmarks for success is yet another important aspect of setting Measurable goals. Benchmarks are standards or points of reference against which you can measure your performance. As an Amazon seller, you might establish benchmarks based on your past performance, competitors’ performance, or industry averages. These benchmarks provide a target to aim for and a means to measure your progress. For example, if the average conversion rate for your product category is 1.5%, you could set a Measurable goal to reach or exceed this benchmark.

Achievable Amazon Goals

Achievable goals are those that stretch your abilities but remain within reach, considering your resources, market conditions, and competition.

To set Achievable goals, Amazon sellers must first assess their resources thoroughly. This includes financial resources, human resources, and time. When a seller aims to expand their product line, for example, they need to consider the costs associated with sourcing new products, the time required to create and optimize listings, and whether they have sufficient staff to manage increased inventory and customer service needs.

Next, understanding market conditions is imperative. Sellers must stay updated on market trends, customer preferences, and seasonal factors that could impact sales. Obviously, it might not be achievable to aim for a significant increase in sales of winter clothing during the summer months. However, it could be possible to seek increased sales during winter when demand is likely higher.

Competition is yet another factor to consider when setting Achievable goals. Amazon sellers operate in a highly competitive marketplace, so it’s essential to understand your competition and where you stand in relation to them. If you’re a new seller in a category dominated by established brands, it might not be reasonable to plan to become the top seller quickly. A more achievable goal would likely be to steadily increase your sales and customer ratings over a longer period.

For most sellers, using Amazon’s tools and services can help them set Achievable goals. One of the most important is Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), which can enable sellers to reach more customers and potentially increase sales, making higher sales targets more achievable.

Relevant Amazon Goals

Relevant goals align with broader business objectives, Amazon’s marketplace trends, and customer demands.

To set Relevant goals, Amazon sellers need to stay in tune with marketplace trends. The Amazon marketplace is dynamic, with trends constantly evolving based on changes in consumer behavior, seasonality, and new product innovations. The popularity of eco-friendly products might encourage a seller to set a goal to introduce more sustainable products into their product line.

Similarly, customer demand is another key aspect of setting Relevant goals. Sellers can use tools like Amazon’s Brand Analytics to gain insights into what customers are searching for and buying. This data can guide sellers in setting product development, pricing, and marketing goals. 

In any case, adapting goals to fit within Amazon’s ecosystem is also crucial. Amazon has its own unique set of rules and algorithms that determine how products are displayed and ranked. Therefore, sellers should set goals that take these factors into account. For example, a Relevant goal could be to optimize product listings with SEO-friendly descriptions and high-quality images to improve product visibility and ranking on Amazon’s search results.

Sellers should also strive to align their goals with their overall business strategy and long-term objectives. If a seller’s long-term objective is to become a leading brand in a specific category, a Relevant goal could be to consistently achieve high customer ratings, enhancing the brand’s reputation and visibility in that category.

Time-bound Amazon goals

The final type, Time-bound goals, has a clear deadline, which creates urgency and motivates action. They also allow for tracking progress over time and adjusting strategies as needed.

When setting Time-bound goals, Amazon sellers need to establish realistic deadlines. Deadlines should be far enough in the future to provide enough time to achieve the goal but not so far that they lack urgency. 

It can be helpful to establish milestones for Time-bound goals. Milestones are intermediate goals that lead up to the primary goal. They break down the main goal into smaller, more manageable parts and provide a way to measure progress along the way. The goal of launching a new product within three months could feature milestones for completing product development, creating the product listing, and beginning marketing activities.

With a goal and milestones in place, it’s easy to create a timeline when setting Time-bound goals. It can provide a clear picture of what needs to be done and when, helping to keep the seller on track. A timeline’s visual representation can be advantageous when multiple parties are working to achieve the goal. 

Be smart about SMART goals

When prioritizing your Amazon SMART goals, it’s vital to consider the potential return on investment (ROI) each goal could bring. In most cases, goals that could significantly improve the business’s bottom line or enhance customer experience often take precedence. When one goal is to increase customer reviews, and another is to expand inventory, and the seller believes that improving customer feedback could lead to a considerable increase in conversions, they might prioritize the former.

Another method for prioritizing goal setting on Amazon is the Eisenhower Matrix, a time management technique. It involves categorizing tasks based on their urgency and importance. Tasks are divided into four categories: urgent and important, important but not urgent, urgent but not important, and neither urgent nor important. This matrix can help sellers decide which goals need immediate attention and which can be scheduled for later.

Regular evaluation and reassessment of SMART goals is necessary for any Amazon seller looking to implement them into their plans. The frequency of these assessments may vary depending on the nature of the goal.

During these evaluations, sellers might need to reassess their strategies if a goal is not on track. Perhaps a different approach is needed, or external factors have changed, making the original goal unachievable or irrelevant. In such cases, flexibility is vital. The ability to adapt and modify goals in response to real-time performance and market changes can make the difference between success and stagnation.

It’s smart to partner with Amify

Reach your Amazon goals faster and more efficiently with help from the experts at Amify. We’ve helped premium brands achieve their Amazon goals for over a decade, and now we’re ready to work with you, too.

From Amazon marketing strategies to enhanced brand content, teaming up with us puts world-class, up-to-the-minute platform knowledge on your side. Check out our track record to see why our clients average 100 percent growth in the first year after partnering with us. Then, reach out to schedule a consultation.