7 SMART Blogging Goals and How to Achieve Them

Do you want to take your blog to the next level but lack a plan and don’t know where to begin?

Starting and growing a successful blog is hard work, much harder than most people realize.

I’ve always said the learning curve for blogging is steep and never ends.

As a blogger and business owner, I’ve taken enough free and paid blogging courses as well as the best Pinterest courses here, that you could say I now have a master’s degree in blogging! (for real).

But as much as I love blogging, it can be very time-consuming, and sometimes it takes a long time to create a work-life balance.

When I first started blogging, my workday as a lawyer was 12 hours.

Then I would come home and work on my blog for another 4-5 hours. That blogging schedule was insane and definitely not sustainable.

Now I recommend you learn my 5 secret tips to create a blogging schedule you’ll actually stick to.

But, to be efficient and make the most out of the time you have, it’s essential to create blogging goals.

And you must be specific with the goals that you want to achieve and set a goal deadline to keep you motivated.

If you’re not sure how to do this, don’t worry, this article includes 7 blogging goals every blogger should have and how to set them.

That’s one thing about blogging that never changes, you need a strategy to be a successful blogger such as here.

Why Do You Need Blogging Goals?

Setting goals for your blog may feel like attempting to choose a subway stop to exit while the train is traveling at 55 mph without slowing down.

But I promise you, once you see how to do it correctly, it won’t be so overwhelming.

Goals guide your blogging activities and provide the strategy you need to be a successful blogger without wasting much time.

They help you focus on the right tasks that will take your blog to the next level instead of working on things that don’t further your goals.

Setting blogging goals allowed me to make seven figures from my blog and also quit my 9 to 5 job. 

Your blogging goals also guide your content creation as well as the topics you write about that further your objectives and solve problems for your audience.

Use these content creation tips to write faster and meet your blogging goals.

Before we get to HOW to set SMART blogging goals, it’s important to know the things you should have in place for a successful blog. So watch this video where I share the 10 most important things to do before starting a blog that makes seven-figures:

What Are Smart Goals for Blogs

SMART goals for blogs is an acronym that stands for:

• Specific goals

• Measurable goals

• Achievable goals

• Relevant goals

• Time-bound goals

I will explain each of these SMART goals in more detail below, so you can set 7 SMART goals to grow your blog.

How to Set SMART Blogging Goals

Let’s go over in detail the 5 essential steps you will need to follow to set and achieve your blogging goals:

First Step: Set Specific Blogging Goals (Plus Real Examples on How to Do That)

SMART goals must be as specific as possible.

Instead of saying:

• I want “more email subscribers,” you would say I want to grow my email list by 50 opt-ins every month. 

Or I want to double my email subscribers each month. 

When choosing a specific blogging goal, try to answer the five W questions – what, who, why, which, and where.

Define exactly what overall goal you want to achieve.

Pro Tip: When you define a goal, such as I want to make $60,000 this year, you could break that down into a monthly goal of approximately $5,000 each month.

Here’s an example of how I set big goals:

I said I wanted to make $50,000 per month blogging, and this is how I did that. So be specific in your business goals.

More Specific Goals Examples

Here are some more examples of Specific personal goals examples:

1. Lose 30 pounds in 30 days.

2. Launch a blog and online business in one month

3. Create a YouTube channel and gain 1,000 subscribers in one year

4. Save $10,000 for a house down payment within 6 months

5. Learn to play the piano within 6 months

6. Create an online course by the end of the year

You get the point! These specific (SMART) goals can be attainable goals short term such as quick wins or big goals for long term.

Second Step: Set Measurable Blogging Goals (Plus Real Examples)

You must be able to prove that you met your goal, so each goal needs to be measurable.

Numbers and specific descriptions make your goals measurable. A measurable goal answers questions such as:

• How will I know when I achieve my goal?
• How many?
• How much?

Goals are dynamic. They can change, and in fact, you should be reassessing them and tweaking them regularly.

So, here are examples of measurable goals I would choose as a blogger:

• I want to make $20,000 per month blogging 
• I want 1000 email subscribers in a month (by the way, this is the tool I used to achieve that goal).
• I want to write one blog post a week 

Step Three: Achievable Blogging Goals

A goal shouldn’t be too easy. It should push you outside of your comfort zone!

It should push you to your limits and motivate you to work hard, but it should also be attainable at the same time.

Setting a goal of $200,000 in your first year as a new blogger is unlikely to be met.

I’m not saying it’s impossible because I actually made $210,000 in my first year of blogging but that wasn’t my goal at the time.

My blogging goal was to simply make $100,000, which was a lot more realistic.

You should ask yourself how realistic your goal is and how you can accomplish it.

So, choose a goal that challenges you but isn’t too difficult to reach; otherwise, it may discourage you instead of motivate you.

Then once you surpass your goal, you’ll be more excited and happy to keep going!

How Do Blogs Achieve Goals?

Setting effective achievable goals is the first step but after that, you need an action plan to achieve your ultimate goal.

For example, here’s a good goal I set for my own blog:

1. Publish one blog post per week

I achieved that blogging goal by simply using Jasper to create engaging, high-quality blog posts (like this one) that my readers will find helpful.

Then I used this tool to make sure it appeared in search engines and ranked on Google to get traffic to my blog.

You have to learn to make your content SEO friendly.

As you can see, having the right tools in place is a great way to achieve your blogging goals.

Right Goals Require the Best Blogging Tools to Achieve Them

The best thing you can do as a blogger is set SMART blogging goals but in order to achieve and measure them, you will need to use the right tools.

These could include blogging platforms such as WordPress or analytics tools like Google Analytics that allow you to track user behavior and make changes accordingly.

Here are the best tools I have used as a blogger to make $44,000 a month.

Below are 11 of my favorite blogging tools for goal setting and measuring them:

1. AI writing tool to write blog posts 10x faster, and create social media content, videos, and any kind of content to save time!
2. Goal Slayer Planner (use it every New Year or during the year to stay on top of your blogging goals)
3. This all-in-one business platform you’ll need to run your blogging business online
4. Guest Blogger Agreement to publish guest posts on your website legally and avoid any copyright infringement,
5. Media release agreement to be able to use other people’s photos, videos, audio, and any other content legally, Privacy policy on your website to ensure your blog’s legal compliance, Disclaimer to limit your legal liability, Terms and Conditions to set your blog rules and regulations! Get all of these templates at a discounted rate in one of my best-selling VIP legal bundle here.
6. Free SEO Masterclass to learn how to optimize your blog posts for SEO to rank on Google. You can also buy this awesome bundle of ebooks instead if you prefer ebooks over video training.
7. If you’d like your blog posts to rank on the first page of Google then I highly recommend this amazing tool.
8. Learn how to get traffic to your blog through Google web stories here.
9. Millionaire blogger’s secrets here and tons of valuable resources.
10. How to start your blogging business and make money online
11. How to make money from affiliate marketing 
12. How to manage your business finances? Use this tool to stay organized.

Best Planners for Bloggers for Long-Term Goals Achievement

Research has shown that if you write your goals down, you have a bigger chance of sticking to them so it’s a good idea to invest in one of these top planners for bloggers to accomplish your relevant goal in a short amount of time.

Best Books on Blogging to Achieve Goals

When I first started my blog, I wanted to learn the best tips and tricks in the quickest and easiest way.

And these blogging books were the best out there to help me make six-figures from my blog in my first year while working full-time as a lawyer. Definitely check them out if you would like to make money online or become a full-time blogger.

Step Four: Make Your Blogging Goals Relevant

Your blogging goals must be relevant to what is going on now and align with any other relevant goals you have set.

One goal may have been to go to a networking event during the pandemic, but COVID made this impossible.

So ask yourself questions such as:

• Is the goal relevant to the current economic or social environment?
• Is now the right time, or is this a goal I should put off for now?
• Does it match and align with other goals?

These questions will help you set achievable blogging goals that are pertinent and relevant to the current environment.

Step Five: Make Your Blogging Goals Time-Bound

Every blogging goal you set should be associated with a date or time so you can measure your success.

This gives you a deadline to work towards. I

f your goal is to make $60,000 in a year, you now have a way to break it down into smaller goals.

What do you need to make monthly, weekly, and even daily to reach that goal?

By setting SMART blogging goals, you know exactly where you’re going, and you can create the steps to get there.

Examples of Time-Bound Blogging Goals

As a blogger, here are some good examples of time-bound goals you can set:

1. Write a blog post every day for the next week:

This goal will give you the motivation to create content and stay on schedule. It also sets a practical timeline that is achievable within seven days.

2. Publish two blog posts per week for the next month:

Having a consistent publishing rate can help grow your audience over time. This goal will help you stay on top of your blogging schedule for a longer period of time and set achievable goals that can be accomplished within one month.

3. Increase the number of comments you receive on each blog post by 50%:

Engaging with readers is an important part of blogging, so this goal helps you focus on creating content that is interesting and encourages conversation.

4. Reach 10,000 pageviews in one month:

Increasing your pageviews is an important marker of success for many bloggers, so setting a specific goal such as this can help you track your progress and make sure you’re staying on top of things.

20 Habits of Successful Bloggers and Entrepreneurs to Accomplish Your Goals

A lot of people forget that habits are important when it comes to blogging, and the same goes for setting blogging goals long term.

Before you dive deep into blogging, the first thing you should do is work on your mindset, habits, and qualities.

That way, you’ll know what direction you’re going in and be motivated to achieve your SMART blogging goals.

So check out these 20 best qualities and habits of successful bloggers to inspire you!

What are the 7 SMART Goals You Should Set (Plus examples for bloggers)?

Now that you understand what SMART goals are and the five steps on how to set them, let’s look at 7 smart blogging goals that every blogger should make in one form or another.

Doing this will help you focus on the right tasks in order to achieve desired results.

By setting these SMART goals with specific timeframes provided, you will have a better chance of achieving success with your specific goals and blogging endeavors.

1.      Grow Your Blog Traffic Every Month

SMART goals must be specific and measurable as shown above.

So you should set a traffic goal using the data from your SEO tools like Google Analytics to see which one would work the best for you.

This may mean your goal is to increase your blog traffic 10% every month or 50% every six months.

Just about every blogger wants to make money with their blog and to do that, you need traffic.

Increasing blog traffic is an eternal struggle for many bloggers. Setting traffic goals allows you to break them down into manageable steps.

If you’re a newbie blogger, you definitely shouldn’t set a traffic goal of 50,000 page views in your first month.

You can set realistic goals each month like the following:

• Month 1 – 500 page views
• Month 2 – 1,000 page views
• Month 3 – 2,000 page views
• Month 4 – 4,000 page views
• Month 6 – 7,000 page views

And just a note on page view estimates. Every blog is different, and no two bloggers are the same.

Please do not get discouraged if someone got 2,000 page views in their first month and you’re stuck on 500.

While it’s good to note how you’re doing compared to others, constantly comparing your journey to someone else’s can cripple you. It can cause you to lose focus and miss the goals you need to set.

Focus on growing your organic traffic from Pinterest right away, and this is the exact course I used to make that happen in my first month of blogging.

More traffic-increasing tips here, where you’ll learn 21 strategies to get 400K+ page views.

Install Google Analytics, so you have the data you need to reassess your goals every month. Google Analytics will be your best friend as a blogger. Learn how to use it here.

One way to get more blog traffic is to write guest posts for other bloggers so that you get referral traffic from those posts for years to come.

And on the flip side, you can do the same for other bloggers and allow guest posts on your site (such as me!). It really helps you fill in the content gaps.

But you have to be smart about this. Make sure you protect yourself legally and make sure all the people writing guest posts for you sign a guest blogger agreement.

This agreement safeguards you against legal ramifications that may arise when you use and own the content created by others. It also grants you the legal right to use it in business promotional and marketing materials.

I’ve helped more than 30,000 entrepreneurs just like you protect their blogs and businesses.

Listen to what Richard had to say about my legal templates. He purchased nine of them, including the guest blogger agreement. Richard says:

Listen to Richard and the many other people (you can see the hundreds of love notes here) who purchased my easy-to-customize legal templates and made their life easier.

If you want to start accepting guest posts, get my guest blogger agreement here.

2.      Learn Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

3. Write Two Blog Posts Each Week

As a blogger, you should know how important content is, and if you don’t, content is related to traffic.

If you’re not publishing content consistently, you’re not going to get a lot of traffic. So, high quality content is a necessity for blog traffic, whether that’s video or written content.

Here are 7 tips to blog consistently that helped me with my full-time job as a lawyer.

To get more traffic, you can scale your content creation like my friend Kelan who teaches you some great tips about outsourcing and growing a multiple six-figure blog!

But if you don’t have a lot of time, you could set a more manageable goal of one or two blog posts each week.

If you need blog post ideas, check out this post I wrote on 7 ways to find them. Here’s a free blog checklist of 24 things you must do before and after publishing a blog post!

Having a lot of blog posts doesn’t guarantee you constant traffic; it simply increases your chances of ranking the more content you have. Plus, it gives readers who land on your blog more to read so they stay on it longer.

It fits the SMART goal process and will definitely further your blogging goals. Content marketing is a key part of getting more leads and sales so you can grow your blog.

11 Best Tools and Resources Every Blogger Needs to Reach Their Blogging Goals

Also, watch this video to learn the secret 11 best blogging tools I recommend for all bloggers (and please LIKE the video and SUBSCRIBE to my YouTube channel):

4. Get More Leads or Customers

We all want to make more money, whether it’s through selling services or products here.

This is the exact system that earned me six figures in my first year of blogging. I use the same course every month to launch new legal templates and products in my store. 

The best way to do this is to grow your email list. Email marketing is also vital to growing your blog and making more money.

Your email list will always be yours, unlike social media or other platforms that own your list. Social media channels will come and go, or you could be suspended even if you did everything right!

So, setting a goal to get 7 new customers or clients a week is an attainable goal. In turn, it will help you make money, so it furthers your income goals too.

Here are some great email marketing platforms you can use to start growing your list right away:

• ConvertKit
• Kartra (I personally use this and find out why here)
• Mailerlite

Here’s a complete email marketing solution – A blueprint to grow and monetize your list of super fans without any sleazy sales tactics!

5. Make Your First Affiliate Sale in Four Months

One of the easiest ways for new bloggers to make money is through affiliate marketing. So, making your first affiliate sale is a big deal.

But when you make your first affiliate sale is different for each blogger. It depends on many factors such as your niche, how much content you’re creating, whether you’re optimizing that content for SEO, and much more.

Some bloggers are making $1,000 consistently by their sixth month, while it may take others a year or two. It’s all about setting a sound affiliate marketing strategy like this one.

So, setting a goal to make your first affiliate sale in four months (or you’re 50^th if you’re not new) means you then set up the new goals that you’ll need to achieve to do it. And you’ll know if you reach your goal because it’s measurable and time-bound.

Learn more about affiliate marketing in this blog post.

Also, here’s a list of the 60 best affiliate programs you should join to start making money blogging. And one of those high-paying affiliate programs is MINE!

Join for free here and start earning a 40% commission on each sale. I’ve paid six-figure in commissions to my affiliates already.

Once you join my program, I’ll even share my secret list of 8 ways to use your affiliate links to make money quickly with examples.

6. Figure out 1-2 ways to monetize your blog

There are at least 7 different ways to monetize your blog as shown in this blog post. But in the beginning, you won’t have the time to focus on all of them!

So you have to be smart with your time and concentrate on 1-2 big ways to monetize your blog. As you work on getting your blog noticed with these tips, you should also start thinking about how you’d like to make money blogging.

For example, do you enjoy affiliate marketing – promoting other people’s products and making commissions OR do you want to create your own digital products and be in control of your revenue OR do you want to get paid to write blog posts as shown here?

Starting a blog is easy, especially with these 6 tips but monetizing it successfully takes time and dedication. That’s why you need a proper monetization strategy in place. Take a look at these blog posts below where I show you how I monetized my blog in the beginning:

1. How to Make $20,000 a month as a new blogger
2. How to Make $10,000 a month with sponsored posts
3. How I Made $60,000 a month Blogging
4. Top 5 Blogging Courses to make six-figures

Need more personalized help to discover the best way to monetize and legally protect your blogging business? Schedule a call with me here, and I’d love to help you.

7. Networking – Connect with Four Other Popular Bloggers in Four Weeks

Successful bloggers don’t get that way all alone. Networking is incredibly important in blogging.

Why? Because working with other bloggers gives you the chance to get in front of their audience and extend your reach much further than you could on your own.

By setting a time frame and a specific number of people to connect with, you’re making it time-bound and measurable, and this is an attainable goal.

You want to connect with people in niches similar to yours that have an audience that can benefit from your content and products and vice versa. They must be accessible. If they are too popular, you don’t have a chance to get close to them.

Start your networking by helping them first without any strings. Link to them, promote their content and products, and build a genuine connection.

You can find people to connect with in Facebook groups and other social media platforms.

Join my Facebook group here to start building relationships with other bloggers and entrepreneurs (we have a thriving community of over 6000 entrepreneurs from all over the world!)

FAQ on Blogging Goals

Below are answers to the most frequently asked questions I get about blogging and blogging goals:

What are smart goals for blog?

As shown above, a smart goal stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

Keep these 5 elements of smart goals in mind in your first-year blog goals for better results on a daily basis.

What are examples of smart goals?

We discussed many examples of smart goals every blogger should set and below are some more examples for you:

1) Increase traffic to the blog by 30% within 2 months.

2) Publish four blog posts per month on a consistent basis.

3) Connect with at least 5 new potential partners/collaborators

In other words, you don’t want your smart blogging goals to be “generic”.

For example, instead of making a vague goal like,

• “I want to publish blog posts,” a more specific smart goal would be, “I want to publish one blog post per day.”

You see this goal is specific, measurable (one blog post), achievable, and time-bound (every day). By following these principles, you will be on the right track to set achievable goals.

What are 5 smart goals examples?

Here are 5 smart goals examples for you to improve your personal and business life:

1. Increase productivity: Set a goal to increase your productivity by completing tasks quicker and more efficiently.

2. Improve customer service: Develop a plan to improve customer service through better communication, faster response times, and more effective problem-solving techniques.

3. Reduce expenses: Create a budget that reduces unnecessary spending while still allowing for necessary investments. Use these tax saving forms and software to keep track of your business and personal expenses.

4. Increase sales: Develop a plan to increase sales by increasing marketing efforts, creating new products and services, and developing relationships with customers.

5. Enhance teamwork: Create team goals that emphasize collaboration, communication, trust, and problem-solving among coworkers. Implement teambuilding activities to strengthen relationships in the workplace.

What is the main idea of blogging?

I love blogging! The main idea of blogging is to provide an online platform for you to share your thoughts, opinions and experiences with the world.

Blogging can be used as a form of self-expression, allowing you to express yourself creatively, through writing or other forms of media such as photos or videos.

Through blogging, you can connect with others that share similar interests and perspectives, creating a global network of relationships.

Additionally, blogging is also an effective way to promote your online business, as well as build brand awareness. Ultimately, the main goal of blogging is to create meaningful great content that will engage readers and provide value on a regular basis.

By doing this, you can even make a full-time income from your blog.

What are the three 3 essential elements of blogging?

The three essential elements of blogging are:

• high-quality content,
• promotion, and
• technical setup.

Content is the most important part of any blog because great new content is what attracts readers and keeps them coming back for more.

A great blog post should be engaging, informative, and well-written to create an enjoyable experience for readers.

Promotion helps you spread the word about your blog and increase visibility.

This involves activities like SEO, social media marketing, and email campaigns to ensure your blog is seen by as many people as possible to bring much traffic.

The technical setup of a blog is also an important thing because it helps keep the website running smoothly and efficiently.

This includes setting up hosting, choosing the right theme, configuring plugins, and making sure everything works properly.

With the right setup, you can ensure your blog is always running well and delivering a great experience to your readers.

What are some benefits of blogging?

Based on my experience as a blogger, here are 7 best benefits of blogging you can expect:

1. Increased Traffic:

Blogging is an effective way to increase web traffic by creating content that your target audience will find relevant and engaging.

Blogging also helps you boost search engine rankings as search engines tend to favor new, fresh content when determining relevancy for keywords related to your business or niche.

2. Improved Conversion Rates:

By providing content that is both informative and engaging, you can encourage your web visitors to take action such as signing up for an email list or purchasing a product or service.

With the right combination of quality content, effective keyword optimization and persuasive design, your blog posts can result in higher conversion rates than traditional marketing tactics.

3. Better Online Visibility:

Blogging helps you establish an online presence and get your brand in front of potential customers.

By consistently producing quality content, you can build up a loyal following of readers who will share your posts and spread the word about your business.

4. Increased Brand Authority:

Blogging can help you position yourself as an expert in your field.

By sharing valuable insights and answering questions, you can build trust with your audience and demonstrate your proficiency in the subject matter.

5. Generate Quality Leads:

Blogging is a great way to generate quality leads because it allows you to target specific keywords related to your products or services and create content that will attract potential customers.

Additionally, your blog posts can be an effective way to capture contact information from visitors and build up your email list.

6. Increased Social Engagement:

Quality content that is shared on social media sites such as Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn will get more interaction from users which in turn increases brand visibility and reach.

7. Improved Customer Satisfaction:

Blogging can also help you improve customer satisfaction by providing them with the information they need to make informed decisions.

By regularly publishing helpful content, you can establish yourself as a go-to source for customers who are looking for advice and support.

Additionally, you can address customer issues through blog posts and offer solutions that will make their experience better.

Check out this blog post with 11 extraordinary benefits of blogging (that you probably didn’t know existed!)

Final Thoughts on SMART Blogging Goals

Your blogging goals depend on where you’re at in your business. They are specific to you and where you’re at in your business journey.

It is important to remember that someone new to blogging will have different first-year blog goals than an established blogger who already has an online presence.

A goal of gaining 300 more subscribers in a month may be irrelevant or unattainable for a new blogger.

If you follow the SMART goals process to set yours, you are more likely to be successful because these goals are validated as specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.

Intelligent bloggers set SMART goals to help them succeed in the long run.

Now you know what blogging goals you should focus on and how to achieve them the easiest way! Remember growth happens outside of your comfort zone, so dream big with your blogging goals and set date on them.

For more goal slaying tips, check out this planner that you’ll love.

WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR BLOGGING GOALS? LET ME KNOW IN THE COMMENTS BELOW.

Related Posts to Blogging Goals

Along with setting SMART blogging goals, there are some powerful habits of self-made millionaires you should check out. These will help increase your income.

Also, because bloggers frequently have legal questions about blogging, I created this page with legal tips as a resource so you can learn more about starting and running a profitable blog while avoiding legal issues.

Check out these other helpful posts on starting and running a money-making blog and how to blog legally:

• 16 DIY Legal Templates Every Entrepreneur Needs
• Membership Agreement: Why You Need It for Your Business
• SEO Basics: The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Understanding SEO and Mastering It
• How to Gain Confidence on Camera and Love Video: Interview with Narissa and Paolo from No Fuss Video
• How to Get 1 Million Pageviews in Your First Year Blogging: Interview with Frances Vidakovic
• Blog Post Checklist: 24 Things to Do Before and After You Publish a Blog Post
• Top 40+ Blogging Tools for Beginners – Free and Paid
• Canva vs. PicMonkey: Which One is Better for Creating Stunning Blog Graphics
• 66 Blog Niche Ideas That Will Make You Money in 2021
• How to Monetize Your Blog and Influence: Interview with Lady Boss Blogger Elaine Rau
• Top 6 Best Cameras for Bloggers and Vloggers
• How to Write Terms and Conditions that Protect Your Business (Plus Template)