How to Set Marketing Goals for the New Year (A Contractor’s Guide)
In This Article
January 1st comes around and most contractors make the same vague resolution: “I want to grow my business this year.” That is not a goal. That is a wish. A goal has a number, a deadline, and a plan. Here is a simple framework for setting marketing goals that actually help you grow.
Why Most Contractors Skip Goal Setting
Because it feels pointless when you are busy putting out fires every day. You are focused on the next job, the next invoice, the next employee issue. Marketing goals feel like something for corporate companies with marketing departments, not one-truck businesses.
But that is exactly why you need them. Without goals, you have no way to know if your marketing is working. You cannot improve what you do not measure. And you cannot make smart budget decisions if you do not know what each marketing channel is producing.
The Revenue-First Framework
Start with the end: how much revenue do you want to generate from marketing next year? Work backwards from there.
Example: You want $600,000 in revenue next year from marketing-sourced leads.
- Average job size: $1,500
- That means you need: 400 jobs from marketing (600K / 1.5K)
- Average close rate: 40%
- That means you need: 1,000 leads (400 / 0.4)
- That is 83 leads per month, or about 21 per week
Now you have a concrete target: 1,000 leads from marketing, or about 83 per month. Every marketing decision should be evaluated against this number.
Setting Channel Goals
Break your lead goal down by channel. Here is a realistic split for a contractor spending $2,000/month on marketing:
| Channel | Monthly Leads | Monthly Cost | Cost Per Lead |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Ads | 25 | $1,000 | $40 |
| Organic SEO / Google Map Pack | 30 | $500 | $17 |
| Google Business Profile | 15 | $0 | $0 |
| Referrals | 10 | $200 | $20 |
| Social media | 3 | $300 | $100 |
| Total | 83 | $2,000 | $24 avg |
These are directional estimates. Your actual numbers will vary by market, trade, and competition. The point is to have a target for each channel so you know what is working and what is not.
Monthly Check-Ins
Set a recurring calendar reminder: the first Monday of every month, spend 30 minutes reviewing your marketing numbers. How many leads came in last month? From which channels? What was the cost per lead? Did you hit your monthly target?
If a channel is underperforming, you can adjust. If one is overperforming, you can invest more. Without monthly check-ins, you will not realize something is broken until it is too late to fix for the quarter.
Keep it simple: a Google Sheet with columns for Month, Google Ads Leads, Organic Leads, GBP Leads, Referral Leads, Total Leads, Total Spend, Cost Per Lead. Update it monthly. That is all you need.
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