goals-and-kpis
The target-setting layer — turn business outcomes into a measurable cascade with one North Star per channel, benchmark-set targets, and action thresholds. This skill sets the win conditions; analytics-and-reporting measures against them.
The POV: goals, not wishes
"Grow our following," "go viral," "do better on Instagram" are wishes — unmeasurable, unowned, and disconnected from the business. Build a cascade instead: business goal → SMART objective → KPI → supporting metrics, with one North Star per channel tied to its real job, a target from your own benchmark (achievable yet ambitious), a 3–5 cap for focus, and thresholds that trigger action. A KPI must be controllable, non-vanity, and mapped to an outcome — and a well-set one (a follower target paired with an engagement floor) prevents gaming.
Read these first
- brand-profile — positioning/audience.
- social-strategy — the business outcomes every goal must ladder up to.
The framework: NORTH
(Depth: references/the-north-framework.md.)
- N — Name the business goal: anchor every social goal to a real outcome (awareness/leads/sales/ retention); if it doesn't ladder up, cut it.
- O — One North Star per channel: the single win-condition metric (awareness → reach; consideration → CTR; conversion → CVR) + 1–2 supporting.
- R — Render it SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound — a number + a deadline
- a method.
- T — Target from benchmarks: set the number from your baseline/comparable benchmarks (no data → a learning goal first); leading + lagging; only controllable KPIs.
- H — Hold to 3–5 + set triggers: cap KPIs/objectives at 3–5; action thresholds ("if X holds but Y drops → do Z"); review weekly/monthly/quarterly; hand to analytics-and-reporting.
The reality (verify benchmarks quarterly)
The cascade, North-Star-per-channel, SMART, the funnel KPI map, the 3–5 rule, leading-vs-lagging +
KPI-selection criteria, benchmark targets + thresholds, and review cadence:
references/goals-kpis-2026-reality.md. North-star-by-channel table, goal→KPI cascades by business goal,
target-setting + worked examples: references/smart-goals-and-recipes.md.
Honest scope (never violate)
- Sets, doesn't measure — measuring progress is analytics-and-reporting (WoopSocial post analytics for the covered platforms; native dashboards otherwise). This skill defines targets, North Stars, and thresholds, then hands off.
- Targets from real benchmarks — no fabricated baselines; no data → a learning goal first; comparable benchmarks are provisional/flagged.
- Controllable, non-vanity, outcome-mapped KPIs only. Pair growth with a quality guardrail — a well-set KPI prevents gaming (no follower-buying/pods).
- Realistic, not hype — achievable yet ambitious; flag impossible asks. Miss → pivot tactics first,
don't move the goalposts or fudge numbers.
(Scope, distinctions + connections:
references/scope-and-connections.md.)
Distinct from its siblings (route correctly)
goals-and-kpis (this) = SET targets/North Star/thresholds · analytics-and-reporting = MEASURE against them · social-strategy = the whole plan (this is its goals/KPI layer) · experimentation = test tactics to move a KPI · competitor-analysis = benchmark context, not your own goals.
Where this connects
Reads first: brand-profile, social-strategy. Benchmark inputs: analytics-and-reporting (baseline), competitor-analysis (relative), the *-growth skills (per-platform norms). Hands targets to: analytics-and-reporting (measurement), content-calendar/batch-content-plan (cadence), experimentation (tests), campaign-and-launch-planning (campaign KPIs). Per-channel North Stars draw on the per-platform growth skills. No publishing/tool surface — a planning skill.
Definition of done
A cascade per goal (business outcome → SMART objective with number+deadline+method → one North Star per channel + 1–2 supporting); targets set from real baselines/benchmarks (or a learning goal if none), achievable yet ambitious, with a quality guardrail; capped at 3–5 with action thresholds and a weekly/ monthly/quarterly review cadence; controllable, non-vanity, outcome-mapped KPIs; handed to analytics-and-reporting to measure; nothing fabricated, correctly distinguished from analytics-and-reporting, social-strategy, and experimentation.
