Case: D1 | SMART goals

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Set your goals

08-04-2022 1103 views 2

D1 | SMART goals

Vague goals lead to vague results.

‘We want to increase sales.’
‘More volume.’
‘Bigger market share.’

Every export plan needs clear goals. But what does “success” mean in your case? Simply saying “we want more customers” or “more market share” is not enough. Goals only work when they are concrete, measurable and realistic — based on factsBeing able to know whether something is fact or opinion, is very important when reading news or watching an advert for example.
• A fact is something that can be proved to be correct.
• An op… Read more, not hopes.

That’s why you will use the SMART model.

SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Achievable (also: ‘Agreed upon’), Realistic and Time-based. If you develop your company’s export goals and objectives to meet these requirements, then your plan will have a good chance for success.

Specific – Be precise: what exactly do you want to achieve?
Measurable – Use numbers: how much, how many, to what extent?
Achievable – Be ambitious, but not unrealistic.
Realistic – Match your goals to what your company and the market can handle.
Time-based – Set a deadline: by when should this be achieved?

In this assignment, you translate your research and segmentation into:

One SMART goal for the short term (1 year)
One for the mid term (3–5 years)

Your goal is to define who you want to reach with your product — and what result you want to achieve in that market. You are allowed to make assumptions, but be consistent and keep your reasoning clear.

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export management

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Assignments for students

What to do?

1. Briefly introduce the export opportunity. What does your company hope to achieve, and why is this foreign market attractive?

2. List one or more relevant market segments, based on your business case and the selected export country. (e.g. budget-conscious families; young urban professionals)

3. Which segment do you think is most accessible right now? Base your answer on logical assumptions.

4. Imagine your first segment responds well and starts buying your product. Which segment(s) could follow in 3–5 years?

Great thinking done? Now it’s time to set SMART goals.

5. Set a SMART goal for the short term (1 year).

6. Set a SMART goal for the mid term (3–5 years).

Which standards apply?

Export goals are SMART: specific, measurable, realistic and time-based
Segment choices are based on research and match the selected market
All answers are clear, concise and relevant to the business case
Assumptions are allowed if they are logical and consistent

Core assignments for students

Discover whether you master the essence of this case by completing the corresponding core assignments. If necessary, you can share your answers with your teacher or supervisor.

Case: D1 | SMART goals

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Recommended by teachers

Case method | Cooperative learning

Concrete, realistic situations are individually analysed; afterwards, the resulting vision is presented and discussed in the group.
The individual’s vision is reappraised after seeking additional information. The different visions are selected and appraised.

Problem-based learning | Cooperative learning

Students are divided into small groups (6 to 12 students) and are presented with a problem. The problem is analysed in the group: what do we already know; what do we not yet know; and what do we still have to find out? (= formulation of learning goals).
Students then work individually or in a group to analyse the problem in-depth (= self-study).
Finally, the group comes together again, students report back and test whether the problem is now better understood.

One comment to “D1 | SMART goals”

Edvard Spaapen says:

July 29, 2025 at 10:22 am

D1 – SMART goals

– Kern is ongewijzigd.
– ‘What to do?’ sectie geherstructureerd: vragen beknopter, concreter en met praktische voorbeelden.
– Toevoeging van een verbindende zin tussen segmentatie en het stellen van SMART-doelen ‘your goal is…’
– Vragen eenvoudiger gemaakt omtrent aansluiting op businesscase en gekozen exportmarkt.
– Formuliervraagstellingen volledig afgestemd op de opdrachttekst, met identieke formuleringen en toelichtingen.

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Edvard Spaapen

Editor of content during development stage