78% of companies get it wrong when setting their marketing OKRs.
You’ve probably seen it. Your boss is looking at you seriously…
Then, drops: “We want 100 new customers this year”.
Good goal. Everyone’s happy. High five in the meeting room.
Then someone says: “Let’s write more content”.
Another one: “Let’s try TikTok”.
A third one: “Let’s redo the website and let’s go multichannel!”
Cool ideas. But… How do any of these things actually get us to 100 customers?
That’s where most digital strategies fail:
They don’t translate goals into numbers we can follow.
They don’t break the dream into steps like leads, MQLs, SQLs, users…
It’s like saying you want to bake a cake, but you forget the ingredients.
Yeah… What I’m saying is that…
Most companies have OKRs that are just… wishes
Let’s be honest: most company OKRs sound like motivational posters:
- “Be bold.”
- “Think growth.”
- “Get 100 customers in 12 months.”
Sounds nice.
But what do we do on Monday morning?
We’re jumping straight into action without a map. We don’t even know how far the destination is, or how many steps it takes to get there.
Ask your team a simple question: “How many leads do we need to get 100 new customers?”
If the room goes silent, you have a problem.
Because without that number, you’re working in the dark.
You’ll end up with busy teams, nice dashboards, maybe even some applause on LinkedIn — but no real progress.
It’s not a strategy. It’s just hope.
The smart way to set OKRs
Let’s stop dreaming. Let’s start counting.
Your goal is 100 new customers by the end of 2026.
You probably wrote that in bold on your strategy slide. Great.
Now… what does that actually mean?
Step 1: Start from the end
You want 100 paying customers.
Your sales team usually closes deals with a 20% win rate.
That means they need to talk to 5 times more people than they close.
So: 100 customers = 500 SQLs (Sales Qualified Leads)
Step 2: From SQLs to MQLs
Let’s say 30% of your MQLs become SQLs. (Not amazing, but not terrible either.)
So: 500 SQLs = 1,667 MQLs (Marketing Qualified Leads)
Step 3: From MQLs to leads
Now we look earlier in the funnel. Maybe 20% of your leads qualify as MQLs. That’s common if your lead magnets are a bit too shiny.
So: 1,667 MQLs = 8,335 leads
(Yes, that’s a lot of leads. Sorry, not sorry.)
Step 4: From leads to users or visitors
Let’s assume your website (or freemium product) converts at 5% from visitor to lead. You know, someone filling a form or starting a trial.
So: 8,335 leads = 167,000 visitors or users
That’s your real number.
To get 100 customers next year, you’ll need to bring in around 167,000 people to your digital ecosystem — and guide them all the way down the funnel.
Sounds huge? It is.
But it’s also honest.
It gives you something way better than “do more stuff online.”
It gives you a strategy with numbers.
From OKRs to actions
Now that you know the math, you can actually do something with it.
This is where OKRs become useful. And exciting. And a bit stressful:
Step 1: Give each team a mission
Now you can split the OKRs across your teams, like a funnel-shaped relay race:
| Team | What they own |
| Marketing | 167,000 qualified visitors |
| SDR | Convert 8,335 leads into 1,667 MQLs |
| Sales | Turn 500 SQLs into 100 paying customers |
Everyone sees how their work connects to the final goal. No more “we’re just writing blogs because… someone said we should.”
Step 2: Make it quarterly
Don’t try to do all of it at once. Break it down.
| Quarter | Visitors | Leads | MQLs | SQLs | Customers |
| Q1 | 41,750 | 2,083 | 417 | 125 | 25 |
| Q2 | 41,750 | 2,083 | 417 | 125 | 25 |
| Q3 | 41,750 | 2,083 | 417 | 125 | 25 |
| Q4 | 41,750 | 2,083 | 417 | 125 | 25 |
Simple. Trackable. Actionable.
Step 3: Adjust as you go
Here’s what happens next:
- If traffic is too low → boost ads, improve SEO
- If leads aren’t converting → check your forms, CTAs, or lead magnet value
- If MQLs don’t match your ICP → adjust scoring or targeting
- If SQLs are cold → revisit your handoff to sales
This is the magic of real OKRs.
They show you where things are stuck — so you don’t just work more, you work smarter.
Marketing should not be a guessing game.
If your goal is to get 100 new customers, then you also need to know what comes before — and before that — all the way up to the first click on your website.
When you take time to define what success really looks like (in numbers, not vibes), you stop chasing “more visibility” and start building a system that works.
One that gives you clarity.
One where each person in your team knows what they’re aiming for — and how to get there.
Comments