Goals are a big part of the feedback loop in Sitecore. A well considered and configured goal strategy can provide tremendous insights into customer intent and progression through their journey.

An example member journey path for a sporting association

We tend to group goals based on the stage of the customer journey that they impact. We'll often times roll goals up to an outcome that aligns with the customer journey stage, and then trigger personalization off that. Whether we're talking about a member journey (above) or a B2B sales funnel, there's always the notion of a beginning, mid point and end point for a customer journey.

In the beginning... the top of the funnel or the beginning of the customer journey, one of the first things we can try to influence & measure is simply the return visit. Getting the customer to return is a small win, and an opportunity to resource them as someone who is still getting to know us. Knowing the difference between a 1st, 2nd, 3rd visit also helps us message outside of Sitecore, through remarketing, etc.

Configuring repeat visit goals in Sitecore

Step 1 is to set-up your goals. You don't have to give the goals engagement value if your EV scale rationale doesn't place much weighting on top of funnel activity. I typically give a few goal points to my repeat visits.

Step 2 is to trigger the goals to run when a new session begins. Go to /sitecore/system/Settings/Analytics/Rules/Session Begin/Rules. For each goal that you want to trigger:

Select the 'where visit no. is = x' condition and select the visit number
Select the 'Trigger Select' action from profile and select the goal you want to trigger

Sitecore will then trigger the appropriate goal based on visit number.

As you think about your top of funnel messaging, consider how you might personalize those interactions. While you never get a second chance to make a first impression, you can always build on that first impression.