On December 4, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced the settlement of its first ever enforcement action against a public company for misleading COVID-19 related disclosures.^[1] The SEC charges centered on alleged misrepresentations the company, a major restaurant operator, made in two press releases during the early days of the pandemic regarding how COVID-19 was impacting the company’s business operations and financial condition. The SEC determined that the press releases—attached to Forms 8-K submitted to the SEC on March 23 and April 3, 2020—contained material misstatements and omissions which failed to adequately inform investors of the extent of COVID-19’s negative impact on the company.

When planning a new blog or evaluating your current blog, measurable goals help you determine if your site is successful. The LexBlog philosophy of blogging skews away from content marketing and toward connection and reputation building. Who you connect with, be it a colleague or client, should be your desired outcome.

Your goals should be specific, measurable, realistic, and time-based.

• Specific: Avoid fuzzy, unclear words like “Improve my online performance.”
• Measurable: Numbers and data give you a clear metric for your goals.
• Realistic: While your goals should motivate you, an unattainable goal can weigh you down when you don’t reach it.
• Time-based: Give yourself a deadline. Again, this goal should motivate you, not weigh you down.

Your blogging goals should focus on creating meaningful, quality connections. Set goals like these:

• Publish a post per week for a quarter.
• Add a comment to someone else’s blog posts twice a month.
• Speak to two influencers at an upcoming conference.

You should revisit your goals once a quarter or once a year. You should adjust your goals based on your progress. If you are having trouble meeting your goals, don’t be afraid to change them to something you can achieve.