The most impactful decision an owner can make for their business is to build a marketing system. 

Small businesses with systems are superior to those that don’t have them. Systems make your business more effective. Systems save owners energy. Systems save time, maximize creativity, and produce results at a rate faster than lighting a match.

What is a system?

A system is defined as “a set of things working together as parts of a mechanism or an interconnecting network.” In other words, it’s a collection of functions working together for a common purpose. 

A business is a system. 

If you want to run a business that works for you and not you for it, the functions of business – marketing, finance, people, innovation, management, operations, fulfillment, etc. – needs to be aligned.

Systems compensate for the lack of energy business owners have in a day. When a task or multiple tasks are systematized, the task no longer takes the same amount of energy as if it was the first time you were doing it. 

Have you ever thought marketing could be systematized? Do you think it’s possible? We don’t just think it’s possible, we think it is critical for you to grow and to receive a fair value for your business when it’s time to sell.

Would you ever buy a business where the owner is literally doing everything? No. At that point, you’re purchasing a new job. One of the questions buyers ask themselves when evaluating a purchase opportunity is – after the current owner leaves, what return should I expect? If you don’t think your business will survive without you, you will never be able to sell your business for what it’s worth. Your business increases in value exponentially when it can thrive when the owner doesn’t have to be present.

How can marketing be systemized when it’s such a creative endeavour?

First off, marketing is both science and art. Art is built upon science. How can we paint without using science to develop the paint’s properties, paint brushes, or even the knowledge of color?

Marketing is simply the art and science of creating value by developing successful exchanges.

In order to predictably attract and keep customers, you need to stay disciplined enough to develop successful exchanges consistently. One of the best and most rewarding ways is by creating a marketing system for your business. Not only will it bring peace of mind of where your business actually is in the marketplace, but you will also be able to increase the value of your business because sales and profit are no longer reliant on a single person.

“Greatness is not a function of circumstance. Greatness, it turns out, is largely a matter of conscious choice, and discipline.” – Jim Collins

Consciously create a marketing system for your business and be disciplined enough to stick to it.

So where do you start? Schedule a Business Assessment with McWilliam & Powell to develop your own personalised marketing system.