What Is Marketing — and Why It’s Crucial for Small Business Growth

Introduction

You probably didn’t start your business because you love marketing. You started it because you’re good at what you do - and you want to help more people.
But here’s the truth: if no one knows about your business, they can’t buy from you. That’s where marketing comes in.

Marketing isn’t about being loud or flashy. It’s about helping the right people understand how you can solve their problem — and giving them a reason to choose you over someone else.

In this post, we’ll break down what marketing actually is (in plain English), why it matters for your business, and how to start making it work — without needing an agency or a marketing degree.

What Marketing Really Is

Let’s clear something up first.

Marketing is not just:
- Posting on Facebook
- Creating a flyer
- Running an ad
- Paying someone to “do search marketing (SEO)”

Those are all tactics. But marketing is the thinking behind them. It’s how you:
- Understand who your customers are
- Identify what problems they’re trying to solve
- Position your business so it feels like the right solution

If you’ve ever had a customer say, “I wish I’d found you sooner,” you’ve experienced the power of good marketing — even if it happened by accident.

But relying on word of mouth alone can be risky. If you want to grow consistently, you need a clear message and a plan to get that message in front of the right people.

Why Marketing Matters for Small Businesses

I’ve spent 30 years helping businesses grow — from one-person trades to teams of 50+. And in every single case, the businesses that grow consistently have one thing in common:

They treat marketing as part of the business — not as an afterthought.

Here’s why it matters:
1. You stop competing on price
 When customers understand the value you offer, they’re less likely to choose based on who’s cheapest.
2. You win more of the right customers
 Good marketing helps filter out time-wasters and attract people who actually want what you offer.
3. You make better decisions
 Marketing gives you insight into what your customers care about — so you can make better offers, better content, and better investments.
4. You build something that works without you
 When marketing is clear and consistent, you don’t have to be the one explaining the business every time.

What Marketing Looks Like in a Small Business

You don’t need to do everything. You just need to do the right things — consistently.

That could look like:
- A website that explains clearly who you help and why you’re different
- A few key messages your team can use on emails, phone calls, or your homepage
- An occasional post or email that keeps you top of mind with people who are interested

Good marketing isn’t about being everywhere. It’s about being clear, helpful and findable.

What to Do If You’re Not a Marketing Expert

Here’s the good news: you don’t have to be one.

If you’ve recently hired someone (or asked someone on the team) to help with marketing, you’re already one step ahead.

The challenge is making sure they know what to do — and why it matters.

That’s exactly why we built Your Marketing Coach: to help small businesses do marketing that actually works, without having to figure it all out from scratch.

Want More Customers?

If you want more customers — but you’re not sure how marketing is supposed to work — you’re not alone.

The first step is helping your team build the right skills, with the right support.

Start with Level 1: Small Business Marketing Essentials
→ It helps your assistant understand your niche, your customers, and what messages make people pay attention.

Explore the program here
Or book a quick call with Rachael

About Your Marketing Coach

Your Marketing Coach provides a practical training program designed to help small and medium-sized businesses get better results from their marketing — by training the person you've already hired to do it.

It’s created by Rachael Ward — a Chartered Marketer with 30 years of experience helping businesses grow. Rachael works as a part-time Chief Marketing Officer across the UK for small-medium sized businesses and built this program after seeing assistants asked to “do marketing” without support or direction.

The course is made for the real world — no complicated theory, no overwhelming jargon. Just helpful tools, video modules, printable worksheets, and built-in support through a custom AI assistant trained on the course content.

It’s practical, proven, and built for businesses like yours.