Marketing Isn’t Magic—It’s a System (And You Can Learn It)

So many business owners look at marketing as this mysterious, hit-or-miss thing—like if you just post at the right time or go viral, the sales will magically roll in. But here’s the truth: marketing isn’t magic. It’s a system. And once you understand the steps, you can repeat them again and again to grow your business.

In this episode, I’ll break down the simple, repeatable system behind successful marketing, so you can stop guessing, start feeling in control, and actually see results from your efforts. If you’re tired of throwing spaghetti at the wall, this conversation will show you there’s a smarter way forward.

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Website: www.newschoolofmarketing.com
Facebook: @newschoolofmarketing
Instagram: @bianca_mckenzie

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Transcript

Welcome to the new School of Marketing podcast. The place for smart, simple strategies that will amplify your business results, sharing practical tips, insider knowledge and actionable advice. Because marketing is something that every business owner can do.

Now, let's get started.

Introducing Your host, Bianca McKenzie, mum lover of snow sports, camping, horse riding and in demand launch strategist and Facebook advertising knowledge bank.

Hey. Welcome to the new School of Marketing podcast. I'm Bianca McKenzie, and this is the place where we break down marketing strategies that actually work without the overwhelm.

Before we dive in, I want to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land I live and work on, the Palawa people of Lutheran Wita. I pay my respects to their elders, past and present, and I acknowledge the deep connection they have with this land, with this culture and community.

Now let's dive in and make marketing work for you.

If you've ever looked at successful businesses and thought, how do they make it look so effortless?

What is their secret sauce?

Or if you've been throwing spaghetti at the wall with your marketing efforts, hoping that something will stick, then this episode is for you.

Today we're talking about why marketing isn't some mysterious black art that only a chosen few can master.

It's actually a system.

A learnable, repeatable system that anyone can understand and implement.

And I'm going to break it down for you in a way that makes sense.

All right, let's start by busting the biggest myth in marketing, and that's that it's magic.

I reckon this myth exists because we see the end result without understanding the process behind them.

It's like someone just flicks some magic wand and it just all happened.

Think about it. You see a viral social media campaign, perfectly timed emails that made you buy something or a brand that just seems to get you.

And from the outside, it looks like they've got some secret formula,some kind of magical touch that you don't have access to.

But here's the thing.

Every single successful marketing campaign follows a system.

There are principles,frameworks, and processes that work predictably when you apply them correctly.

Still sound like magic.

I think it still feels mysterious to most people for a few reasons.

First,we only see the polished end result.

We we don't see the months of planning, testing, refining that went into, like, that, you know, seemingly effortless campaign.

It's like watching a swan glide gracefully across a pond.

You don't see the frantic paddling happening underneath.

Now, secondly, there's a lot of marketing BS out there.

There's just like, so much bs.

Agencies and gurus just love to make marketing sound complicated because it keeps them essential.

And the more mysterious they seem to make it, the more you need them. Right?

And third, marketing involves human psychology, which can feel unpredictable,

but even human behaviour follows patterns when you understand the fundamentals.

So what does a marketing system actually look like? Well, at its core, every successful marketing system has five key components.

Let me walk you through each one of them and show you exactly how to tackle them yourself.

The first one is, know your people. That's your foundation.

This is absolutely everything.

You can't market effectively to everyone, so you need to get crystal clear on who you're actually talking to.

But here's how you actually do this, and it's not as complicated as it sounds.

I would start with your existing customers or clients, and if you don't have any yet, think about the people you most want to work with.

Then ask yourself these specific questions.

What is their day to day reality? Like, are they busy parents juggling work and family?

Are they small business owners wearing 10 different hats?

Are they corporate employees feeling stuck in their career?

The next one is what challenges are they facing right now?

And I don't mean surface level stuff.

You gotta dig deeper.

So if you're like a fitness coach, it's not just, I want to lose weight.

It might be, I feel exhausted all the time and I worry, I'm sorry, setting a bad example for my kids, but that's much deeper. Right?

And then the next one is, what have they already tried? And this is huge.

If they've tried five different diets and they all failed, that tells you something important about their mindset and what they may need to hear from you.

So the first one is, what is their day to day reality? Like, really, who are they? And like, what is their day to day kind of stuff. Like, the second one is what challenges are they facing right now?

And you gotta dig deeper on that one. And the third one is, what have they already tried?

And that really plays into their mindset.

Here's a practical exercise.

Reach out to five people in your target audience. I know it's a little bit scary and daunting, but if you want to give this business real legs, you got to do this.

So reach out to five people in your target audience, whether they're current customers, past customers, or people who, you know, just fit the profile.

And don't just ask your friends because you know they won't actually give you the honest answers that you want to hear. Ask them for a 15 minute chat about their challenges in Your area of expertise.

You will learn more in those five conversations that you would have in five minutes of guessing.

You just honestly.

They will tell you which words to use. They will tell you what they're struggling with. All of those kind of things.

Now, that was the first part.

Knowing your people, this is your foundation.

The next one, number two, is craft your message.

So once you know your people, you need a message that resonates with them. And this is why you need to talk to them.

And it's not about being clever or creative.

It's about being clear and relevant to their world. This is why those conversations are so important, because you literally can use the words they are using to describe their problems.

Your message has three what you do, who it's for, and what problem it solves.

But here's the key.

You need to frame it in their language, not in yours.

So let's say you're an accountant.

You might think that you provide comprehensive financial services, but your ideal client might think that they hate dealing with numbers and just want someone to sort out the mess so they can sleep at night.

Can you see the difference?

So start by writing down how you currently describe what you do. Then rewrite it using the exact words and phrases that your ideal customers use when they talk about their problem.

If they say, I'm drowning in paperwork, then use that language.

If they say, I have no idea if I'm making money, then speak to that.

So here's another piece of homework.

Take your current elevator pitch and rewrite it, starting with you know how, and then followed by the problem your person faces.

And then you write, well, what I do is.

And then followed by your solution in their language.

So, for example, you know how small business owners lie awake at night wondering if they're actually making money or just keeping busy?

Well, what I do is take all the financial confusion off your plate so you can focus on what you love about your business.

You get that? So start with you know how.

And then you know the problem that that person is facing. And then, well, what I do is.

And then again, solution in their language. It's so important to speak in their language.

So it's all about your ideal client and knowing them. This is why those five like terrifying conversations. Because honestly, I recognize that it is quite scary to go and talk to people and ask them a lot of questions.

But this is why those five conversations are going to be gold in your business.

Okay, so we've got, number one, know your people.

Number two, craft your message.

Number three is choose your channels and this is your platforms and this is where people get themselves into trouble by trying to be everywhere at once.

Don't do that to yourself.

Here's how to choose your channels strategically.

The first one is go where your people already are.

Pick platforms that suit how you naturally communicate.

So it's kind of like a marriage between what works for you and what works for them. Like they need to already be spending time there, but it also needs to work for you in terms of how you naturally communicate.

So first figure out where your ideal customers spend their time. And if you're targeting busy mums, they might be on Facebook and on Instagram during school pickup time and after bedtime.

If you're targeting executives, they will most likely be on LinkedIn during their commute or, you know, checking industry publications.

But here's the thing. Don't just guess.

Ask your existing customers or your network. Ask them where do you go when you're looking for information about. And then you know, like your industry. Where do you go when you're looking for information about accountants?

Where do you go for information about fitness coaches like whatever.

And you might actually be surprised by the answers because sometimes it's not what you think.

And then second, be honest about your own strengths. Are you great on video but hate writing?

Then maybe YouTube or Instagram Reels is more your thing.

Do you love writing but you actually don't want to be on video or on camera? Maybe a blog or LinkedIn actually works better for you?

Do you actually really enjoy real time conversations? Then maybe LinkedIn or Twitter like is more for you. More X now. Not Twitter anymore, but pick what works for you. As in where you naturally will communicate better and also where your customers hang out.

Pick two channels max to start with and you need to start mastering those before you add anything else.

I honestly would rather see you absolutely nail one platform than be mediocre across five. Because it's hard. You cannot spread yourself all that way. It just doesn't work.

Okay, so that is your channels.

The next one is create a customer journey. And this is about mapping out how someone goes from never having heard of you to becoming a loyal customer. And think of it as a pathway with clear steps.

Most businesses skip this step and wonder why people aren't buying.

You can't just put content out there and hope that people magically know what to do next. This is not going to happen. I know it sounds silly, but it is true.

So here's how to map your customer journey.

Start at the end and work backwards. I know, simple, right?

So step five, they're a happy customer who refers others to you.

Step four, they've purchased and are getting results.

Step three, they are ready to buy, just need the right offer.

Step two, they trust you and see you as the solution to their problem.

Step one, they're aware they have a problem, but don't know you exist.

Right?

So now if we do that the right way, it's step one, they're aware they have a problem, but they don't know you exist.

Step two, they trust you and see you as the solution to their problem.

Step three, they're ready to buy and just need the right offer.

Step four, they've purchased and are getting results.

Step five, they're a happy customer who prefers others to you.

Now, for each step, ask yourself what do they need to hear or experience to move to the next step?

Also, what objections might they have?

What proof do they need?

So for someone at step one, they might need educational content that helps them understand their problem better.

For someone at step two, they might need case studies or testimonials that show that you can actually solve their problem.

And for someone at step three, they might need a clear offer and an easy way to get started.

Create content and create touch points for each stage.

Not every piece of content needs to make a sale, and not every piece of content needs to be educational. And I think that is super, super important.

Your content needs to be about moving people to the next stage step. So there needs to be content for people at each step level.

And then the next one is measure and optimise.

And this is where the real power of systems comes in.

You're not just throwing stuff at the wall. You're systematically improving what works and dropping what doesn't.

But measurement doesn't have to be complicated. I know people don't like numbers, all that kind of stuff. You know, it's confronting. I know, I understand.

But start with these basic questions first. What is working?

Which pieces of content get the most engagement?

Which lead magnets actually generate leads? Which emails get opened and clicked? So check what's working.

The next one is what's not working.

Be brutally honest here. I know it's like, like I said, it's confronting.

If you've been posting daily on Instagram for three months and got zero inquiries, maybe Instagram isn't your channel, or maybe the content that you're actually posting isn't quite hitting it, but you need to dive in. The numbers are going to tell you what's wrong.

And then the next one is what patterns can you spot maybe your audience engages more with behind the scenes content than with, you know, polished posts.

Maybe they respond better to stories than they do to tips.

Maybe they're more active on certain days of the week. Like write everything down.

And here's what I would do at the end of each month. Write down three things that worked and three things that didn't.

Then do more of what worked and stop doing what didn't. I know it sounds obvious, but most people actually never do this review.

They kind of just keep going and going and going and wonder what you know why things are not working.

It's because you need to look at the numbers. The numbers will tell you a story. The numbers always tell you a story, so you need to look at all of it.

The key is to change one thing at a time so that you actually know what makes a difference.

So if you change your posting schedule or your content style and your call to action all at once, you won't actually know which one, like which one actually created the improvement.

So make only one change and then track again and then make another tweak and then track again.

And I know it's a slow burn, it could take a while, but it's worth it.

So why do we use systems?

And here's why. Thinking of marketing as a system rather than magic is a game changer.

Firstly, systems are repeatable. Once you know what works, you can do it again and again.

And magic, by definition, can't be replicated.

So think about it as a system because it can be replicated.

Also, systems can be improved. You can tweak, test, and optimise a system. You can't improve on magic because you don't understand how it works.

Systems can be taught.

You can learn a system, you can teach it to your team, and then you can scale it.

And so marketing's not magic because magic dies with the magician.

Marketing is also a system because systems give you confidence when you understand the process.

You're not just hoping for the best. You know, cross your fingers. You actually know why you're doing what you're doing.

So if you're feeling overwhelmed thinking about building your own marketing system, start small.

Pick one area and get that working before you move on to the next.

Maybe start with really understanding your audience, because that is so, so important.

Spend the week just talking to your customers or your ideal customers.

Ask them about their challenges, ask them about their goals, ask them what they've tried before.

If you've done this, then maybe work on your messaging.

Can you clearly explain what you do and why it matters in one sentence.

And if it's not, that's your starting point.

The key is to start somewhere and build systematically rather than trying to do everything all at once and just, you know, doing it poorly. Like take one step at a time.

Now, before we wrap up, let me share, Let me share three common mistakes I see people make when building their marketing systems.

The first one is copying someone else's system. Exactly.

Now, what works for one business won't necessarily work for yours.

Use them as inspiration, but you need to adapt them to your unique situation. And this is why I kind of hate the whole template.

Buy my blah, blah, blah and my business. You know, what I've done in my business, that's not going to work in your business necessarily.

And you're not going to build a clone of someone else's business because you're not a clone of someone. There's always something different, and that is you.

Mistake number two is not giving it enough time.

Marketing systems need time to work, so don't abandon something after a week because you just simply will not have any data to tell you what's working, what's not working. You can't even improve on it.

And the other mistake is setting and forgetting.

A system isn't something that you build once and then not touch again.

You need to constantly look at it, tweak, optimise, especially in marketing, because you can see how much has changed just in the last few years. New channels come along, new everything just kind of changes. So don't set and forget.

All right, there you have it. Marketing isn't magic. I know it seems like it's magic. It's not. It's a system.

A learnable, repeatable, improvable system that you can absolutely master.

The difference between businesses that struggle with marketing and those that make it look effortless. It's not talent or luck or some secret knowledge.

It is understanding that marketing follows principles and then having the patience to build and to refine that system over time.

Here's what I want you to do after listening to this episode.

Pick one element of your marketing that you want to systemise.

Maybe it's how you talk about what you do or how you follow up with potential customers, or how you choose what content to create.

Choose one thing. One, one thing.

Focus on that one thing for the next month.

Document what you're doing, measure what's working, and then look at everything. And then refine your approach.

Once you've got that piece working systematically, then move on to the next piece.

And if you found this episode helpful, I would love it if you could leave a review on all whatever platform you're listening on.

It genuinely helps other people discover the show. And I read every single one of your reviews.

As always, thank you so, so much for tuning in to the new School of Marketing podcast. Remember, marketing is not about being the loudest or even the flashiest.

It's about being systematic.

It's about being consistent and genuinely helpful to the people you serve.

All right, I'm Bianca McKenzie, and I'll catch you in the next episode.

Until then, keep making marketing work for you.