I grabbed a coffee with a friend recently to talk about some new ideas for their marketing.

They're doing pretty well, have expanded to two offices, and now want to grow further.

I did my normal “quickfire” review with them where we look at their ideal client profile, their value proposition, and the marketing messages and methods that would resonate with their ideal clients.

And you know what? It was all pretty easy.

Not because I'm some kind of genius with secret sauce I can sprinkle on to any business to instantly supercharge their marketing.

But because they already had most of the key elements in place. They just needed some help harnessing them in the right way.

When I asked my friend about his ideal clients, he had a very clear picture of two different types of business.

When I asked him about what value he brought to those clients and which of those elements of value were distinctive to his business and different to his competitors; then after a bit of thought he was able to come up with a solid shortlist.

And when we talked about valuable content and insights he could share with his potential clients to get their attention, give value in advance, and sign them up for ongoing communication he came up with a whole bunch of ideas.

All it took then was for me to show him how a systematic marketing system works and to help him with a bit of prioritisation and planning and he was off and running.

Contrast that with some businesses where trying to get them to say who their ideal client is or how they add value and why they're different is like wading through treacle.

If your business is genuinely adding great value to your clients in ways that your competitors can't match, then creating a value proposition or USP is fairly straightforward once you know the steps.

But if you just do pretty much the same as everyone else and think people hire you because you've “got great people” or you're “good value” then you're going to struggle.

If you're bursting with useful ideas and tips and insights that can help your clients business then – when guided in the right direction – you'll be able to come up with literally dozens of effective ways of reaching more potential clients.

Because if you've got great stuff to share there are no end of people, websites and media happy to share it for you.

If you've got little new to say then the reverse is true. You'll struggle to get anyone willing to showcase you or introduce you to their contacts or audience.

A lot of people think of marketing as some kind of wand they can wave that will get them into contact with a whole bunch of clients and magically persuade those clients to work with them.

It doesn't work that way. Marketing isn't something you bolt-on. It starts with having a great business that does brilliant work for clients and has something to add that others can't easily match.

Crack that and the mechanics of marketing become way easier.