If you have ever wondered why a full calendar of “marketing activity” still leaves revenue flat, this episode of the In the Trenches Podcast offers a clear answer. Host Hanif Ibrahim digs into the practical realities with Russell Smith of Spark Growth, who argues that good marketing must pull its weight as a business function, not just a collection of tactics.
Marketing Is About Decisions, Not Channels
At its core, marketing is the craft of influencing decisions. When you focus on how buyers actually decide, channels stop being the hero and become tools. That mindset shift defines a modern marketing strategy. It starts with the outcomes you need, then works backwards through the steps that move a buyer from unaware to signed and retained.
Two simple questions set the frame:
- What is the North Star for the business over the next 12 to 18 months?
- How do our customers buy, in our category, in our market, at our price point?
Get those answers clear and you stop chasing trends. You start building business growth marketing that matches real buyer behaviour.
Go To Market, Not Just “Do Marketing”
Russell’s point is blunt. Marketing must sit inside a go-to-market system that joins the dots between brand, demand, sales, service and even hiring. For founders and small-to-mid business owners, that means your plan cannot live in one function. If sales depend on warm introductions, the plan must fund networking time and referral enablement.
If tenders and panels are key, the plan must include capability statements, case studies and compliance. If e-commerce is the model, then conversion rate, basket size and fulfilment speed belong in the same conversation as ads or SEO.
Treating marketing as a business function also changes the budget conversation. Spend is not a sunk cost. It is an investment with a target pipeline and a time frame.
Choose Inbound or Outbound Based on Awareness
A common reason marketing stalls is a mismatch between buyer awareness and the tactic mix. The podcast draws a clear line:
- If buyers already know they have the problem and search for options, build an inbound engine. That is where search, content libraries and comparison pages earn their keep.
- If buyers do not know there is a better way, run outbound plays. Think education sequences, targeted outreach, events and partnerships that put the offer in front of the right audience.
Modern marketing strategy is channel agnostic. You prioritise what suits the awareness stage and stop paying for tactics that only make sense on a different path to purchase.
Perth and WA: Relationships First, Marketing Second
The episode also recognises the local context. In professional services and mining services across Perth and regional WA, relationships drive revenue. Marketing still matters, but it serves the relationship, not the other way around. In these categories, business growth marketing means building credible foundations and freeing leaders to show up where deals are made.
Foundations that matter most:
- A clear, differentiated offer that buyers can repeat
- A website that passes the sniff test within 10 seconds
- Case studies with measurable outcomes, not just warm words
- Consistent LinkedIn presence for principals and delivery leads
- Sales handoff that is smooth and reliable
The goal is simple. When someone checks you out after a meeting or a referral, everything looks legitimate, helpful and aligned.
Plays, Not One Big Plan
Rather than locking into a 12-month contract and hoping for the best, Russell recommends time-boxed plays. Each play has a hypothesis, a budget, a forecast and a clear owner across marketing, sales and delivery. You run a play for 60 to 90 days, review leading and lagging indicators, then scale, tweak or cut.
A play might look like this:
- Objective: Book 20 qualified meetings a month for the principal consultant
- Hypothesis: A mix of event speaking, partner introductions and targeted outbound will yield the meetings we need
- Budget and inputs: Event fees, presentation development, partner enablement assets, outreach sequences
- Measures: Meetings booked, show rate, proposals sent, win rate, revenue
This approach lowers risk and keeps the team engaged. It also turns modern marketing strategy into a repeatable operating rhythm the whole business can understand.
Spend Like It Is Your Own Money
The fastest path to trust is honesty about where not to spend. If SEO or paid ads will only contribute 2 percent of the result this quarter, move that budget to a higher leverage play. Founders and small-to-mid business owners appreciate that clarity, and it keeps the focus on impact. It also means you are free to say, not yet, when the timing is wrong for certain channels.
A useful test for every tactic:
- Would we spend this money if it were our own?
- What leading indicator will tell us within four weeks that it is working?
- If it works, can we scale it without breaking delivery?
If the answer is unclear, park it and fund the work that moves numbers now.
Make The Offer Worth Buying
No marketing plan can save a vague or me-too offer. The conversation highlights three checks to run before you scale spend:
- Value clarity. Can a stranger explain your value in one sentence after a quick read of your homepage?
- Differentiation. What is credibly unique, and can you prove it with data, guarantees or named case studies?
- Fit. Does the package, term, delivery model and price align with how your ideal customers buy?
Fix these first. That is real business growth marketing. It is also the cheapest way to improve your close rate.
Foundations Before Funnels
Before you switch on a big demand campaign, audit the basics:
- Brand and visual identity that look current and consistent
- Messaging that speaks to outcomes, not features
- Website speed, clarity and simple next steps
- Proof assets: recent case studies, testimonials, industry logos and safety or quality certifications
- LinkedIn health: complete profiles for leaders, regular posting cadence, and a growing network in the right verticals
These assets turn soft interest into hard pipelines. They also protect the time of busy executives, which is precious for founders and small-to-mid business owners.
How To Tell If a Marketer Can Actually Help
The episode gives a practical filter for choosing help. In early conversations, listen for signs that your advisor is thinking like an operator, not a channel vendor:
- They ask for revenue targets and margin goals
- They map the buying process for your category and region
- They propose plays with hypotheses, budgets and owners
- They are willing to say no to low-leverage work
- They explain how sales, service and marketing fit together in your go to market
If you get a one-size-fits-all list of tactics, keep looking.
Listen To the Full Conversation
We’ve captured the highlights, but the full nuance lives in the episode. Queue up the In the Trenches Podcast for the complete discussion with Russell Smith, including examples, decision trees and the thinking behind the plays. If it helps, share the episode with your leadership team and add it to your weekly meeting agenda. The more your team hears the same language, the faster your go to market improves.