The Lost Art of Edification

When it comes to edification, there are some things that network marketers do, and don’t do, that turn off their prospects.

These ARE NOT mistakes related to scripts.

Edification is more than scripts…

Edification is about connecting your prospect with someone or something they can relate to, in some way.

Because maybe you’ve wondered:

How can I get my prospect’s attention?

Or…

Why are prospects not showing up for the 3-way call?

Well, you’ve probably heard the saying- facts tell, stories sell.

With edification, it couldn’t be any truer.

Edification is about sharing a story, it’s about connecting. 

A story is powerful because it has the ability to capture someone’s curiosity, and eventually, their attention.

Many times when people don’t show for events or things, it’s not because the event is bad…

Often times it’s because it wasn’t edified properly.

Meaning, it did not get their attention enough to where they wanted to take action.

We want you to avoid these edification mistakes so prospects will want to talk and learn, and not run the other way.

With that…

3 Edification Mistakes to Avoid and What to Do

Edification Mistake #1- Not Sharing a Story

Have you ever watched a trailer that was boring, and that slightly lost your interest towards watching the movie?

Edifying works the same way!

When you edify, stories are the trailers.

Why?

Because stories raise curiosity, they capture attention.

Better yet, a good story is what captures our attention and gets us curios to learn more, to take one more step forward. 

There’s a saying that every great network marketer is a great story teller…

And no, this is not some ‘story telling gene’ people naturally possess that makes them good at telling stories.

We all have the ability to share a compelling story!

Since we’re covering edification today, here’s a story-telling formula you can use when edifying that will get and keep your prospect’s attention…

Story Sharing Formula:

–Where was your leader, mentor before they came across network marketing

–How did they come across network marketing

–What was their reaction to network marketing

–How their life has been after network marketing

What makes a story so compelling?

It’s that they are sincere and specific.

IT’S MORE than just saying-

“This is my leader, she’s very successful and makes 6 figures per month, you have to talk to her!”

Compelling stories come from the heart, they are not formal presentations.

Bonus Tip:
A small but impactful shift you can do after you share a story…

Instead of inviting someone to a 3 way-call, you call it to a private call.

Invite them to a private call with your team leader, not, a 3-way call.

The shift may be just a few words, but guarantee you, it makes it so much more powerful.

Edification Mistake #2- Talking More, Edifying Less

Talking more means, talking too much and trying to convince your prospect towards an action.

That action you want them to take may be a private call with your leader, attending an event, etc.

And talking more, often results as talking more in one area and less in the other.

Meaning…

Talking more about the facts of your products or company, INSTEAD of edifying and sharing the story of who you are working with.

Facts and information alone, are not compelling.

When hearing about your leader, a prospect will be asking themselves:

Who is this person and why would I want to talk to them?

Or, why would I want to go to this event?

When edifying, your job is to bridge your prospect with someone or something they can connect with.

It is through this action that raises your prospect’s curiosity and attention, what makes them want to actually listen and learn, to take action.

Network marketing is a profession of human connections.

People don’t join businesses, people join people.

Action step:

When edifying, focus simply on showing your prospect- who you are working with. 

Who are you working with, and how can your prospect connect with that. 

Edification Mistake #3- Approaching Everyone the Same

When it comes to edification, one size does not fit all…

Each prospect is going to connect to something different about your opportunity.

That’s why a huge mistake is not listening to your prospect enough!

You have to sincerely get to know what triggers them; what is it exactly that they are looking for.

There are 3 main areas as to why people join network marketing:

-The growth and environment aspect of it- the network, it’s community

-The opportunity for financial, time freedom

-To give back to the community in some way

Now, these are not the only reasons but some of the main ones.

A common mistake is that when people edify, they take the wrong approach.

For example…

Edifying your leader by highlighting their financial success, when your prospect is someone that’s focused on time freedom in order to spend more time with their family.

To edify in such way soon becomes a big turn off for your prospects, simply because prospects will automatically feel a disconnect.

That feeling of disconnect stops them from taking the next step forward. 

Action Step:

-Listen, and learn what triggers your prospect.

-Then, edify and share accordingly to that.

For example, edify your leader by sharing a story of how they helped someone on your team achieve that same thing your prospect is looking for.  

Remember, your main focus is to find and connect the common ground.

Did you know about these mistakes?

Comment below your thoughts on the mistakes of edification, or, what’s your take on edification?

Look forward to hearing from you.

God Bless,
Simon Chan

P.S  If you want to learn tips and strategies on how to invite more prospects and sponsor more distributors, check out our Purpose Driven Networkers Community.