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Your business problem may not be a business problem.
The Estherpreneur Podcast examines what most business conversations miss: the condition of the builder behind the business.
Hosted by Edna Harding, Christ-Centered Business Architect and CEO of Favor & Wealth, this show helps founders identify what is actually limiting growth—strategy, structure, sales, leadership, capacity, identity, stewardship, or spiritual misalignment.
We question business advice that produces growth without wisdom, visibility without capacity, revenue without stewardship, and success at the expense of the person carrying it.
Expect biblical truth, practical business strategy, uncomfortable questions, and conversations about sales, money, leadership, spiritual warfare, emotional maturity, and building in obedience to God.
Because sometimes you don't need another strategy.
You need to identify what is actually out of order.
“By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established.” — Proverbs 24:3
Estherpreneur.com | FavorandWealth.com | EsthersOil.org
Edna [00:00:00]:
Well, hello everyone. Thank you for tuning in for another episode of the Estrepreneur Podcast. My name is Edna Harding and I'm nothing but a messenger of hope, life, and truth. In today's episode, we're going to talk about something that can completely transform the way you approach sales in your business. And this is a tactic and a strategy that I think a lot of people don't utilize. And so if you just do this one thing, you'll be able to distinguish— think of the word— distinguish yourself from those around you. So first of all, if you guys are interested in learning timeless wisdom and timely methods, you are in the right place. And so let's go ahead and dig into this topic.
Edna [00:00:44]:
Now I want you guys to understand something very, very simple, and this is truly what's going to help you grow your business. And that is how people actually make decisions. Because many entrepreneurs assume their problem is visibility. But the problem with that is that is not the answer. They think if more people saw the offer, more people would buy, but that's not always the case. And often the real challenge is misunderstanding the buying journey. And so when I learned this a long time ago, this really helped me basically cultivate sales conversations, or multiple talks that helps me navigate through this buyer's journey in a way that doesn't feel pushy, in a way that feels more conversational and very natural. People rarely move from discovering you to purchasing from you in a single moment.
Edna [00:01:43]:
There is a process unless, and the reason why people are able to do it, um, like for example, in a live webinar or It's because more than likely this person already is someone that has already built a name for himself, already built a name for themselves. They have numerous testimonials, numerous proof that it works. They probably just have some sort of backing, whether if it's someone introducing them, you're in someone's stage, or someone validating, you know, their offer, or they just made a name for themselves already. And that's the truth of the matter. Is it anybody else that says, Okay. You could be a newbie and completely sell out. That is not realistic. Okay.
Edna [00:02:27]:
Don't let them fool you. Okay. A lot of times there's a process and there's a time involved. And the good thing is when you understand that process, your marketing becomes clearer, your messaging becomes stronger, and most importantly, your sales become more natural. But before we talk about the stages of the buying journey, I want us to anchor this in something deeper, which is in Proverbs 25. It says the purposes of a person's heart are deep waters. But one who has insights draws them out. What this scripture describes is something powerful about leadership and influence.
Edna [00:03:02]:
People always carry questions. They have desires, they have concerns, and they have hopes beneath the surface. And the wise entrepreneurs or the wise leaders, they, they learn how to guide people through that clarity. And sales at its best is not persuasion. Unlike what you hear the gurus say, it's not. It's actually insight. It is where you help someone move from confusion to understanding. So let's talk about the typical buying process.
Edna [00:03:31]:
Okay. And mind you, this is nothing new under the sun, meaning I'm sure at some point someone probably taught on this, but I'm going to add some biblical component to this because it's going to be not just a biblical component, but some practical component. Because I think there's so many people that focuses so much on, on sales tactics and marketing strategies and this and that, the latest and greatest trends and how to go viral and how to engage and how to connect. Really what we need right now is wisdom. We need understanding and we need the Holy Spirit to take over this conversation. Okay. So, cause my head is spinning right now. So meaning like, I'm like, I have, I'm going a thousand miles per hour.
Edna [00:04:16]:
There's a lot of things I want to share and I want the Holy Spirit to focus my efforts. So I'm just going to pray real quick. Father God, Holy Spirit, Jesus, we welcome you in this episode. We pray, oh God, that you would just teach me, help me to equip your people with the right wisdom to help them move the needle forward. In Jesus' name, amen. All right, so let's talk about the first stage. The first stage is what I called awareness, and this is when someone first realizes that they have a problem, and sometimes they cannot even name the problem yet. They just feel the tension, like something is off.
Edna [00:04:47]:
Something in their business is not working, something in their life feels stuck, something needs to change. And you know, the funny thing is I actually had a networking event that I went to a few weeks ago, and one of my lady friends introduced me to her boss and this boss, basically I told him what I do. And so what are you looking for? And he's like, I don't know what I'm looking for. You know, I just want to, you know, meet you. I guess he's not sure. You tell me, you know, it's one of those things that he doesn't even know. This is exactly what, What that is, is they know something is off. They know they want to grow their business.
Edna [00:05:18]:
They don't know what they're looking for. And at this point right now, people are not searching for your offer, right? They're searching for understanding. And this is why content matters so much. So what I mean by that is when you describe their challenge clearly, something powerful happens, right? They feel seen. They begin to think, wow, this person understands what I'm going through. This is the beginning of trust. And trust is the foundation of every meaningful sale. So what I mean by this is, so for just the same, the same gentleman that I spoke to, I was like, well, what do you do? And I said, well, I said, I help create basically sales or marketing systems for either startups up to small businesses up to $25 million.
Edna [00:06:04]:
And he said, how do you go about doing that? I was like, well, typically I do like an audit of what you currently have right now in your and then from there I make recommendations. And, um, and like one of the questions was like, do you have a business plan? And he was like, yes. I was like, no, not like a business plan. Like as far as the financials and all this, I'm talking about specifically and to grow your business, right? A specific plan, like a blueprint to grow your business based on, because how I look at it for me specifically, I look at it not just like a generic business plan, but a specific plan to grow your highest, like highest margin type of product or service, right? And that's what I mean is like a business growth plan where you increase your profits, not just revenue, because what you'll find is, and mind you, this happened with another client of mine, their revenues went up, but then their profit was negative. They didn't have any profit. So too much revenue and not enough um, net income. It was a net loss. And why I say that— yeah, net loss.
Edna [00:07:14]:
And the reason why I say about this is it's not just about increasing revenue, it's increasing profitability. And I think that's the part that people don't understand. It's just because you have a lot of revenue, but your expense— so if you're— thank you, Holy Spirit— when you're, when you're just using all the resources you have to maintain a business, to build a business, and your return on investment is not that great, it's still not a good business, right? Because you're spinning all your wheels, your margin is very low. You're basically, you know, you're working for nothing, right? And you don't want that. You could have a— thank you, Holy Spirit. You could have like a million dollars in revenue and still be at a net loss. How is that possible? It's because there's something in there. There are systems in there that are not aligned, okay, with your strengths.
Edna [00:08:02]:
Now I'm not going to go into the deeps and ask because I could go into this really, really well, but I just want to say that you need to have these conversations, right? And so with this gentleman, I started talking, just giving examples of like past clients. And one of the things that I mentioned was one of the things I do is I have, you know, this program where I bring forth, um, uh, like additional help, like additional sales reps to kind of help you with your cold calling. Because a lot of people don't like to cold call. A lot of people like the in-person networking events. So what we do is we do strategic research. I mean, this is not, we don't just give a list, okay? We actually do research on who your most profitable potential clients would be, and then we would start the conversation, qualify them, make them sure that they're ready to buy, that they have a problem that you can solve, and that they're the decision maker, and that they have the budget, right? And then what we'll do is then we'll pass them on to you. And so that in itself intrigued him. Okay.
Edna [00:09:04]:
And that's just like, well, that I'm interested in. Right. And he said, do you guys look for people or do you call our list? I was like, well, it's a higher price if we have to look for folks. And if it's a lower price, if you could give us a list, then he was like, who are the people calling? And he was thinking it's going to be like, you know, someone from the Philippines. Like, no, these are more than likely stay-at-home moms or retirees, those who came from you know, came from corporate America, are bored out of mind, looking for some side income, and you know, they're older. They're probably between their 40s to 60s. They're empty nesters and things of that sort, and they know how to have these strategic conversations with older folks. So they're not like, you know, interns, okay? These are people that actually know how to do research and have intelligent conversations with the decision maker, like a C-suite.
Edna [00:09:56]:
And when I said that, He was intrigued. So why am I saying this? Okay. So in the beginning, our goal is for people to, to, to, to be able to share content that makes them aware that, wow, I need that. Wow, I have that problem. Oh, wow, I can use that. Okay. So that's the first stage. Okay.
Edna [00:10:18]:
Now the second stage is then consideration. So now the person knows they have a problem. So they begin to explore solutions. So at this point, what do they do? They start researching, they listen to podcasts, they read articles, they watch videos. They may talk to other vendors. They may compare different approaches, and they're asking questions like, what are my options? Who can help me? Which path makes the most sense? This is where your teaching becomes important. Okay, so you're helping them see a pathway. You're showing them how to think, and this matters because people do not buy solutions.
Edna [00:10:55]:
They buy confidence and the person providing the solution. So the third stage is evaluation. At this point, the person is no longer asking whether a solution exists, okay? They know there are solutions. And, um, and this is good because now they're asking something more personal. Is this the right solution for me? They're evaluating things like, and this is the part where a lot of people miss, do I trust this person? Do I believe their methods work? Will this actually help someone like me? And this is where testimonials, stories and results become powerful. The thing that I do want to say in this particular part of the buyer's journey is the last thing you want is to pressure them or convince them. Your role is to create a space for them to evaluate where they don't feel pressure, right? So to me, like I had a client that I just closed, she had a little bit of fear and I asked her what is she afraid of and she told me her questions and I explained how my approach is different. And on top of that, because I know, like, especially because I've been doing this since 2014, I know the typical things that stops them from moving forward and fear of failure, fear of losing money, fear of wasting money.
Edna [00:12:12]:
Those are things that I see all the time. And so that's why I'm a big proponent of a signature framework because I am able to elaborate on why my program is different. And because I had that signature framework and because I created a 25-minute video of my framework about a couple more than 2 years ago, that's what I sent to her that goes over my program and what makes it different. And basically I painted a very clear picture of the pathway to get from point A to point B, which is where she wants to be. And then after she watched that video, she immediately sends an exclamation mark sentence saying, thank you, I'm now ready to move forward. Do you see that? You need to be able to create a space so that they, they can trust you. They believe that your method works and they could see themselves in the clients, which is in the clients you've helped. So what I love doing is I love putting pictures of past clients.
Edna [00:13:09]:
I love putting their stories. I love putting, giving examples. Even when during our initial conversation, when we first met at this coffee shop, I basically gave her stories of an inmate I worked with that I helped, you know, create their business plan, homeless people, retirees, a wife that her husband was, her wife and children that lived in government housing and her husband was, you know, in prison. And I was helping them to start a business. And so when, when you talk about the worst of the worst situations and also those who who are in like great situations where they have all the money in the world and they have all the spend, like they— you want to be able to see where do they fit in the spectrum. And you could usually tell by their word, their body language, their eye contact, their questions, their, their facial expressions. But what they're looking for is evidence. They're looking for evidence that what you're saying is true, right? And unfortunately, that only comes through connection.
Edna [00:14:11]:
That only comes through interacting with— it only comes with you actually not selling them, but just telling them about who you are and also finding out who they are, right? In Proverbs 18:16, it says, "A person's gift makes room for them and brings them before great people." When someone sees the fruit of your work, your gift begins to speak for itself. And what it does, it creates credibility. It creates credibility, creates confidence. And when people are confident in you and then they're confident in them because they can see themselves doing it using your way, That's when the fourth stage happened, which is the decision, right? This is when someone chooses to move forward, but even here, people still hesitate, and it's not because your offer lacks value, but because a lot of times change requires commitment. And one of the things that I love to do for people is I don't force them to decide right then and now. I usually give people an opportunity to like think about it. Like, don't, you know, this is why I don't really like a lot of these live events where you have to decide, you know, you have 24 hours, you have 48 hours, and I understand they do it for human psychology. Um, but I want them to do it knowing that this is really what they want and this is really what they need.
Edna [00:15:33]:
Mind you, I wasn't always like this because then before, because before we were debt-free, before we, you know, we had, when we had issue money issues, of course, we're like, oh my gosh, if I don't close this, you know, this is, and this is going to happen. But it's easier when you don't need money, which is why I want to speak to those who already have money and you are still doing the pressures, the typical sales tactics of those who, you know, fear missing out. Like, understand, guys, your business is a ministry. Okay, I'm speaking to the other side now. Okay, if you have a business that's thriving, okay, and you are not stressed with money, you're doing phenomenally well, this is a time to give back to community. This is a time to really help those that need you who may not be able to afford you. And I'm not saying don't be profitable, obviously be profitable, but make sure that if you are, you know, trying to close these folks, that you actually, you know, there's a lot of, unfortunately, there's a, it's all about the numbers, okay? It's all about the numbers. It's all about How much revenue did I close for this live event? Or how much revenue did I close for this quarter? When you become money-driven and not impact-driven or like truly like transformation-driven, it's easy for us to just look at everybody as numbers.
Edna [00:16:50]:
And I have a problem with that. I have a problem with people taking advantage of people who are truly looking for solutions. And because you built a brand for yourself, you know, you forget that you were once them and then you take advantage of them and then I guess what I'm trying to say is don't sell something to someone that you know is not going to work for them. Don't overpromise something and then not deliver it, right? One of the biggest things that I struggle with, even since I was in corporate, is selling people a service or product that's not going to solve their problem. And maybe that's the God in me or the Jesus in me where I don't want people to waste their money because I understand the value of money. Even before I lost money, right? I knew these were hard-earned money and whether if it's theirs or their companies, I just, it's just that integrity thing, right? And so I just implore you folks, if you are taking advantage of God's people, the flock, okay, not necessarily Christians, but the flock, people who are entrusting you to solve their problems and you're selling them something that is not going to solve their problems. Guys, you need to wake up, my friends. You know, what you sow is what you reap.
Edna [00:18:04]:
God will not be mocked, and that is the truth about it, right? We have to be very careful that we don't sell something that's not going to produce a solution, which is why for me specifically, I think back to the lady that I closed, I explained to her that there are certain strategies that apply when you're in startup phase, and there are certain strategies that apply when you already, you know, built a name for yourself and a brand for yourself. And a lot of these gurus tend to sell you something, tell to sell you strategies and tactics that works when you already have a proof of concept. But if you don't even have a proof of concept yet, meaning you don't have any high profitable product or offer, you shouldn't spend all this money promoting something that is low margin because you're not going to get a good return on your investment, right? So it isn't even so much a strategy. It has to do with your offer first and foremost. You have to have a product that is easy to execute and is high margin. That's how you increase your wealth, right? It's what are you, how are you able to multiply, you know, your profits? How are you able to do that, right? And you don't do that by selling average low margin products. You're just not going to be profitable. You could earn $1 million and still not be profitable, right? So anyway, I don't know why I went off that, but I guess someone needed to hear that.
Edna [00:19:26]:
Okay. So now let me kind of back up. So when, uh, when someone makes a decision, it requires commitment. And a lot of times, you know, these individuals will ask themselves, and you'll probably ask yourself, am I ready for this? Will I follow through? Can this really work for me? And your role at this stage of the conversation is not pressure. Your role is clarity, giving them clarity about what to expect. This is how you're going to get from point A to point B, right? Clarity about the journey that they're stepping into, because what clarity does is it reduces fear. When people don't know what they're getting themselves into, they're fearful. And then you have buyer's remorse because you did it out of pressure, right? You don't want that, right? So here's something that many entrepreneurs overlook.
Edna [00:20:11]:
Not everyone in your audience is in the same stage. So some people are just becoming aware of their problem, right? Some people are actively researching solutions, and a few are ready to buy today. This means, and this is game changer, you guys, when you're, when you're talking to people, you need to speak to people in all the stages of the journey. Okay. Some of the things you're saying, your messaging should help people understand their problem. Some of them should help people see the possible solutions and some should clearly present your offer. And when you learn how to do this well, you help people move through the buying process naturally. So instead of pushing people towards a sale, you are guiding them towards clarity.
Edna [00:20:58]:
You're giving them a clear picture of what could this look like for them. And this is where the kingdom wisdom becomes powerful in business, because in Luke 14:28, Jesus says, suppose one of you builds a tower, won't you first sit down and estimate the cost? This is what I call the language of thoughtful decision-making is. Wise decision requires understanding, and wise businesses help people make thoughtful decisions, not rushed ones. Okay, and so I want you to ask yourself, like, think of the last purchase you made. Did you make that because it was rushed, or did you make that because it was peaceful, right? So I can say for me, the last purchase in all transparency I did was I ordered some clothes for the spring and summer because I noticed that my clothes were very hot and it was getting hot. All my clothes were long sleeve, dark black, and I'm like, okay, I need, I need a new set of clothes just because I'm going to be networking more, right? So for me, I needed that, right? And so did I feel a little bit of pressure? Not really, because I knew I needed it. And secondly, it's not like I'm spending on my leg and I just closed a client. So like, okay, I have enough money to do that.
Edna [00:22:11]:
But the point is my purchase was thought out. I knew I needed it. I knew what to look for it. And then I started looking options and I bought it. I'm trying to think of an example where I felt pressured and I can tell you, and this is, I know this is a small example, but this is a true example. So, you know, they have all of these videos about, at least for women in their forties, they have all these skincare for makeup and how to, you know, there's just a bunch of stuff. Right? Supplements, women type of things. And a lot of those I would fall for because I wasn't thinking about it.
Edna [00:22:49]:
I didn't even know I had the problem, but the marketers were really good at presenting stories and manipulation in a sense where they would use AI. And I know it's AI because I should know, because there's now— nowadays, if you guys don't know, AI can even do fake testimonials of your actual product. They could have your actual product in the video and talking about how amazing that product is using human psychology type of tactics, and then you'll end up buying, which is what I did. And guess what? The product didn't work. Those products, I think I spent— I bought 3 products. 2 of them were makeup. The other thing was like some sort of moisturizer stuff, and it doesn't work. And it was like cheap, like meaning cheap, like it didn't work.
Edna [00:23:33]:
It was cheap materials, it was cheap content, and I spent like, I don't know, like $100 on each of them. So it wasn't a lot, but to me that was a lot for something that didn't work, right? So the point of the matter is like, this is the buyer's process, right? You need to, first of all, with integrity, go through these processes that I just mentioned, right? But remind— just when you're selling things to people, I want you, before you go into those conversations, I want you to remember the last time you bought something that you regret. How did you feel? And why did you buy that thing? Right? And I want you to think about the tactics they use, and I want you to do the opposite. Okay? Because remember, my friends, sales is not about convincing people. It's about gifting and guiding people through understanding. So when someone clearly understands their problem, when they see the path forward, when they trust you or anybody, a person guiding them, the decisions to move forward becomes natural, right? It becomes natural and you want it to become natural. So if sales have felt difficult in your business, I want you to ask yourself this question. Okay.
Edna [00:24:49]:
Okay. Am I only speaking to people who are ready to buy? Okay. Or are you guiding people through the entire buying journey? Those who don't even know they have a problem, those who finally do know they have a problem and are looking at options, and those who are ready to make a decision. Okay. Those are the people that you need to keep in mind as you are going through your sales pitches. Okay. And when you understand this, when you truly get how people truly make decisions and understand that everyone's in different stages, Something powerful happens. You stop chasing sales and you start building trust, and trust is ultimately what leads people to say yes.
Edna [00:25:32]:
Okay. Well, my friends, I hope this bless you. I hope this encourage you to take your time, right? Enjoy, enjoy what you're doing. Enjoy the conversations. Enjoy getting to know the people you're serving, right? Ask those questions. Don't pressure people, but make them feel seen, make them feel loved, make them feel understood, and most importantly, make them feel safe that you are the answer that they don't even know they're looking for. My friends, God bless you guys, and I will talk to you soon. Take care.
Edna [00:26:04]:
Bye-bye. Thanks for joining us this week on Estrepreneur. Make sure to visit our website, favorandwealth.com. Www.theshiningcompany.com for more information on our services. While you're at it, if you found value in this show, we'd appreciate a rating on iTunes, or if you simply tell a friend about the show, that would help me out too. Also check out my book, The Ugly Side of Sales, available on Amazon, where I share 7 of my secrets on how to win and grow business the right way. Until next time, keep shining.