Asking questions and listening effectively are important skills for both selling and
negotiating The first phase of negotiation involves both parties agreeing on the
antecedents of the negotiation and fishing of the demand or offer of opening.
It is often best to present the opening offer or demand in terms of a hypothetical
ask, as this allows the negotiator to retreat to their starting position if necessary.
The opening offer will probably be at the same level or close to the level of the negotiator.
maximum expectation, giving it room to manoeuvre, but not so high that the offer
lacks credibility. Don’t try to win. at this stage, but retain enough so that
it can be moved, if necessary, at a later stage.
This is a difficult period in the negotiation process and a professional negotiator
often use silence or other pressure techniques to solicit information from the other
party.
More movement and concessions:
During negotiations, it may be in each party’s interest to keep asking questions.
and raise objections. Many excellent negotiators are slow jets who will proceed
very slowly. However, since the opening position of each side differs, then there has to be movement and concessions if an agreement is to be reached.
The negotiators will tend, at first, to discuss additional demands, trying to make the other party
accept them without offering anything in return. They will be reluctant to give
information or postpone decisions to increase pressure on the other
person.
When an offer comes in, it will often be on the basis of a quote based on the
minimum quantity at the lowest possible price. In all this, the negotiator is
trying to dominate the interview, pushing for maximum advantage and trying
force the other person to compromise on an important issue.
The expert negotiator will ask the other party for a complete list of all their
requirements, and he will not budge on a single issue until he knows the nature of
The whole package. It will then begin to negotiate concessions, beginning with the
smaller and less important aspects of the package.
Negotiators must avoid making unilateral concessions that will severely weaken
your final position and could affect the overall profitability of the deal.
When the movement comes, it starts slowly and then can be very fast as both parties
I feel like there’s a deal on the cards. The motion tends to be discontinuous with
either party moves and the other stops the deal at any time. This
leads to brief periods of stagnation, which can end in different
shapes.
Some of them are:
or period of silence. Wait for the other party to speak.
o Accept a dealer. Always exchange concessions by saying“If I do this, will you do that”?
o Addition to review posts.
o Agree to put certain issues aside for later and focus on the rest.
Identify areas of common agreement.
o Using the relationship with the other side to break the impasse.
Signs to watch out for that could mean the other side wants to make a move
place could include:
o Test movement. One side uses words like “What would you say if…?”
or use hypothetical examples.
o Summarize the position to date and ask “Where do we go from here?”
o One side asks for an adjournment.
o Appeal to the better nature of the other party.
o Ask for more information.
o Uses “crowding” techniques to force movement, eg aggressive behavior, sets
deadlines and time limits threaten the use of competition.
Using concessions is a vital part of building a profitable relationship for both of you.
parties to the negotiation. Previously, we discussed the different elements that could
It is the final deal. The use of concessions allows negotiators to build a
mutually profitable agreement that is not one-sided in favor of the other party, i.e. results in a “win-win” outcome.
And finally – Negotiation:
When it comes to negotiating, try to get the other party to commit first. For
example:
Scenario 1.
Buyer: “I am willing to reach some kind of deal, but I want a 10% discount”.
Seller: “Okay, I’ll accept a 10% discount, but we’ll have to find a
long-term agreement”.
Buyer: “Well, thanks for the 10% but we already have the 1 year contract
agreed will have to be maintained”.
scenario 2.
Buyer: “I am willing to reach some kind of deal, but I want a 10% discount”.
Seller: “Okay, we may be able to see our discount structure, but for
To do that, we will have to agree on a 2-year contract.”.
Buyer: “Okay, well, 2 years may be possible, but can we get to the full 10%?”
In the first scenario an offer of 10% was made, but what was asked for was vague.
Responding to a specific demand like this, we must be vague, but positive: “Okay, we may be able to see our discount structure”. and our counterclaim must be specific: “But to do that, we will have to agree to a 2-year contract.”
Remember, when you negotiate, offer offers, ask.
Copyright © 2007 Jonathan Farrington. All rights reserved