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Negotiation skills
I suppose the alternative title for this chapter could have been "Getting your own way". Why on earth do some people end up with great deals (or get their way) when others don't?
Well here are some tips you can follow:
• Do your research. Understand who you are dealing with and what is important to them. Anticipate the questions and/or objections that the other party may have and ensure that you can deal with them.
• Have clear thoughts (and document them) on what would be a good deal for you.
• Be stubborn. If you have a solid negotiation stance don't allow the other party to ride roughshod over it. Stay firm, if it clearly makes logical sense to do so, and be iterative in your discussion if the other party is effectively ignoring your argument.
• Turn the conversation around. Don't let the other party lead the discussion. Make sure that you have an agenda and follow it.
• Follow your logic not theirs. Don't fall for what appear to be clever arguments or tactics that don't actually stack up in the cold light of day. Stay true to what you believe in.
• [However] Be fair and reasonable, or expect to lose.
• If possible, reach an agreement that keeps everyone happy. If you push too far, the other party will walk away - perhaps not now but as soon as they realize that there is no value in the deal for them.
• Assess who has the balance of power. The more power you have the stronger your negotiation position.
• Where appropriate make sure that you have more than one bid or tender. Even for relatively small contracts your position will be that much more powerful if you can demonstrate that you have alternative quotes that perhaps provide better value. From experience, unless at least 3 quotes are obtained from reputable companies you don't have even an initial feel (let alone an accurate one) for market prices. Also, let all the parties know that you are seeking competitive bids from other businesses to help focus their minds on the overall value for money of their offering.
• Don't be afraid to revisit the deal at any time before you sign on the dotted line. If you feel that you haven't done a good job on the negotiation front and realize later that the deal won't yield an acceptable to return for you (perhaps your planning wasn't a great as it should have been) then be upfront and transparent to the other party explaining that you can't sign until the deal hits a certain threshold in terms of financial return.
• Good cop, bad cop. One useful technique to