Analyse your feelings Negotiations are about win-win situations – you’ve probably heard that before. But, in this situation, do you still believe it? Or, have you other thoughts in mind; such as:
# I just want to get this over and done with because it’s not going to be pleasant # I remember what happened with this guy last time and he’s not doing that to me again!
# I don’t like “negotiating” with this Customer. She’s so pleasant I almost feel as if I’m treating her unfairly simply by negotiating # I better make sure I screw the best deal for us out of this Customer; otherwise my boss will have another go at me And, of course, we could come up with many more such thoughts if we wanted to. The point is, once you start thinking in this way, you are less likely to negotiate in a calm and professional way – and achieve the desired win-win result Analyse the other party Above, we discussed examples of your feelings or emotions about the upcoming negotiation situation. But, how about the other party? Do they enjoy negotiating (or hate it); see it as a battle for victory or an effective business process? How will you deal with each (or any other) of their possible reactions?
Prepare your ground You phone a friend one night to invite them out for a drink – and, in a really bad mood, they refuse. You’re taken by surprise, they normally have a sunny disposition The point is, you didn’t start your call in the right way because you already had an assumed mental picture in your head of what was going to happen. So, no groundwork necessary!
In business negotiation situations, it’s vital to undertake effective preparation. You can’t assume that the other party will behave the way they always do; be looking for the same kind of deal as last time If this were to be the first time you had dealt with this Customer, Supplier, Colleague – whoever; you would take time before (and at the start of) your meeting to understand their situation and then assess how best to approach your negotiation So, in preparation terms, it can be useful to treat every time as if it were the first (whilst still using the knowledge you already have)
- Continued in part two 1
Negotiation - Preparation - Part One - To learn more about this author, visit Gordon Veniard's Website.
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