As people we negotiate all the time. We negotiate when we apply for a job, when we want a salary raise. We negotiate even in our personal relationships to decide what to do over the weekend. Everything we do can be perceived as a transaction and closing a ‘sale’. Our sales pitch can make us win or lose. That’s why poor communication equals poor income on the long run. Or average at best.
Some excel in written negotiation, others in face-to-face negotiation. The latter is often unavoidable, even if it’s virtual, via a video conference platform. However, the first impression is the one that matters. Let’s have a look at a few examples.
C2C
You are smart. We know you must be, since you are reading SeeTheHumanSide. You will not encounter all the time people that possess the same amount of knowledge, as you do. If you make people look bad, by disconsidering their opinions in public or going directly against them, you will not win. In fact, they will avoid you in the future. Trying to prove you are right all the time is damaging. Instead, try to view the other person’s point of view and help the other one reach your conclusion.
Keeping a healthy relationship will win you more than being right. Go for what’s more valuable.
B2C
When people reach out to a business, they need to know the price and what they will get. You don’t go to a fast food or a restaurant and expect them to tell you how much you’re supposed to pay after you get the food.
Real case study 1. Business #1 has a nice website, made with the help of a professional copywriter. They even have a dedicated form for price requests where they ask a lot of questions, relevant for their pricing. Two days later after submitting the form, the business responds with a poorly written message (grammar errors included). They ask for a visit in person. Client’s perception is that they wasted his time and the nice website is just smoke and mirrors.
Real case study 2. Business #2 has nice portfolios, but no guidelines on the pricing. Supplied with all the details they need, they respond 3 days later. They indicate another contact person that doesn’t respond to messages after 48 hours. They expect the client to pursue them for over a week to get an indicative price. Or at least close to it. The client has a need to solve which he may not postpone over a week, expecting a price that might be prohibitive.
A business needs to have fast means to build an indicative price, leaving a margin of 20% tops. Even when details are missing, documented assumptions can help build the price.
B2B
In B2B negotiations, the offering is always custom. However, the same guidelines are followed. You have major factors for pricing, risk margins, first-of-a-kind indicators and so on. That’s why even at this level they go through an RFI (request for information) and RFQ (request for quotation), before submitting and RFP (request for purchase). In B2B the purchasing part is the one setting the deadlines for a response. Incomplete responses or ambiguous ones, poor communication overall, disqualifiy you on the spot.
What can you improve?
Respond fast. Nobody has time to wait, especially when you don’t have monopoly over the market.
Listen to the other party. Factor in the details you receive when preparing your response.
Respect your buyer. Praise him if you can.
Be specific, nobody likes ambiguities. That’s poor communication at its peak. Beating around the bush sounds like you either don’t know what you’re supposed to do or you’re trying to trick someone. Be confident in what you say.
Stick to your commitment. Let the other party know for how long your offering is valid and stick to it.
The fun bit is that everything I’ve written above applies also to personal relations. Try it!
