Don t Split the Difference

Don't Split the Difference

Of all the tactics in negotiation, this one is probably the most commonly used. Even the most inexperienced person will resort to this tactic. Why? Because it resolves a potential sticking point and brings agreement nearer in what appears to be a 'fair' manner. It is an apparently easy way out for the inexperienced negotiator and provides a face-saving way out for both parties.

Don't split the difference. Let's say we are buying. We want to buy at £80k and our seller wants £90k. They may well say, 'Let's split the difference.' Don't settle for £85k. If the other person uses the phrase 'Let's split the difference', our answer will be, 'We couldn't afford to do that, but I'll tell you what we could do. If you will... then we will....'

This tactic is commonly applied by both buyer and seller. It is attractive because it brings the end in sight. We can often succumb because of the apparently reachable agreement. If we respond and simply split the difference, then we will lose money. We should trade a concession and without doubt improve our deal. Price is usually the last thing we want to trade, so we must have other things ready to trade first.

As a buyer, even if you ultimately have to shift on price, you will end up moving to £82k and not £85k. That one skill alone has just saved your company £3,000.

One of my clients was negotiating a large sale where the customer was obliged to pay up front for a 12-month supply. The customer was very concerned about paying up front for 12 months and was more than a little nervous about the credibility of the company. He asked for two months' trial supply. This is never acceptable, simply because the service takes six months' usage before results show positively. My client thought to himself, 'I will meet him halfway' and offered a six-month trial on condition that signed agreement was reached that day. Both of them accepted, and to be honest, both were wrong. They had effectively split the difference. What he should have done was to ask for more; he had given too much too soon. The buyer responded wrongly in accepting the split difference; he should have responded, 'I can't do that, but what I can do is...'