Know What Negotiation isn t

Know What Negotiation isn't

Negotiation is not selling. That is a mistaken assumption and one that was made by the software company we just mentioned. Negotiation begins when the sale has been adequately made. Selling skills are different and are covered in 101 Ways to Increase Your Sales from Kogan Page.

The simple test is the way buyer and seller relate to each other. In the selling phase, one person is persuading, the other is being persuaded. In true negotiation, the attitude of both is the same - both want to reach agreement. The question is no longer whether to buy or not. The question becomes, 'On what terms can I buy or sell?' Negotiation assumes that there is already an established desire to buy and an ability to supply. The whole emphasis moves towards profit implications and specific terms or arrangements.

Salespeople frequently fail to realise when the role of seller changes to that of negotiator, and it costs them. I asked scores of people for anecdotes on negotiation. Most of the salespeople struggled to find one. Many of them said, 'I do it intuitively.' When I questioned them in detail, the truth was that they did not recognise this transition from selling to negotiation. As a result, in every case they were not effective.

Negotiation is not 'giving in' or conceding. Concession can imply surrender on another person's terms. If we view negotiation as surrendering it will condition our thinking, our approach will be weak and our deals will not be effective. That does not mean we won't move in our negotiation - we will. But our movement must never be giving in or moving 'one way'.

Negotiation is not about digging our heels in. If we are inflexible we will be met by equal inflexibility. Showing our strength and wanting to appear tough are not the same as good negotiation. They can reflect our own insecurity and will either lead to immediate deadlock, or they will be exploited by our counterpart, and rightly so. Negotiation doesn't just relate to agreeing terms in the buying process, it can also relate to disputed ownership or late/non-payment.