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Thought for the day...
Free daily management tips from our team of trainers - courtesy of the In-House Training Company
Thought for the day
The full archive of free daily management tips from our team of trainers.
Download ‘Aim high’
Research by Chester Karass suggests that the most successful negotiators aim high. His research in the USA has been replicated in the UK. Two groups of buyers were chosen for a number of experiments. One group of young ambitious buyers were asked to negotiate a 15% discount off the range of prices from two suppliers. The second group of more experienced, but less ambitious, buyers, were asked to negotiate a 5% discount off the same range of prices from the same suppliers. The outcome was clear:- The experienced buyers all achieved the 5% discount. Not one exceeded the objective.
- Not one of the ambitious buyers achieved the 15% discount. However, all achieved more than 10%.
It is not just experience that causes the problem. If you compare the British culture with the Middle Eastern culture, there are strong differences in the way that we shop. These differences are carried over into our business lives, and the British culture is to see prices as fixed and non-negotiable. Many of us therefore do not ask for concessions which others may take for granted. The message has to be aim realistic but high in negotiation.
© The author
This thought has been taken from Eric’s book ‘Mastering Negotiations’. A master negotiator himself, he is our expert trainer on the subject – click here for details of one of his most popular courses.
Previous Thoughts for the day
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‘Encourage your customers to be unreasonable’ - read more
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‘Give your customers the benefit of the doubt’
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‘Encourage your customers to complain’
- read more
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‘Being good enough, isn’t good enough – give customers a reason to be faithful’
- read more
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‘How to keep a customer for life – give them lots of reasons to stay’
- read more
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‘Close the customer service department’
- read more
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‘Customer satisfaction is everybody’s job’
- read more
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‘Customer satisfaction is not satisfactory’
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‘The answer is – yes!’
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‘What are others doing?’
- read more
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‘How can I take better care of my customers?’
- read more
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‘Every sales call is a free market research opportunity’
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‘The customer isn’t always right’
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- ‘Give your customers more than they pay for’
- read more
- ‘Wash your dirty laundry in private’
- read more
- ‘It’s OK to spend money’
- read more
- ‘Expect the unexpected’
- read more
- ‘Have a NIZ!’
- read more
- ‘Dump trivia’
- read more
- ‘Less is more’
- read more
- ‘Speed up routine tasks’
- read more
- ‘Stop doing other people’s work’
- read more
- ‘Ask questions’
- read more
- ‘Take control!’
- read more
- ‘Listen!’
- read more
- ‘You don’t have to answer the question’
- read more
- ‘Shut up!’
- read more
- ‘Be receptive’
- read more
- ‘Go to the balcony’
- read more
- ‘Think before you speak’
- read more
- ‘You can’t stare – but you must watch!’
- read more
- ‘Don’t be predictable’
- read more
- ‘KISS’
- read more
- ‘Aim high’
- read more
- ‘Say “No.” ’
- read more
© The In-House Training Company.