I’m currently taking Prof. Butler’s Negotiation class and have seen that both his class and Prof. Sweet’s class go hand in hand. Negotiation is certainly a part of selling. In most cases, there is going to be some form of negotiation in sales. Negotiation can be seen sometimes as just a small part of the sales process, but I believe it covers more than we think. One of the biggest concepts in negotiation is being integrative. Integrative negotiation allows for both parties to be satisfied (win/win) instead of just one (win/lose). In sales, it is very similar. We are trying to sell the customer something not to rip them off hopefully, but something they will value and be satisfied. If we were to become more distributive (win/lose), chances are we would not be in sales too long or we would at least see our customers slowly decrease. When it comes to integrative negotiation, it is important to understand the other parties’ interests. In order for us to plan for a negotiation, we must know what we want but also the other party. In sales, we try to understand what the customer wants as well. We try to show empathy and figure out the true “why” behind what they want. Understanding the “why” in negotiation is just as important. It is usually very easy to see what the other party wants but it can take some digging to understand why they want it. For instance, two people are negotiating over who gets the last oranges. Both parties want the oranges. One wants the inside of the oranges for juice while the other wants the peels to zest for a cake. If they never figure out the underlying interests, they may never come to an agreement. However, if they do figure them out, they can make a deal where they both get what they want. In sales or negotiation, it is important to figure out the “why”.
BoweryJE22 One thought on “Negotiation in Sales”
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This is a great point. Mutual benefit in a sales process exchange requires skillful negotiation so that each party leaves with what they want as long as it is a good fit all around. When looking at the other party’s perspective as a salesperson it is much more likely that you will be able to establish common ground that leads to the close of a sale. To understand the why behind the prospect’s struggles or pains is so important in order to negotiate the terms of the agreement and ensure that it is fair. Your analogy with the oranges is a perfect way to put it because without knowing the purpose behind someone’s wants, you will never know if the terms fit the situation well or not.