Okay! Did you try any of the techniques we told you about last week to get what you wanted? If you did, how well did it go?
This week, I’m going to tell you about the final two methods of negotiation you can use – these are Compromise and Logic.
Compromise – this is one of the least effective methods of negotiation and is often used by those who lack the influencing and intuition skills to use any of the others. Put simply, compromise means you’ll accept something that you may not necessarily want, but it’s better than getting nothing at all. For example, you’ve been in your new job for the last six months and during that time you’ve worked plenty of overtime to make sure your work load is always up-to-date and you’ve asked for nothing in return, so far. However, now you feel like you should get a pay rise of at least 10 per cent, and approach your boss to talk about this. You know that your boss is notoriously difficult to convince regarding pay rises, so you’re prepared to accept a pay rise of lower than 10 percent, as long as your boss is prepared to offer some other benefits too.
So, after some discussion you compromise and agree to a lower pay rise, but extra time off in lieu of the overtime worked.
Logic – this is one of the easiest methods to use as logic requires a low level of intuition, and only reasonably high levels of influencing skill. Essentially, you’ll be using facts and figures in a logical way to persuade the other person that your argument is valid. And, if you’ve done your research well, your facts and figures will speak for themselves. What you do need to concentrate on is making sure that you have all the relevant information available and that you can present it in a way that allows the other people to see the validity of your argument. For example, you want to convince your boss that it’s better to hire fleet cars, rather than upgrading the aging fleet of cars your company owns. They can be upgraded regularly, serviced as part of the deal and get cheaper the more you hire. In your mind it’s logical to go this way, but you’ve got to show that to your boss too. Here the facts and figures can really help you show the savings you’ll gain over a year and highlight the other advantages the company will have, for example inclusive breakdown cover, reduced insurance premiums and so on.
So there you have it! You should now be able to identify the best way to negotiate to get the best results. And the more skilled you become, the more techniques you can use – combining logic and emotion, for example.
Becoming skilled at each technique is something that can be achieved simply, by practising. Grab your friends and family and practise on them, especially if you have an important negotiation coming up. The role play can help you anticipate what questions you may get asked and helps you formulate a logical and flowing presentation.
If you think you have a persuasive negotiation technique, why not let me know so I can pass it on to other students. Email your ideas to shelleyb@businesstrainingcollege.co.uk
