Who in sales has not heard of Chris Croft’s sales negotiation tactics?
Chris has rightly explained in his theory of negotiations that every interaction that we have, every relationship we have, is some sort of negotiation.
In sales, a key part of closing a deal is the skill of negotiation. The standard sales negotiation usually involves reaching a deal based on market value. But as sales professionals, we can often do better by utilizing the best-proven sales negotiation tactics.
That being said, what are these top performers doing differently in negotiations. What should be considered a win-win situation in sales negotiation – these are some of the questions that we will answer in the blog. We will also narrow down for you the key sales negotiation strategy for you to follow, topped with the AI-powered solution that can help you achieve this goal.
But first,
What is a sales negotiation call?
A sales negotiation is an opportunity to show what you’re capable of, and it helps lead to a win-win scenario. You take the time to understand your customer’s business, demonstrate how you could help achieve their objectives, and then adapt your solution, so it meets both parties’ needs.
It’s crucial to make sure your company has a focused goal and direction in order to better engage with customers across all our channels. I believe open and honest communication is the key throughout negotiations - we should always be aiming for win-win solutions when speaking with clients.
If prospective buyers don’t feel comfortable with you, they will find reasons to walk away. As a sales professional, you want to make sure that the prospect you’re negotiating with is comfortable and knows that they can trust you. Or in short, you have to work on building relationships.
You must be thinking, is it worth losing time and money in building a relationship just for negotiations?
Let us show you its importance by showcasing what successful sales negotiations work.
Why is sales negotiation important?
Sales negotiations are implemented in order to get a good deal from the buyer. The main goal of a sales negotiation is to get what you want. But when it comes to sales, it isn’t always about the price.
For example, consider this scenario – where you are buying a house, the seller will often negotiate to get the best price. In business, even if you have the best product on the market, you won’t be able to sell it for a good price unless you can convince the buyer. This is where sales negotiations come into play.
But the fact is everyone tried to negotiate but is it always a win-win situation?
Sales negotiation top performers get a win-win situation 70% higher than the other sales reps. But you must be thinking about what situation can be considered win-win or classify a successful negotiation and what these top performers are doing differently to obtain it?
Let us deep dive into that:
A win-win situation
A top-performing sales rep would say the negotiation is a success if they are:
- Close to the pricing target
- Find opportunities for future partnership
- Satisfied with the outcomes
- Lead the negotiations confidently by adding value.
And compared to the rest of the people, top performers can achieve 12.5x high pricing targets, it was revealed in a study by Rain Group.
As top-performers strategize their negotiation tactics, they remind themselves that negotiations can take time and can sometimes last from a single meeting to multiple meetings. And unless and until they are able to feel confident with the result of the negotiation, they patiently lead (and not tackle here note) the negotiation.
But the end result of any successful negotiation is being able to build a partnership and not a transactional relationship.
Now without further ado, let’s get into call tactics.
Top performer negotiation call tactics.
The top performers essentially follow 2x times the 6 crucial rules of sales negotiation as per the Rain Group survey. And here are the 6 sales negotiation tactics as follows:
#1. Always be willing to walk from the deal
Yes!
You heard us right.
If you are willing to walk away from the negotiation just in case they might try to push for the sale - whether it's because the terms aren't meeting up to what you had agreed upon earlier or any other number of reasons - then you neutralize their advantage.
Remember - it's okay to want something but never okay to need something because that's when desperation can kick in and compromise your ability to get everything on point and done properly!
#2. Create value
Rather than negotiating about the price.
Negotiate about the value proposition of your product and check if your product is the right fit for their company and how it can disrupt any of their current processes.
Additionally, you can get together and brainstorm ideas and possibilities for the growth of the business.
#3. Take the lead
Too many salespeople allow buyers to set the agenda for sales meetings, leaving pricing too late in the sales process. Salespeople should take control and ask buyers questions to put them on the spot first, like: "What is your budget" or "How much do you contemplate investing in this solution?"
Salespeople should decide for themselves on the worth of their offerings and should have already figured out what it would take in order to convince a client to buy what they are selling.
#4. Negotiation is an emotional affair
Sales negotiations are much like an exchange between two strangers in an elevator or a corridor, and one wants to get off on the next floor, and the other one wants to stay on for the duration of her way up. Both sides have anxiety and wariness, but sellers reap satisfaction from their closing deals.
Foremost, a salesperson should deliberately bring about the emotions of buyers. Sometimes, creating a connection with customers allows them to trust you as this stranger whom they have yet to come across before that moment and gives them fresh feelings of being valued and respected in your presence. Both sides win if a deal is closed through positive-emotion-creating techniques while involving no conflict or loss.
#5. Negotiation is trading
Buyers often test sellers’ curb appeal.
Buyers often bargain with sellers trying to get them to lower their prices or offer other concessions. The best sales negotiators are flexible and always open to suggestions about changing the scope of work that needs to be done for jobs to alter the price.
Or, as Sean Sheppard says,
“Don’t compromise your integrity, your customer’s integrity, just to get the deal!”
#6. Plan your negotiation meeting
You need to plan your negotiation meeting by listening to and analyzing previous conversations to lead the negotiations. This will help you in getting ready for the objections that may flow in.
To top that thought, jot down 8 to 9 objections that you think might come in and their responses.
Lastly, but most importantly, learn everything you can about the seller before you get into the sales meeting.
You must be thinking, but how can you learn everything about the deal and about the time it would actually take to look through all the deal conversations?
But what if we tell you that you can shorten this time and learn everything about the deal right on your CRM?
How?
Here is how- By using Convin’s conversation intelligence!
Top performers spend time listening through the call recordings and other intelligence to understand everything about the deal.
Convin’s deal intelligence platform
A sales negotiation can be a tough process for any professional. However, it doesn’t necessarily have to be a nerve-wracking experience for those involved with the right preparation. Convin’s Deal intelligence platform helps users prepare for the sales negotiation process.
It uncovers the what, why, and action –basically the entire skeleton of the deal to the salespeople to help them prepare for the negotiation call.
Using Convin’s deal intelligence platform, Carestack increased the uptake of their deals by 47%.
Results first, payment later
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