Have you ever had a deal die on the vine?
Watched a ton of dedicated prospecting, lead nurture, and product showcasing fizzle out once the back and forth began?
Negotiations only work if there is ongoing energy and engagement remains high.
As you know, reps have a very specific window of time in which a sales negotiation can make it before people turn down, tune out, or walk away.
Sales teams need to learn to effectively use negotiation tactics.
And this isn’t a personality thing, by the way: it’s inaccurate to think you have some sales reps who will be really great at negotiation tactics and others who won’t. Each and every one of them can get good at this.
Here are the basic negotiation tactics for sales teams.
Feel like you need a starting point or more robust treatment of what it takes to succeed in sales negotiation? Check this out: The Complete Guide to Sales Negotiation
1. Create Receptivity
A fundamental notion that we seek to discredit is this:
People are totally cool talking to sales reps.
They like it.
It’s easy for reps to get someone’s attention and keep it.
Scheduling meetings is not a problem.
When you say it out loud a few different ways, it becomes painfully obvious: this is not the reality of the world in which sales reps live and operate.
In fact, people are increasingly unreceptive to having a conversation.
Before reps even pick up the phone, they are dealing with a general distaste or dislike, heading against the current to score a meeting.
At ASLAN, we spend a lot of time teaching sales reps how to build receptivity. It is in itself a skill and open that very much applies in sales negotiations.
Everyone knows what a negotiation is. Or they should.
They know, “we’ve arrived at the point in this where you talk about what you want and I talk about what I want and we figure out if there’s a deal.”
It’s an exciting phase of the sales cycle.
And it absolutely requires reps to continue fostering receptivity.
Real World: Creating Receptivity
Solid philosophy. But how does it work?
Creating receptivity, especially before and during a negotiation, can be accomplished a ton of ways. Here are a couple:
Reference their whiteboard. In discovery, reps should have gotten to the heart of why the prospect is looking for a solution, and how buying it will support their overall goals. Those goals are a touchstone for any and every subsequent conversation. Hearkening back to what people want in the first place neutralizes any conflict in a negotiation. It reminds everyone why we’re here and what the ultimate goals are. It’s a huge tool for sustaining receptivity.
Need more detail on this concept? Check this video out.
Don’t get combative. One of the key lessons sales reps have to learn early on is to not become emotional or offensive. There’s an undeniable biological reaction that occurs when adrenaline is heightened. It can trigger a fight or flight response, neither of which is a good option. Reps need self-control if they’re going to maintain receptivity throughout the course of a negotiation.
2. Lead Conversations
Leaders have influence. In that sense, leadership must be a core component of how sales reps approach negotiations. While prospects and potential clients may have more information than ever, they still don’t know the full scope of how a rep’s solution can be applied.
There are other knowledge gaps that require a skilled leader. All of this should come out during discovery and then arm a rep with confidence:
I know what you need.
I know that I can help you get it.
Let me lead you through this meaningful discussion to arrive at the ideal outcome.
Real World: Leading Conversations in Negotiations
Very few people disagree with what we just laid out. But how do you train someone to lead a conversation?
There are a few real world skills reps need to practice to get better at conversational leadership:
Be clear. Crystal. Reps who lack confidence tend to beat around the bush or take too long to get to the point. A competent, disciplined conversationalist will know exactly how much to say and do so succinctly. This simply takes practice.
Be silent. Sometimes. Silence is a golden tool for negotiation. A measured beat or two can go a long way in emphasizing, letting an idea land, giving space for consideration, etc. This, again, is just a matter of practice and sales training.
Be precise. Always. Reps who negotiate with the fear of losing the deal will be tempted to hem and haw, not just lacking clarity but actually saying things that are slightly off or inaccurate. It may not even be intentional. They’re just caught up in the flurry of the moment and blurt out a possible discount or concession or addition. They have to learn to restrain themselves, settle in with negotiation, and be precise in how and what they communicate.
3. Maintain Forward Motion
Novice negotiators tend to vacillate between timidity or aggression. Both can effectively stall negotiations.
Maintaining forward motion is imperative for deal velocity.
Sales reps need to be trained to get a definitive answer — to emerge from a sales negotiation conversation with some direction. Especially in B2B enterprise sales, this can be tricky. Reps face lengthy sales cycles and sometimes many rounds of negotiations. But each one should still be driving forward. No steps back.
This is one area in which some force does need to be applied. Not garishly or rudely but with great confidence:
We all have consensus that X is the next step and will be achieved by Y.
Then there is follow up and more nurturing and information exchange, etc. But ultimately, deals go dead in the water when that shark stops swimming.
Real World: Maintaining Forward Motion
Teaching a rep to keep the momentum going can be achieved with some thoughtful coaching.
Outlines and protocol go a long way.
- What are the promises that need to be made and kept before everyone leaves the table or call?
- How do you get everyone to commit to a next step and how defined do those need to be?
- How does a rep cleverly maintain control by guiding timelines and follow up?
This is a powerful opportunity and reps can hone these skills to keep that ball rolling along even after a negotiation session has concluded.
What Effective Negotiation Tactics Need to Work
What do effective negotiation tactics need to work?
Trust.
Just going to answer it right out of the gate.
What effective negotiation tactics need to really work is trust.
Tom Stanfill goes into this at length in his book unReceptive, which is a must-read for anyone looking to sharpen sales leadership or sales skills.
There and in other places, he has described how trust is what transforms negotiations, moving them from any version of win-lose into a win-win situation.
This is where collaboration is born, where real ideas get exchanged: in a room where trust has been won.
Many sales reps employ and deploy shady negotiation tactics, thinking that it’s about winning and losing. But unless you are willing to have your reps walk out of a room with your future customer as the “loser,” you need to shift their mentality.
This isn’t a tug of war. It’s time to Drop the Rope™, yes, even in negotiations. There is no battle. There is no fight. There may be friction but it is only in the context of mutual effort toward a common goal. The goal is that we all win.
As you can imagine, this is endlessly nuanced and has to start as far back as a rep’s belief system.
Get on board for a new future in which negotiation tactics aren’t cheap tricks but thoughtful communication tools that advance progress and the growth of your business.
