Business Negotiation Tactics – Changing Negotiator

Not only in business but in everyday life we negotiate whether we recognize it as such or not. For instance, if your partner wants to go on vacation in Malibu and you want Greece, you have to find ways to convince him to do it your way, in other words you need to bring convincing arguments to sustain that Greece is the best choice for the moment. And so on, in the market, at work, we practically negotiate every single day.

There are numerous negotiation tactics and in this article I will present the "changing the negotiator tactic".

Changing the negotiator, refers to situations where after reaching a
certain level in the negotiation process (and things seem to be on the right track), another negotiator - that can be the superior of the one you have negotiated with so far - cuts in and you basically have to start the whole process all over again. It is a tough tactic and it is not easy for the one that has to start from scratch once more! It is difficult and stressful to go right to the point where you started from. Besides, the second negotiator might destroy everything you have built so far, and you might be pressed in the corner to give in.

However, you should be aware of this "game", keep calm and don’t lose your cool! Start all over again if this is what is requested of you but don’t give into the pressure they put on because of this tactic.

Let’s look at an example:

Mr. and Mrs. Brown are the owners of an antiques store and they have to renew their contract with their vases supplier. The supplier sends the manager to renegotiate the contract and the negotiation starts around 10 a.m. and should normally end until 12 a.m. The manager has a plane to catch at 6 p.m.

However, Mrs. Brown motivates that she can’t be there at 10 and she’ll come later on, yet, her husband has to wait for her approval in order to sign the new contract. This is only a tactic and it is intended to be used together with other techniques as the "ultimatum technique" and the "time pressure tactic", all combined.

So by the time the manager has already convinced the Mr. Brown to accept his new offer, Mrs. Brown steps in and using "the actor’s tactic" makes a vivid display of her feelings that she "can’t possibly go for this offer". Obviously, the negotiation process has to start all over again, the manager is already pressed because he is tired, plus the time has passed and in an hour he should be at the airport.

It is now essential for the manager to keep his calm and be inspired enough to bring Mrs. Brown to a more positive state of mind if possible. He could use the "declaration technique" saying for example "Mrs. Brown, we have been in business for long enough to know that you recognize a good deal when you see it, is that right?" Her answer could be:" Well, I have been in business for a while indeed" .

Then he can continue making her say "YES ". This is another tactic that helps the buyer adopt a positive state of mind. For this it usually takes three questions that the buyer will have a positive answer for and then, the odds of success are much more enhanced. For instance, the manager can ask:"You have told us in our last survey that all you customers have been satisfied with the products we deliver, isn’t that so?" "Your sales also increased because of that, right?" etc.

This is what I want to point out. When you have to negotiate all over again as it is the case of the changing negotiator tactic, don’t lose your temper, remember, you might not be able to close the contract in the first meeting but don’t give in just because you are pressed and tired.
The techniques and tactics presented above can pull you out of the tension but always remember that patience is the most valuable asset in negotiation.

Keep an open eye on the consequences of your negotiation style; be tough with the problem and not with the person you are talking to.