Blog: The Negotiation Edge

Cold calling: It might not be the most exciting thing to do, but in the world of sales, it comes with the territory. While cold calls are probably the least exciting part of sales, it comes with the territory.

If you or your team is struggling to win deals, navigate a tricky business situation, or communicate effectively, it may be worth your while to enlist expert guidance. A negotiation consultant can help you hone your strategy and guide you through a challenging situation with greater ease, confidence, and dexterity. But how do you know which consultant is best suited to your needs? We’ve outlined five things to keep in mind when choosing a negotiation consultant partner.

Are your employees struggling to stay motivated? If so, it might be them. But there’s a good chance that it’s actually you. In today’s business world, it’s impossible to achieve your goals and grow your company without effective and inspiring leadership.

Many of the negotiation techniques we teach at Black Swan Group are part of a “no” strategy. We discuss ways to make “no” work for you in a negotiation; share tips on how to get buy-in, starting with a “no” ; and offer communication techniques to help create space between “yes” and “no.”

Our company used to say, “Yes is nothing without how.” But after years of negotiations, we’ve realized that this isn’t completely accurate. In reality, yes means nothing. How is everything.

After receiving an offer, you may be asking yourself, “How do I know I got everything that I could have gotten?”

When we’re faced with a difficult negotiation, many of us make the mistake of thinking that niceness will help us get what we want. To make ourselves seem more agreeable, we switch into an overly energized tone and take every opportunity to smile or nod enthusiastically—sometimes without knowing we’re doing it.

I’ll be honest—I’m not a fan of the elevator pitch. The idea of preparing a 30-second sales speech in which you explain your idea or solution and why it’s valuable goes against every unwritten rule of persuasion. Although it’s intended to drum up excitement in a short window of time, this sales technique inevitably breeds resentment and rejection.

The term “active listening” is easy to misinterpret. Oftentimes, it’s used to describe the nonverbal cues (like nodding and direct eye contact) that we use to show someone that we’re paying attention to what they’re saying. Other times, it’s used to refer to minimal encouragers—short verbal expressions like “uh-huh” and “hmm” that we interject to demonstrate our engagement. Although both examples are powerful communication techniques, they don’t fully encompass or explain what makes this approach active.

If you’re looking to sustain a competitive advantage, make a habit out of reading. Devoting yourself to just one chapter a night will keep negotiating tactics top of mind and turn you into a natural.