10 Ways to Play-The-Clock in Negotiating

You’ve heard of playing the clock in football, right?

This occurs when teams use a “hurry-up offense” in crunch time, when there are only precious seconds before a game clock runs out. They send in four or five plays at a time, forego huddles, and try to freeze the action at the end of plays by running for the sidelines.

You should play the clock when you’re negotiating, and the pro’s at this game have at least 10 typical “plays” they like to execute:

(1) They set a deadline for making a deal. Unions are famous for announcing strike deadlines, because they focus management on the need to not only come to the table, but to be ready to make progress when they do.

(2) Pro’s set-up “progress tracking” systems in advance. In selling, for instance, it pays off for vendors to get their prospects to agree to certain mutual time markers. “I’ll get you the proposal by March 15, and then we’ll talk about it on the 22nd, at 2 o’clock, right?” This prevents procrastination, while giving sellers much more clarity with respect to where they stand.

(3) Expert negotiators agree to put aside, for the time being, certain issues that might be thorny or distracting, or simply time consuming, while focusing on easier-to-handle and agree-to matters. For example, in numerous sales situations I’ve been asked if I could send certain preliminary details to a prospect. My response: “Sure, I’ll be happy to, and if you like what you see, what will be the next step?”

Usually, they start to talk about what really counts at that point, such as the decision making process, setting dates for delivering seminars, promotion and pricing.

(4) Requests for proposals contain deadlines for a reason. They alert bidders to the fact that they’re competing, and they optimize the time management of vendees.

(5) Stalling works. You know everything you need to know, including the fact that you’re interested in moving forward, and you’ll even accept the terms that are on the table. But you wait, to create uncertainty in your counterpart, to see if you can elicit more concessions, better terms, and miscellaneous advantages. Some negotiators are so impatient and fearful of ambiguity that they’ll offer concessions, spontaneously, simply to gain more certainty in the communication process.

(6) Miss a deadline, on purpose, and see what happens. Most deadlines are created to instill urgency, haste, and to cause the other party to make mistakes. By missing a deadline, you test the underlying necessity of their deadlines and take control of the proceedings. Of course, there is a slight risk that you’ll be shut out from further consideration, but it might be a risk worth taking to gain time and power and to turn the tables.

(7) Negotiate for top-priority. One of my clients wanted a concession and I was willing to grant it, but I said: "When I'm on the road and I have a question for you, I want you to ALWAYS take my call right away. Know this: I won't waste your time by calling to chit-chat; it will be important." He agreed, and this little feature of our understanding helped to make the program a great success.

(8) Offer a “one-time only” incentive for consummating a deal. Car dealers and their salespeople are more eager to cut deals at the end of the month because it that is a typical quota deadline. Commissions for salespeople are computed, and manufacturers set their allotments and dealer incentives based on monthly sales results. So, either as a buyer or a seller, you can offer a genuine deal at this time.

(9) Apply third-party pressure by saying your boss, spouse, partner, or accountant, or lawyer is insisting you either wait to do a deal, or that you close a deal by a certain date. Third-party pressure is a common tactic in negotiations because it works. How can your counterparts confirm or disconfirm what various people are whispering in your ear?

(10) Use checklists that are either handed to your counterparts or are visible to them so it is apparent that you need to move through a number of deal elements before final approval can take place. They’ll generally speed up the process in order to get to the bottom of the list, treating your list as if it is theirs.

Time is money, you’ve heard that expression. It couldn’t be truer than in the negotiation environment, so play the clock well, and you’ll end up a winner!

Article Source: http://www.new.citynewslive.com

Best-selling author of 12 books and more than 1,000 articles, Dr. Gary S. Goodman is considered "The Gold Standard" in negotiation, sales development, customer service, and telephone effectiveness. Top-rated as a speaker, seminar leader, and consultant, his clients extend across the globe and the organizational spectrum, from the Fortune 1000 to small businesses. He can be reached at: gary@customersatisfaction.com.

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