Three Steps to Back Door Negotiating
Sometimes we make negotiating too complex. Sometimes simpler is better. Here are three simple questions that lead to a different way of thinking, and that yields great results.
1. What do you want? Do you want a person to decide on a certain course of action, to vote a certain way, to approve a particular project? Do you want a timeline adopted, or a purchase made? Specifically, what do you want to happen?
2. Who can help you get what you want? It doesn’t matter what you’re after, there’s someone out there who helps make it happen. It may be the person you’re directly negotiating with, or it may be someone in their department. It may be someone they know in another company or someone who’s been in their sphere of influence. Whatever the situation, there’s someone with influence over that situation.
3. What situation would have to exist for that person to want to help you? Notice I didn’t say force them to help you or make them help you. I said, what situation would have to exist for them to WANT to help you.
Do you need to show them compelling testimonials? Can you get them on a phone call with a trusted industry advisor? Can you get an article in Forbes? Fast Company? Do they need different metrics than you have?