If you’ve travelled to other countries, you’ll know that they love to haggle and negotiate. In fact, merchants in other parts of the world might be offended if you don’t try to negotiate with them. However, most of us who are stateside believe that asking for a better deal is reserved for used car purchases and garage sales. It’s rare to hear someone say, “I love to negotiate and haggle over prices!” even if they use coupons and online discount codes. However, we’re leaving money on the table when we don’t come right out and ask for a better deal. Before I enlighten you with some easy-to-use negotiation tips, I first need to counter a few myths.
“Negotiating is conflict.” Somehow, as a culture, we’ve framed negotiating as a combat sport, which it isn’t. Negotiating is simply asking for a better value than what’s offered on the price tag.
“When you negotiate, there’s a winner and a loser.” It is possible for both parties to feel good about the deal! We’ll talk about how to create a win-win deal.
“Negotiating is hard. It’s just easier to shop around for the best price.” Once you know the basics, negotiating is easy! In fact, you might even grow to like it. Plus, time is money! Who wants to spend all day driving around, wasting gas, to different stores to score a deal?
Negotiating is simply asking for a better price, or for additional benefits and features. Here’s how to ask:
“Is this price firm?” If the answer is yes, then you know the sales person isn’t open to offering you a better deal.
“When will this item go on sale?” If it’s in a few days, they may be able to give you the discount now, or hold the item for you until the sale starts.
“Are there any coupons available?” I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how many times the salesperson will reach behind the counter and pull out a coupon for me to use. They may also tell you there is one on the website, which you can pull up on your smart phone and scan for a discount.
“If I pay cash, is there a discount?” Many businesses are offering cash discounts due to rising credit card processing fees.
“If you’re not able to come down on the price, what else can you do for me?” Sometimes you can get the salesperson to throw in free delivery or accessories for your purchase if they won’t budge on the price.
I encourage you to try one of these negotiating techniques in the next week or two and see what happens! You might be surprised how open sellers are to giving you a better deal. If you don’t ask for a discount, the answer is already “NO.” You have nothing to lose by asking!
Christine Luken is the Financial Lifeguard and a veteran Meal Planner. She helps individuals, families, and entrepreneurs design a financial road map to help them arrive at their Preferred Financial Destination. You can find Christine’s blogs, podcasts, and videos on her Financial Lifeguard website and her Meal Planning Monday blog.