“Those who lack secrets to successful negotiation planning plan its failure.” -Greg Williams, The Master Negotiator & Body Language Expert
“7 Best Need-To-Know Secrets
How To Plan Successful Negotiations”
Are you aware of the secrets to planning successful negotiations? Creating a plan for success is vital if that is what you seek from a negotiation.
To improve your negotiation efforts, use the seven best need-to-know secrets that will lead to more successful outcomes.
Step 1: Research
Research is the foundation for planning success. The better you engage it, the greater the probability of your success.
In the research phase, consider what you will concede to reach your goals. Assess the same of the opposition by understanding their background, the mindset they may possess during negotiation, their strengths and weaknesses, interests, and priorities. Anticipate how they may react to your tactics – where they may compromise or dig in their heels.
To gather information about your opponent, scour the internet for information on their social media feeds, work environment, and personal activities. Doing that allows you to assemble a better profile of them while uncovering potential leverage points.
Step 2: Identify/Prioritize Interests
Effectively identifying and prioritizing the interests of the negotiation parties is essential for a successful outcome. Once you have collected the appropriate information, identify and prioritize your interests and those of the other party. That entails understanding what you and they hope to achieve from the negotiation and where compromise might occur.
Once you discover the opponent’s prior negotiation prioritizations, you will uncover their tactics and how they arrange their use. From there, prioritize your tactics to combat theirs.
For example – if you discover the opposition states they need to refer to a document they do not have before continuing as a stalling tactic, thwart their effort by saying, upfront, that you are aware they have used that ploy in the past and will consider it an affront if they attempt to use it with you. You will have disarmed them of that tactic, causing them to reprioritize others they might use. Wash, rinse, repeat.
Step 3: Create Specific Goals/Objectives
After identifying and prioritizing your interests, create your goals/objectives. The more specific you are about them, the more precise your plan and its implementation will become.
To assess how well you achieve your objectives during the negotiation, make them measurable in this stage; then, compare them to where you thought you would be versus where you are during the talks. That will indicate when to exit if you must do so before reaching a successful conclusion.
Step 4: Develop Tactics and Strategies
Once you have created your goals/objectives, determine the tactics that will make up your strategy(s). Tactics are components within your plan; you can use the same tactics to compose different strategies. In some negotiations, you may want to develop multiple strategies to deal with an opponent who switches negotiation styles.
Consider a few of the following tactics to accomplish your needs.
1. Framing – Framing is the process by which the negotiators agree to a process that will guide their negotiation. It can also be the beginning point per how either will anchor the other to points that would advantage that negotiator. Thus, be aware of what occurs during the framing stage of a negotiation if you employ this tactic or if the opposition employs it against you.
2. Anchoring – Anchoring can establish the boundaries by which negotiators set their expectations of each other. Be mindful that when negotiators set anchoring points, they do so for a time before they become reset. A skillful negotiator can outmaneuver a less-skilled one.
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3. Concession – Determine how you will make concessions and what you will request in return. Do not make them too quickly. That could set a tone announcing that you are willing to make more. Also, allow the other negotiator to feel they earned what you conceded. They will appreciate it more.
Step 5: Addressing Possible Obstacles By Contingency Planning
No matter how well you plan your negotiation, something unexpected may occur. Thus, the better you prepare contingencies for unforeseen occurrences, the more likely you will address them successfully when they arise.
To be proactive, consider scenarios that might lead to surprises; ask stakeholders to assist in your thought process. Plan how you will address such circumstances and the resources you might require. Being prepared will help you keep the negotiation on track and avoid dangerous impasses.
Step 6: Body Language Consideration
Reading the opposition’s body language allows you insight into their thoughts – some of which they may not wish to disclose. Gleaning those insights will enable you to switch strategies if such is called for or employ a different tactic at strategic points in the talks.
In particular, observe signs that indicate possible nervousness (e.g., rubbing hands, touching the face, pulling away from the table, pressing lips tightly together, etc.). Other gestures to observe are facial expressions – happy broad smiles, sad protracted frowns. Such gestures signal the thoughts of the opposition based on what you will be discussing. They will also be an indication of what the opposition thinks of them. In so doing, they will signal the direction to take in the negotiation.
When planning your negotiation, assess the body language signs you will observe and be aware of them during your talks.
Step 7: Postmortem Negotiation Planning
Every negotiation offers lessons for those to come. When you plan your negotiation, include how you will assess the outcome – how your plans unfolded, what occurred that was unexpected, how you addressed it, and what you learned during the engagement. There are invaluable lessons in negotiation postmortems. Do not neglect them.
Reflection
Your negotiation can be easy or difficult. The determining factor is how well you plan. Employ the seven steps mentioned. They will lead you to successful negotiations. And everything will be right with the world.
Remember, you’re always negotiating!
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