Trading concessions

Trade instead of giving: if you…, then we… Lesson 49 of 58: Negotiation, CEFR C1.

Never give, always trade

Every concession should get something back. Use the conditional: “If you…, then we…”, always with the condition first: “If you can commit to two years, we can reduce the price by 5%.” Starting with the condition stops the concession being taken alone.
If you can pay upfront, we could offer a 3% discount.
If we extend the deadline, would you be able to increase the order?

Negotiate the whole deal, not one item at a time. If price is agreed first, there is nothing left to trade for the rest. “Let’s look at price, timing and payment terms together.” Hypotheticals keep it safe: “What if we were able to…? Would that…?”
Make concessions smaller and slower as you go: 5%, then 2%, then 0.5%. It signals that you are near your limit.
Let’s put everything on the table and look at the package.
What if we were able to deliver a week earlier? Would that change anything on price? (A hypothetical)
Tip: Do not split the difference just because it feels fair: it rewards whoever anchored more extremely.

The best trades give the other side something worth a lot to them and little to you: payment in instalments, a longer contract, a reference case study, training, faster delivery, a later start date. Ask: “What else could we include that would make this work for you?”
We could include training at no extra cost, if…
Would a longer contract be of interest?

Role-play the middle of a negotiation (a job offer, a service contract): the other side asks for three things. Answer each with a conditional trade, propose looking at the whole package, and make your concessions shrink.
I put the condition first every time
I never gave anything without getting something
I proposed a package
My concessions got smaller

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