A recent article about SaaS (software as a service) application contracts describes the vendor/customer relationship as “more like marriages than experimental flings. This analogy caught my eye because it highlights the need to tailor your negotiation approach.
When negotiating deals involving future professional relationships and more than a few negotiation issues, it’s more effective to employ problem-solving strategies such as sharing information liberally, deemphasizing your leverage and relying on independent standards like market value and precedent. Such strategies can be very effective in complex business negotiations involving strong future relationships between the parties (and in family negotiations as well).
Of course, it’s also critical to evaluate your counterpart’s willingness to reciprocate and also use problem-solving strategies. If they choose a more competitive approach in which they reluctantly share strategic information, aggressively use their leverage and won’t rely on objectively fair standards, adjust your strategy accordingly.
Critically, ExpertNegotiator Planning & Management Software helps you evaluate which strategy to implement and explores this in more depth. To check out this feature and many others, sign up for a free trial today.