It's the final meeting, and you're about to close your biggest deal.
You've conducted the product demo, answered any question that has come your way, and continued to make convincing points which put you in a promising position.
You're doing well. At least that's what you think.
Business negotiations are fragile. It's easier said than done. There's a lot going on and stakes are high. This is especially true, when put in the context of Malaysia.
Malaysia is a melting pot of different cultures and ethnicities. Malaysians are brought up with different beliefs and standards that it is hard to put a nail on any single method that would work for everyone.
Here are some tips from us to increase your odds of success during any negotiation in Malaysia because of our understanding and experience of the cultural diversity in this country.
Here are 6 tactics to help you to negotiate successfully in Malaysia:
1. Make it into a conversation
Turn the tables: It should be about interests and objectives.
Making it into a conversation is active listening. A conversation about interests and objectives helps you to not just understand requirements, but also identify areas of value to your customer.
You learn which features matter most and which don't. This effectively positions your proposition to the decision maker and enables you to put your best foot forward.
Some questions you can ask are:
- Can you share with me what is important to you in any solution we provide for you? For example "frequent progress updates is important to ensure project timelines".
- Which is most important to you?
It's important to prompt for a specific response, because this will help you form a more accurate proposal.
For example: When receiving a general response, "timeliness is important to us" try to gain more information such as "Timeliness is an issue for us as we need to ensure Marketing is given enough time to prepare and our customers expectations are managed. We don't want to get into a farce where we have made an announcement to our customers, only for us not to deliver."
2. Don't be the 1st to propose
When negotiating, you rarely want to go first. You don't want to give more information without getting much back in return.
You can avoid this by asking if there is a budget that they have in mind or what were their previous experiences with solutions similar to the one you are offering.
Validating first before proposing allows you to work around situations:
- Tactic when the cost you're proposing is more than their expectations: Demonstration of value which other similar companies have received through your claims.
- Tactic to counter Objections: Find the reason why. The additional information will help you to counter with solutions which match their interests.
- Tactic when a Quotation is requested: If you've covered adequate ground (understood ROIs, buying cycles, budget constraints, logistical requirements, etc.), all you have to do is ask for the business.
3. Have your customer propose
*Only try this after you have clearly presented the value of your solution. If you skip presenting the value of your solution, any proposition you have will always be too expensive.
Sometimes people resist your advances.
If you are faced with this situation, don't be afraid to ask the customer for their opinion. You could ask, " What would a proposal they would sign off on look like? ".
If what they offer is beyond you on cost, let the customer know right away and immediately make a counter offer. This puts you in a better position and allows you to manage your customers expectations.
4. Find the middle ground
*Do this only if your margin allows for it
When negotiations seem to hit a speed bump, consider splitting the difference.
This cuts through the noise in any price negotiations, and it helps you jump to the middle between you and your customer's valuation.
Be careful when employing this, because this would only make sense if both parties are losing ground equally.
5. Build an agreement early
There's plenty to discuss, and you've already identified the points that matter most to your customer. It should be relatively easy for you to build an agreement on smaller issues that have less friction.
This might seem counterintuitive, but building an agreement early on helps you to set the tone as you build towards more sensitive topics.
Build rapport with your customer and paint that you are someone that is willing to work with them and can establish the link-and-trade early on into the conversation. This will help you to build momentum as you move later into the negotiation stage.
Keep track of your negotiation topics and establish reliable communications.
Do it with professional email.
Comes with anti-spam filters so you don't have pesky email to clutter your important deals.
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*Fact: 86% of business professionals choose email as their number 1 choice when it comes to managing their communications.
