Jack Cotton Blog

Recognize These Tactics

Posted by Jack on Sep 25, 2018 | One Comment

Let’s talk about some negotiation tactics.

Not all of them are totally ethical and above board. I want to share what they are so that you can recognize when they’re being used against you.

The most important thing when we talk about negotiation tactics, especially dirty tricks, is to separate the people from the tactic. Share on X

Wince. Some people are really good at this and it can really be intimidating, especially when you’re dealing with them one on one. When you give a price opinion, your marketing plan, your commission charge, or your marketing fee charge, they make a winced look. You may want to start to get defensive and backtrack, but you just have to smile and recognize it for what it is. It is a tactic. Don’t let it work on you.

Silence. There’s a quote I read once from Time Magazine, “Never forget the power of silence, that massively disconcerting pause that goes on and on and may at last induce the opponent to babble and backtrack nervously”. Don’t babble and backtrack nervously. Just sit there and smile.

The Good Guy, Bad Guy Routine. A lot of couples use this. Most people in Real Estate aren’t that versed and practiced in it, so they do it better when it’s over the phone or when the other person isn’t there. The best way to overcome this in Luxury Real Estate is to always have all parties present when doing a transaction such as negotiating or presenting with them and to them.

Limited Authority. This one cracks me up because husbands do this all the time. When it’s time to negotiate, they’ll always blame the spouse. So again, having all parties present is the best way to overcome that.

Bottom line – don’t use dirty tricks, but certainly recognize them. When they are used on you out of the blue, they can be intimidating and they can get you to do things you would not otherwise ordinarily do. Don’t be intimidated by them, just recognize them.