Eight Steps To Success In Negotiating - importance of business negotiating

Nation's Business, April, 1999 by Janine S. Pouliot

Janine S. Pouliot is a free-lance writer in Green Bay, Wis.

Taking the time to (earn deal-making skills before you enter business talks is the best way to arrive at a successful conclusion.

Steven Schussler started negotiating from a position of weakness with the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., about opening his brainchild, Rain Forest Cafe.

"I was negotiating from deep under," he concedes. His once highly successful themed restaurant, JukeBox Saturday Night in Minneapolis, was bankrupt, and when he approached the Mall of America in 1992 seeking space to open his new restaurant and retail store, he was starting from scratch.

Schussler also realized that his new idea was unconventional. He wanted to create an experience that simulated a rain forest--with blasts of cool mist, lightning and thunder, banyan trees, trumpeting elephants, and the aroma of tropical flora. He knew it wouldn't be an easy sell.

To create inroads, Schussler implemented one of the cardinal rules of successful negotiating: He got to know everyone connected with the party he would face in the negotiations.

"It took 2 1/2 years, but I developed a relationship with the family, friends, and business associates of the individuals with whom I was negotiating," says Schussler. "That's important because people are easily influenced by those around them."

Schussler's instincts paid off. Today, Rain Forest Cafe has 29 locations around the world and has won more than a dozen awards for originality and innovation. And Schussler's success can be attributed largely to a sound understanding of the basic steps to winning negotiations.

Skills For Modern Times

Good negotiating skills are particularly important in today's volatile business environment, says Kare Anderson, president of The Compelling Communication Group, a research, licensing, and marketing firm in Sausalito, Calif.

"We live in a time-starved culture," says Anderson, who is also the author of several books, including Resolving Conflict Sooner (The Crossing Press, $10).

"Americans are the least likely to plan ahead. We're very impulsive because we're trying to get more done faster. As a result, we get into conflict sooner. We end up making agreements that don't stick."

Anderson says that taking a slower approach in order to understand the elements of successful negotiating can ultimately save time and produce better results.

Sanford Jaffe, an attorney and mediator at the Rutgers University Center for Negotiation and Conflict Resolution in New Brunswick, N.J., notes: "There's also been a subtle shift away from litigation and the courts to use negotiation to resolve conflict.

"Business people have learned that it's very expensive to enter into litigation. And it takes a lot of time away from running the business," adds Jaffe, who is also a professor at Rutgers' Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy.

Consequently, employing the right negotiating tactics is more important than ever. Following are eight fundamental steps to winning at the negotiating game, culled from business people and experts in the field:

1. Take stock of your weaknesses.

Not everyone is born a great negotiator. In fact, most people don't have a clue about how to get what they want--other than to make demands and dig in their heels.

"People let [negotiations] get away from them because they haven't figured out ahead of time how to handle problems," says Jaffe. "They resort to using emotion instead."

Before you're faced with a negotiation, take time to learn the basics. One way to do that is to sign up for a reputable training session. Many trade and business organizations, colleges and universities, and private consulting firms run seminars on negotiating.

In addition, there are dozens of books on the market covering this topic.

2. Determine your bottom-line goal.

"It's a lot easier to deal with a jerk who knows what they want than a nice person who doesn't," says Anderson.

She adds that many people get confused over the number of issues introduced in a negotiation and lose sight of their bottom line.

Before you can negotiate effectively, you have to identify the one thing you must come away with. "Not five or 10 things," Anderson says. "It's got to be one tangible, concrete objective. If you can't tell whether or not your goal has [been achieved], then it's not solid enough."

Paul Geffner, co-founder and former owner of Captain Video, a California video-store chain, and founder and owner of Escape From New York Pizza, a restaurant chain based in San Francisco, says, "I always prioritize [in a negotiation] so I know what the one or two deal-breakers are."

Before he starts negotiating with suppliers, banks, and others, Geffner determines which issues he would back down on to achieve his main objective.

For instance, he says, "I'll never sign a lease where the landlord gets a percentage of the gross. If I'm working hard, why should they get a portion of my success? But I'll compromise on a rent increase based on the Consumer Price Index."