How to Negotiate a Better Deal

Some folks don’t know how to negotiate a better deal. It can be a bit intimidating, but it can add some fun to your frugal living adventure.

Relax, give it a whirl and see how you do. You have to develop your own style, something that you feel comfortable with.

Every situation calls for a different approach, but some elements are practically universal.

You never know when an opportunity for bargaining will present itself, so be prepared.

Here are the basic concepts of how to negotiate when it comes to making a purchase.

• Negotiations are done based on interests - yours and theirs. Know how interested a seller is in selling. Use this to your advantage. Keep quite about your keen interest in buying.

• The seller wins by getting money and getting rid of what he has to sell. It doesn't have to be a big win, but it has to be worthwhile. You have to win by taking home the goods you want.

• Try to be the only game in town. It's easier to win that way, and it heightens the seller's interest in selling to you.

• Know your limits. Don't get wrapped up in making a purchase to the point where you're offering more than the true value of the item. Know when to say when, and have that figured out before you start negotiating.

• Know the true value of the item - to you and to the seller. More value to the seller means a more difficult negotiation. Less value to the seller means it will likely be easier for you to get a lower price.

• Make the seller invest time with you. More time invested means the seller will be less likely to let you walk away without making a sale. This is to your advantage.

• Seek information, it's a key to just about everything. Is the seller desperate, in need of cash, under a time constraint, ready to relocate, or splitting up a household? Information such as this is in your favor. If you don't know how to gather information, you can't possibly know how to negotiate effectively.

• Have a conversation to become acquainted with the product and gain information sufficient to make a good negotiation. A conversation shows interest, but no commitment to buy. The seller might be motivated to move you from conversation to commitment, so use that to your advantage.

• Be direct about questions, pricing and condition of the goods.

• Be polite with the seller. Torquing someone off isn't in your best interest.

• Know when to walk away. Anything that is unreasonable, suspicious or false about the situation needs to be resolved before you make a purchase. When in doubt, walk away.

• Don't negotiate with yourself. Wait for a response to an offer before you make another offer.

• Be serious if you make an offer. If it's accepted, pay for the item. Squirming around after your offer is accepted will likely shut down the deal, because it show a lack of integrity.

Well, those are some of the basics of how to negotiate. You'll need to study some of the examples in the text links to formulate your own approach to haggling with others. As with anything else, practice will help make you a better negotiator when it comes to making a purchase.

Done with How to Negotiate, take me back to Frugal Shopping