5.6 Negotiations – Clinching the deal

Clinching the deal

In this lesson, we will be looking at:

• some aggressive negotiation tactics, and ways to deal with them;
• to analyse an example of the closing stage of a negotiation;
• some useful phrases for reaching an agreement and clinching a deal.

Words & Phrases

• Tenacity and stubbornness are effectively the same, describing somebody who doesn’t give up. The only difference is that tenacity is seen as a positive characteristic, while stubbornness is seen as negative.
• If you are accommodating, you try to fit in with what other people want.
• A bluff is a type of trick, where you pretend to be in a stronger position than you really are. The other person usually has no way of checking how strong your position really is. If you call someone’s bluff, you guess that they are bluffing and force them to reveal their position – which often means revealing that they were lying.
• If you dig your heels in, you refuse to make any concessions.
• If you throw a spanner in the works, you spoil a situation that was working well, by adding a major complication.

Exercise 1.

Are you a hard-nosed or a soft-touch negotiator?

Write down your answers to the following questions and send them to us in the Assignments section below.

1. What is your goal in a negotiation? a. To reach an agreement, no matter what. / b. To win, no matter what. / c. Something else. (What?)
2. Which of these adjectives best describes you during a negotiation? Choose up to three. a. tenacious / b. flexible / c. generous / d. weak / e. stubborn / f. aggressive / g. helpful / h. accommodating / i. patient / j. cautious / k. creative / l. spontaneous
3. Which of these nouns would you use to describe your opposite number in the negotiation? a. enemy / b. partner / c. adversary / d. opponent / e. counterpart / f. friend
4. You’re in an important negotiation which you desperately want to work. At one point, your opposite number threatens to end the negotiation if you don’t concede a big point. You’ve tried being flexible, but nothing seems to work. It’s all or nothing. What do you do? a. Make the concession. / b. Call his bluff – walk away yourself. / c. Something else. (What?)
5. You’ve reached deadlock. You know your opponent needs to get a deal signed today, but she won’t accept your final offer. What do you do? a. Dig your heels in. Let her find a way out of this. / b. Make a concession. / c. Something else. (What?)
6. In her opening statement, your potential client has said she can’t pay more than $100 per unit, which surprised you. You were planning to start your asking price at $100 and would have settled for as little as £80. What do you do? a. Accept the £100 immediately. / b. Ask for £120, and be prepared to give the £20 away later in the negotiation. / c. Something else. (What?)
7. You’ve finally reached agreement on all the key points. But just as you’re ready to sign the deal, your counterpart throws a spanner in the works: he wants to delay the start date by a month. It’s not a disaster for you, but it’s certainly not convenient. What do you do? a. Accept the new terms – you don’t want to throw away all you’ve agreed. / b. Go back to the beginning and try to negotiate a solution. / c. Something else. (What?)

Exercise 2.

Now read the text about negotiations below in Lesson Materials (“Clinching the deal”). Do questions 1 to 10 in the quiz. Are the statements in questions 1 – 10 in the quiz (above) true or false? Why? Write the reasons for your answers in your exercise book and check them in the Business English Space.

Exercise 3.

Dialogues

Read four extracts (See “Clinching – Exercise 3” below in Materials) from the later stages of a negotiation between a franchisor (a chain of small grocery shops) and a potential franchisee. What exactly do they agree? Check your answer HERE.

Exercise 3.

Read the PDF “Clinching – Exercise 3” above (in Materials) and answer the following questions: Write your answers in your exercise book and compare them to the answers in “Clinching – Discussion Answers” in Materials above.

Extract 1

1. At the beginning, the franchisee says ‘I think we could accept that’. What exactly is she accepting?

2. Why does the franchisee repeat the figures?

Extract 2

3. What do the two parties reveal about their positions with regard to the non-compete clause?

4. How do the two parties show that their proposals are flexible?

5. How does the franchisor show that the franchisee’s suggestion is unacceptable?

6. Why is the franchisee surprised that the franchisor mentioned the notice period?

7. Which party comes closest to brinksmanship here?

8. How do they avoid ending the negotiation?

Extract 3

9. How does the franchisee introduce her creative solution?

10. How does the franchisor express that there is a deal to be clinched without actually accepting the offer?

11. Why doesn’t the franchisor agree straight away?

Extract 4

12. Why do you think the franchisor pointed out that the franchisee drives a hard bargain?

Check your answers in “Clinching – Discussion answers” in Materials above.

Exercise 4.

Go to Business English Space and study the useful phrases and words on negotiations.

Exercise 5.

You are going to imagine the final stages of a negotiation between a franchisor (a coffee store chain) and a potential franchisor. Most of the terms have already been agreed, and both sides have already shown some flexibility in the four remaining variables. The chart shows their latest positions.

Both sides are very keen to make this negotiation work, and to build a good, strong relationship.

Plan your strategy for the final stages of the negotiation. Try to clinch a deal that is good for both sides!

Write your strategy down for 1 item from the 8 listed below and send them to us in the Assignments section below. Before you begin, you should spend around five minutes planning your best strategies: your BATNA (Best Alternative to Negotiated Agreement), your reservation points, the relative value of the various factors, opportunities for creative solutions, etc., based on the information on the item you’ve chosen.

Try to use the phrases and techniques from this lesson, and remember that both parties are keen to reach a deal. Feedback will be given on all submitted strategies.