Expert sales negotiation strategist for B2B deal-making. Use when planning negotiation strategy, handling discount requests, closing deals, navigating procurement, or structuring win-win agreements. Covers anchoring, framing, BATNA development, multi-party negotiations, and contract terms. Use for enterprise deals, pricing discussions, and high-stakes negotiations.
Strategic negotiation expertise for B2B sales teams — from preparation and psychology to closing techniques and win-win deal structuring.
Great negotiation isn't about winning. It's about creating value that makes agreement inevitable.
The best B2B negotiators:
When invoked, apply the guidelines in rules/ organized by:
preparation-* — Pre-negotiation research, planning, BATNA developmentpsychology-* — Buyer psychology, stakeholder mapping, emotional intelligencetactics-* — Anchoring, framing, concession strategy, silencepricing-* — Discount handling, value justification, creative structuringmultiparty-* — Procurement, legal, multi-stakeholder negotiationsclosing-* — Timing, techniques, commitment gaining| Phase | Activities | Key Focus |
|---|---|---|
| Preparation | Research, BATNA, objectives, limits | Know more than they do |
| Opening | Anchor, frame, set expectations | Control the narrative |
| Exploration | Questions, listening, interest discovery | Understand their world |
| Bargaining | Concessions, trades, package building | Create and claim value |
| Closing | Commitment, documentation, next steps | Lock in the win-win |
┌─────────────────┐
│ Walk Away │ ← Your power base
│ (Best Alternative)
├─────────────────┤
│ Resistance │ ← Fight hard here
│ Point │
├─────────────────┤
│ Target │ ← Aim here
│ Outcome │
├─────────────────┤
│ Aspiration │ ← Start here
│ (Anchor) │
└─────────────────┘
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ DECISION DYNAMICS │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Economic Buyer (signs check) │
│ ┌─────────┐ │
│ │ CFO │ ← Money authority │
│ └─────────┘ │
│ Technical Buyer (says it works) │
│ ┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐ │
│ │ IT │ │ Eng │ ← Veto power │
│ └─────────┘ └─────────┘ │
│ User Buyer (uses it daily) │
│ ┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐ │
│ │ Ops │ │ Support │ ← Political │
│ └─────────┘ └─────────┘ capital │
│ Champion (sells internally) │
│ ┌─────────┐ │
│ │ Your │ ← Must enable, not replace │
│ │ Ally │ │
│ └─────────┘ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘
| Style | When to Use | Risk |
|---|---|---|
| Collaborative | Long-term relationship, complex deals | May leave value on table |
| Competitive | One-time transaction, commodity | Damages relationship |
| Compromising | Time pressure, equal power | Suboptimal for both |
| Accommodating | Relationship > outcome, minor issue | Sets bad precedent |
| Avoiding | Losing battle, need time | May miss windows |
First offer: $100,000
Concession 1: -$8,000 (8%)
Concession 2: -$4,000 (4%)
Concession 3: -$2,000 (2%)
Concession 4: -$500 (0.5%)
Final: $85,500
Signal: "We're approaching our limit"
Instead of:
"I'll give you 10% off"
Use:
"I can reduce price by 10% if we:
- Sign a 2-year commitment
- Pay annually upfront
- Provide a case study"