In the business world, effective business communication is needed. Therefore, business people should have some communication skills that can help them build professional business relationships with other business people and achieve their desired goals. One of the communication skills needed by business people is the ability to negotiate while understanding how to communicate in negotiations and how to communicate well .
Definition
The word negotiation comes from the Latin word ” negotiaari” which means “to trade or do business”. The word negotiaari itself comes from the verb “negare” which means “to reject” or “deny” and the noun “otium” which means “leisure”.
Meanwhile, negotiation according to the Indonesian Basar Dictionary Online is a bargaining process by negotiating to reach a mutual agreement between one party (group or organization) and another party (group or organization). In addition, negotiation is also interpreted as a peaceful resolution of disputes through negotiations between disputing parties.
From the above understanding and referring to the theory of negotiation it can be said that negotiation is a process in which two or three parties with different needs and goals to discuss a problem to find a joint solution.
In business, good negotiations can support business success because through negotiations business people build better relationships, negotiations offer long-term solutions that satisfy all parties, and negotiations can avoid future problems and conflicts.
Considering how important the role of negotiations is in supporting business success, business people are required to have negotiation skills or negotiation techniques to deal with informal interactions in everyday business and formal transactions such as sales, services, and other business contracts.
As for some negotiation techniques in business communication that need to be mastered by business people include:
- Preparation
Before negotiating, it is better to do some preparation first. This preparation includes the formulation of negotiation objectives.
The purpose of the negotiation can be known through analyzing the situation, knowing and understanding what is needed and desired through negotiation, knowing and understanding the concessions that will be given to other parties, considering the concessions that will be requested from other parties, and knowing what will be done if an agreement is not reached.
- Maintain personal integrity and build social relationships
In business negotiations, things that need to be considered are knowing or knowing other parties and helping them to feel comfortable.
Building relationships with negotiating parties is very important to understand the reasons why they are very important in business. Good business relationships are built through credibility, trust and respect between the negotiating parties.
- Be patient
The next negotiation technique in business communication is to be patient. Patience is very necessary during the negotiation process because in general the negotiation process requires a long time to reach a win-win solution .
This is clearly seen in the process of international business negotiations. The time needed to negotiate international business is very long and even tiring.
Therefore, each party that negotiates should mobilize all available resources, be in a good mood and be patient because this can increase confidence to achieve the best results.
- Communicate ideas or ideas that are polite, concise, concise, clear
Negotiators should convey ideas or ideas politely, briefly, concisely, and clearly. The types of information relating to an idea or ideas to be conveyed to other parties must be reviewed and explored through various studies.
This is so that if later the other party feels doubt or does not understand what is meant by the negotiator, the negotiator can provide a complete explanation based on factual data that can be justified.
- Put yourself in the other party’s shoes
People tend to look for information that is in accordance with what is believed and ignore information that is contrary to what is believed.
For this reason, the negotiator needs to empathize with the other party’s perspective without having to sacrifice the negotiator’s position. Negotiators need to be open to the other party’s point of view and try to understand the problem from the other’s point of view.
- Explain the position of the negotiator
After trying to understand the problem from the other party’s point of view, it’s time for the negotiator to explain his position or point of view about the problem clearly and comprehensively. The position in question is a negotiator’s statement about how to deal with a problem or a proposed way to overcome a problem.
- Active listening
One way to achieve communication in a business environment is to listen actively. A negotiator must learn to listen not only with ears but also with eyes. Because, in general, everyone involved in the communication process, especially negotiations will convey a lot of messages through nonverbal communication compared with verbal communication.
For this reason, a negotiator must be able to interpret precisely what is not said compared to what is said by other parties. In addition, the negotiator must also be careful with the nonverbal communication that he conveys to the parties to avoid misunderstanding.
- Ask a lot
The next negotiation technique in business communication is asking lots of questions. In the business negotiation process, the negotiator needs to give lots of questions to other parties is very important. He must be confident and realize that the other party will not offer anything unless asked. Therefore, negotiators need to ask lots or ask questions openly in order to obtain measurable information.
- Pay attention to the right time
Time is very important in every negotiation. To that end, negotiators must be observant and know what will be delivered and when the right time to deliver the message. There are times when negotiators will put pressure on others, but there are times when negotiators must wait.
- Implement assertive communication
One type of negotiator in business communication is assertive type. Assertive type negotiators generally use assertive communication styles during the negotiation process.
What is meant by an assertive communication style is a communication style that is characterized by one’s ability to listen and see the other person’s point of view with full respect and uphold the ethics of business communication .
Through assertive communication styles, a person can express himself well and still respect the rights of others. The nature of assertive communication includes listening to others without interruption, stating their needs and desires clearly, and making eye contact well. In business negotiations, the use of assertive communication can increase the chances of successful negotiations.
- Anticipate compromise
The next negotiation technique in business communication is to anticipate possible compromises. Compromise is to find a middle ground that exists between two existing positions. Compromise provides an opportunity for not achieving what is desired by each party.
Conversely, negotiation is the process of getting what they want. If during the negotiation process both parties do not get what they want, then the thing that can be done by both parties is to plan and make concessions.
It is better not to accept the concessions offered at first. Although the concessions offered look better than expected, the concession offered should be politely rejected.
- Think about and prepare the best alternative
In the negotiation process, sometimes all parties do not get what they want. Therefore, negotiators need to think about and prepare the best alternative if their desires and goals are not achieved.
The various alternatives available are very beneficial for negotiators because they can compare each alternative. In addition to thinking about and preparing the best alternative, the negotiator must also consider if the negotiations have failed. If negotiations fail, the negotiator must consider what will happen with the other party if an agreement is not reached.
- Thinking of leaving the negotiation process
The next negotiation technique in business communication is thinking of leaving the ongoing negotiation process. This technique is used if the negotiation is deemed not to produce any agreement. In a sense, no one party wins or loses in the negotiation process.
If this happens, the best way is to leave the negotiation process and try to find other parties who might agree. Thinking and behaving to leave the negotiation process might seem like a loss.
However, the reality is not the case. At times, this needs to be done in the business negotiation process in order to avoid far greater sacrifices. For this reason, before negotiating, it is good for each party to include this technique in business negotiation strategies to avoid unwanted agreements.
- Trust and believe there is always a solution
The next negotiation technique in business communication is to have a sense of trust and confidence that there is always a solution for every problem encountered. In the negotiation process, this trust and confidence is very necessary so that the negotiation process can run smoothly and reach the best solution. Conversely, if both parties think there is no solution to the problem at hand, then no solution will be achieved.
- Adjust to other party negotiation strategies
The biggest obstacles to achieving effective negotiations are a lack of trust, cultural differences and gender differences, communication problems, and strength differences during the negotiation process. In business communication, especially cross-cultural business communication , it is important for both parties not to make assumptions about something to avoid stereotyping.
In order not to make arbitrary assumptions, there is one technique that can be applied, which is to adjust to the negotiation strategies launched by other parties. This adjustment was made after conducting some valid and accountable research.
Each party needs to plan how they will start negotiations. Negotiators should avoid talking about politics or religion or other things that are considered taboo in the environment in which they negotiate.
Benefits of Learning Negotiation Techniques in Business Communication
Learning negotiation techniques in business communication can provide several benefits, including:
- We can know and understand the meaning of negotiation.
- We can know and understand some negotiation techniques in business communication
Thus a brief review of negotiation techniques in business communication. Hopefully it can broaden our horizons and knowledge about negotiations and some negotiation techniques in business communication.
