After you have planned a negotiation, you are ready to bargain. Face-to-face negotiations are generally preferred because you can see (read) the other person’s nonverbal behavior and better understand objections.

Step 1: Develop Rapport (Read the person). Smile and call other parties by name as you greet them. Start developing trust and a buy-in relationship. Some people like to get right down to business, while others want to get to know you before discussing business. Read their style and try to match it.

Step 2: Let the Other Party Make the First Offer. Without setting objectives in preparation for bargaining, how do you know if an offer is any good? With objectives in mind, you have the advantage because if the other party offers you more than your opening and target objective, you can close the agreement.

Step 3: Listen and Ask Questions to Focus on Meeting the Other Party’s Needs. Listen with empathy during bargaining, especially when you are in conflict. This is your opportunity to give your prepared answers to the objections while focusing on the other party’s needs.

Steps 4 and 5: Don’t Be Too Quick to Give in, and Ask for Something in Return. Those who ask for more get more. If you’ve planned, you have developed options and you have trade-offs ready.

If others know you are desperate, or just weak, and will accept a low agreement, they will likely take advantage of you. Have you ever seen someone’s sign on a product saying, “Must sell, need cash bad”? What type of price do you think such a person gets? You also need to avoid being intimidated by aggressive tactics.

When you are involved with a complex deal, with trade-offs, be willing to be the first to make a concession. Concessions tend to be reciprocated and to lead to agreements. The other party tends to feel obligated, and then you can come back with a counter trade-off that is larger than the one you gave up.