Regardless of your place in the business world, there’s one skill that often stands high above the rest: negotiation. Negotiation skills come with both immediate and long-term benefits, helping employees and leaders shape the future of their companies in sales, as well as throughout other facets of business, including client onboarding and retention.
Negotiation Beyond the Boardroom
When you picture a negotiation, the image that likely springs to mind is two business leaders hashing out a deal across a polished boardroom table. However, the art of negotiation goes well beyond the boardroom and plays an important role in several other areas:
- Relationship building: Strong negotiation can foster mutual respect and help pave the way for long-lasting relationships with clients and business partners.
- Collaboration: Understanding and addressing different perspectives is a big part of negotiation and helps business leaders bring teams together to work cohesively.
- Driving growth: Effective negotiation leads to favourable deals, partnerships, and opportunities for business expansion.
Using Negotiation Skills in Client Onboarding
Negotiation has long been thought of as an important skill when it comes to sales and acquiring new clients but it’s also an important skill to use throughout the client onboarding process.
Negotiation skills help:
- Create clear expectations: As clients start their relationship with your company, they have certain expectations in the same way that your team has objectives. Effective negotiation helps you make sure both parties can align their expectations from the start and set the stage for a successful relationship.
- Customize solutions: Every client has unique needs and your negotiation skills can help tailor your offerings in a way that addresses their requirements without compromising your own goals.
- Establish trust: With transparent, effective negotiation skills, you can establish a better rapport with new clients and demonstrate your commitment to ensuring their satisfaction with your services.
Retaining Clients with Effective Negotiation
Negotiation skills can help you maintain long-term, positive relationships with your clients. Every client relationship has its challenges and conflicts but with skillful negotiation and a proactive approach, professionals can address conflict head-on and present solutions that are favourable for both parties.
Negotiation can also help account managers and other business professionals reinforce the value of their services or products and continue to adapt to the evolving needs of their clients.
The Importance of Negotiation Training
Some people are born with negotiation skills but for most, it’s a skill that’s learned through training and practice. Negotiation training can help professionals refine and perfect their skills while learning new ways to negotiate in various situations, including the onboarding of new clients and retaining the important business relationships that your company already has.
With a structured negotiation course, you and your team can learn and practice important negotiation skills such as:
- Question funneling and development
- Concession planning and defense
- Combatting manipulation
- Methods for using dramatic pause
- Confident body language and voice tonality
Build a Team of Skilled Negotiators with Negotiations Ninja
The Negotiations Ninja Negotiations Success Program can help you and your team become better negotiators in just three days. This negotiation course can help you create a better client onboarding experience and retain long-term, mutually beneficial business relationships.
Contact us today to apply.