If you start looking for advice on international sales negotiations, you may end up getting more than you need. And you might not know which advice to follow.
There are people who call themselves multicultural or attribute themselves with an international expertise, without having the necessary experience to give you advice on cross cultural negotiations. There are also people who live in foreign countries for years without acquiring any real multicultural expertise at all. So called “bilingual” skills often represent wide variations in language skills.
Everyone has there own point of view, and success formulas based on their own experience. And when we are faced with several different bits of advice, we often chose the easiest option.
As a North American International Sales & Marketing professional in Europe for over 20 years I have had years of field experience in negotiation between North Americans and Europeans. And I’ve received my fair share of advice. I’d like to share with you the most important advice I learned and applied for over 20 years.
There is really only one essential thing you need:
- Prepare for your negotiation
You should be preparing for all of your negotiations. In international sales you will need to broaden your preparation a little more. Here are the areas where you need to be prepared:
1 – The object of your negotiation:
- Know your company’s position, products, strategy inside out.
- Know what you want to get out of this negotiation
2 – The other company you will be meeting:
- Find out as much as you can about the company
- Get as much general all round information as well as what is currently in the news.
- What are their other international businesses?
- Where else are they located?
- Who is on the management team, and what nationalities are they?
3 – The other company’s position in the negotiation
- What does your client want?
- What do you want to sell him?
- What cards can you play?
- What cards he may want but you can’t play or give at any cost?
- What are you prepared to negotiate?
- Identify the points you will not negotiate on.
- What win-win outcome possibilities do you see?
4 – How the meeting will take place:
- Who will you be meeting?
- Where will you be meeting?
- Who else will be there?
5 – The cultural business environment:
- Are there any general cultural factors you need to be aware of?
- Are there any business cultural factors you need to be aware of?
- Are there any negotiation cultural factors you need to be aware of?
- How will you choice of country location for you meeting affect your negotiation?
- Are there any particular male/female cultural issues here?
- What are you expected to bring with you?
That is the most important advice you will receive on international sales negotiations. Yes, you will also need to adapt your own mindset, but you will not be able to do so if you are not prepared.
Sometimes you might feel as if you have over-prepared your negotiation. Your negotiation might have seemed way too easy, to require the preparation time. And you might be tempted to skip the preparation the next time round.
This would not be a good move. Your prior preparation gives you a confidence and an expertise others can pick up in your own behavior. You will gain points without saying anything.
Thorough preparation prior to your international sales negotiations gives you a double advantage.
- Solid preparation for your sales negotiation, so you can concentrate on the sales part.
- An appearance of expertise that cross the cultural barriers to give you needed credibility
Solid preparation prior to your negotiation will give you the tools you need to navigate the cross-cultural negotiation challenges that inevitably pop up. So, before any international meeting don’t skip the essential preparation. Set aside enough time to do so prior to your meeting.
…and follow this advice.
Don’t forget to check out the Cross Cultural Negotiation 101 Guide for more articles and tips on international negotiations.
Other articles on Cross Cultural Communication you may like to read:
- Your Guideline For Successful First Time Cross Cultural Negotiations In Any Culture
- How To Prevent Most Cross Cultural Miscommunication By Examining Your Own English Communication
- How To Learn From Intercultural Communication Difficulties
- How Digital Age Communication Wrecked Havoc In Multicultural Communication
- How A Third Culture Kid’s Natural Cross Cultural Vision Can Power Your International Business Expansion
- 3 Types Of International Communication For International Business Success Online
