Ladies, Let’s Talk About Negotiating Lower Prices
Prices seem to be rising for everything. Food prices are on the rise, mechanics are charging more, veterinarians are charging more – everything is going up. You might not be able to negotiate lower food prices, but when dealing with a service professional, you may be able to haggle your way to a better price.
There’s always a time and place to negotiate, but when you know the basics, you’ll have a much easier time getting a better price.
Asking for a Better Price Never Hurts
I have never seen anyone negotiate a better price at the grocery store, but at the local farmer’s market, I have seen people haggle to much cheaper prices. The key? Ask.
When the market is near closing, a lot of vendors will gladly lower their price because they want to offload their inventory – not hang on to it.
It helps when you can back your negotiation.
For example, let’s say that you call Mr. Rooter Detroit, and they offer a $50 higher price than a competitor. Ask if they could match the price. Companies are becoming very competitive, and they’ll offer to lower prices to not have you go to a competitor.
Be Willing to Walk Away
When a product or service isn’t a necessity, you can always walk away. One recommendation is that when a business says “no,” this is just the first part of the negotiation. You may have caught the owner on a bad day, or they may want to think about your proposal before walking away.
It’s important to be able to walk away.
This is especially good at yard sales or flea markets. Say you walk up to a table and want a beautiful clock, but the price is too high. You might offer the vendor a price that is 30% less than the original.
You don’t need the clock, even though it’s beautiful.
The vendor may say “no” now because they are hoping for a full price sale soon. But if you walk back a few hours or less before close and the clock is still there, it doesn’t hurt to offer the 30% off price or even a 20% off price.
If a vendor needs to make the sale or a salesman needs to reach a quota, they’ll often budge on their pricing.
Research Your Way to Success
I would have never known I could negotiate down my cable bill by threatening to cancel. I also never knew that I could call up my credit card company and ask for a lower interest rate. It’s amazing how quickly I was able to negotiate the prices down in my favor.
But I also learned, through research, that store cards are impossible to negotiate down – in most cases.
You need to know that you have leverage when you’re trying to negotiate. This also means knowing when you’re pushing the limit on the negotiation. You may be asking for a price that’s so low that the seller loses money. In this case, your negotiations will be nothing more than an insult from someone trying to sell items or services to make a living.