Another negotiation tactic that involves the word “no” comes from the Black Swan Group.
According to their website, “When someone says yes, they’re committing to something, and people are hesitant to make such commitments. On the other hand, when they can say no, they feel protected.”
In other words, “no’s” are cheap and easy, while “yes’s” feel like something is already being given.
Here’s how you can apply this from the perspective of a Salesforce consultant: In a tough situation or with a tough client, ask no-oriented questions.
Examples:
- “Is it a ridiculous idea to use standard fields instead of custom ones?”
- “Are you against designing a proof-of-concept to see if this feature actually works before building out the entire feature?”
- “Would it be horrible if we made your end users more productive?”
All you need to do is rephrase your questions so the answer that moves you forward is a “no”.
The takeaway
Is it a bad idea to leverage the natural human tendency to say “no” in order to get things done?
Category:
Communication