Negotiation – When Face-to-Face Is Not an Option

A negotiation coach or trainer will always encourage you to get face-to-face with the other party at some stage – preferably, at the beginning. This is unlikely to be an option in the immediate future. Nevertheless, business must go on! Remote communication will be our norm – not just with clients – but with colleagues and staff as well. So, given the current restrictions on our interactions, how can businesspeople make the most of these challenging times?

 When You Can See Them

If your communication platform has a video facility, use it! The visual component of communication (generally accepted to be greater than 50%) is too great to be ignored. Even if you can only see their facial expression, it will still give you invaluable feedback when you put your offer. Here are some specific hints:

• Look at the camera, not your own image or what’s on your screen. This way, they will feel like you’re really talking to them.
• Be aware of what’s behind you. Make sure that when they are looking at you, the background is complimentary, not distracting.
• Put up graphics, images and text of proposals/agreements at appropriate times. This takes the pressure off being ‘on camera’ continuously. It allows you to make adjustments to your set-up while not visible to the other party.
• Use a stand to put your key prompts at the same level as and as near as possible to the camera. This way you can take a quick glance to check without it being obvious.
• If speaking with more than one person, have all their faces on your screen and check all reactions, not just the one you’re speaking to at the time.

 When You Can’t See Them

It has been shown that when all the communication comes from the voice, 25% of the message comes from what is said and 75% from how it is said. So, when the communication is limited to this one medium, try to:

• Speak more slowly, generally by about 10%. The ideal rate of speech when they can see you is 130-150 words per minute. When they can’t, it is 110-120 words per minute.
• Speak precisely, clearly articulating your words. Most people partly rely on watching the speaker to assist their understanding. They are, in effect, lip reading. And when this component is removed, understanding becomes much harder. This is especially true when communicating with someone who has a different accent to yours. If, when speaking, you think about the tip of your tongue and make a particular effort to be sharp in your pronunciation of the hard consonant sounds (‘d’, ‘k’, ‘p’, ‘t’) it will dramatically improve your articulation and, hence, how well others understand you.
• Encourage them to respond so you can be sure they got the point.
• Eliminate any sounds other than your voice (paper shuffling, keyboard clicking, etc)
• Send a written confirmation as soon as possible. If the platform allows you to send documents (like WhatsApp) then send it as part of your closing.

 The negotiation venue (yours, mine or neutral) was previously something clever negotiators considered.  Obviously, there are advantages and disadvantages with every option – generally around the access to information and the perception of power. Today’s environment means that everyone is speaking from their power base and has access to all the data they need. So, even in the most difficult circumstances, there are upsides!