Managing status in a negotiation, Part IV
Establish social standards
If a clear norm exists regarding intelligent behavior, social comparisons hardly matter in negotiation. Often the rule is not clear, and parties are quick to select appropriate or inappropriate comparisons.
In 1998, some enterprise resource planning specialists discovered that those who know SAP software products earn over $200 per hour. Within a short time, enterprise resource specialists of all software companies raised their rates from $160 to $200 an hour.
It is relatively easy to gain vast comparable data online. By radically reducing the data disconnect that often occurs between buyers and sellers, online sources can be a big help in establishing realistic reference levels. Sellers can no longer simply pull out a number and expect it to structure buyers’ expectations. Instead, offers must be “reasonable” – or buyers will go somewhere else.
Satish Mehta
