7 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE CLOSING A BUSINESS DEAL IN NIGERIA
There are things to know before closing a business deal in Nigeria. According to wikipedia, closing, is a sales term which refers to the process of making sales. The sales sense springs from real estate, where ‘closing’, is the final step of a transaction. In sales, it is used more generally to mean achieving the desired outcome, which may be an exchange of money or acquiring a signature. Salespeople are often taught to think of targets not as strangers, but rather as prospective customers who already want or need what is being sold such prospects need only be ‘closed’.
Having said this, we can infer that your sales negotiation is utterly incomplete without a good closing. This is the major aim of your sales in the first place, to close your sales.
Closing a business deal in Nigeria shouldn’t be that hard a task. I’m going to take you through 7 things you should know and implement before you can close a business deal in Nigeria.
1. Negotiate the process. This is one of the Things to know before closing a business deal in Nigeria. The obstacles we encounter during closing the deal in negotiations is due to the fact that we most likely failed to negotiate an explicit process from the very onset of talks regarding the sales. According to Harvard Law School Professor Robert C. Bardone. Before discussing the specific issues at stake or the parameters of your talks, discuss how the negotiation should proceed. What ground rules are needed? Who will facilitate the meetings? What issues will you discuss, and when? According to Bordone, mapping out the negotiation process can help you avoid making false assumptions during your talks, in addition to enabling more efficient and streamlined negotiations. Ensure that you and your partner thoroughly walk through the step – by- step process of the negotiations.
2.Take a break. As uncomfortable as this may sound, it is one of the things to know before closing a business deal in Nigeria you may sometimes need to pause on negotiation transactions. Yeah, adjourning negotiations until the following day, week, or even longer may assist you in effectively closing a deal faster. It also gives you the required time and space to unwind from the often tense and stressful atmosphere of business bargains. Taking a break during a negotiation will offer you the space to recap with your team( if any) what you’ve accomplished and how far you have to go and the necessary adjustments you need to make to remedy any defects in the business deal. It will also afford you needed time to reevaluate the entire negotiation process. This type of review will help you determine whether or not it is wise to keep moving towards closing a business deal.
3. Communicate clearly. Communication skills are a necessity for salespersons. You need to be able to effectively make yourself and your position understood during a business negotiation. Effective communication is needed for an effective business negotiation. You must know the best time to communicate sensitive information. Understand your partner and know how to get information across to him/ her. Being able to be clear is an essential for good communication and a good negotiation to take place. Television psychologist Dr. Phil recommends opening a negotiation situation by clearly and politely stating your position. For example, you might say, “I agree that we need a new employee handbook, and I’m more than happy to work on one with you, but there are a few things in your current outline that I could not sign my name to”. Listening is another communication skill required for a good closing in a business negotiation. Know how to understand what the other person is saying and ‘not- saying’. You need to check within yourself to ensure that you both clearly understand what is being discussed, and arguments at hand before breaking them down into smaller components that can be combined as part of a negotiation. No one will trust a person who cannot communicate clearly and confidently.
4. Stay confident.The need to stay confident is one of the things to know before closing a business deal in Nigeria during negotiations, no matter how the buyer responds. Keep it light and maintain a can – do attitude throughout the negotiation process. Enter into a business negotiation with the mind set that you will reach an expected end. Eliminate all negativity from your mind and maintain a positive attitude. In the end negativity will succumb to the positive. This isn’t just about your attitude but also your physical manifestation and disposition. And smile during the negotiation, yeah, keep it light and cool. Never underestimate your powers and potentials or even let fear Rob you the joy of learning from within and fully using your potentials. Develop strategies to use your strengths and minimize your weaknesses. Believe what you say and say what you mean. Note that, maintaining a positive a positive attitude is opposed to pride and overconfidence.
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5. Use deadlines. When planning the negotiation process, set short-term benchmarks as well as a realistic but ambitious final deadline is one of the things to know before closing a business deal in Nigeria. What happens if you fail to meet a benchmark or deadline. Explicitly discuss whether you need to set a new schedule and also determine how you can improve going forward.
Negotiations often worry that they will concede too much as the clock runs. But remember that the other party is equally affected by the deadline. Consequently, deadlines can spur concessions and creative thinking from both sides, University of California at Berkeley Professor Don A. Moore has found in his research. Deadlines are a necessity for business deals and negotiations. When it comes to moving stalled negotiations forward, deadlines are essential. Without a suitable benchmark or deadline in place, negotiations can take up unecessary time. Negotiators who recognise that deadlines affect everyone equally can use them to defuse costly stalling tactics, says Professor Don A. Moore. Deadlines can be a strategic tool to employ before closing any business deal. The use of deadline has the potential of spurring compliance from your perspective business partner, which will in turn ensure a successful closing. Set a deadline by which time, the other person has to decide or act. It should be clear that this is an absolute time by which they must do want you want t them to do. Be sure to explicitly explain possible consequences if the deadline is missed. As the deadline approaches subtly increase the emotional tension.
6. Mediators. Most times business negotiations could get stalled because one or both parties may be reluctant to put their best offer on the table. When situations like this come up, you may need to enlist the presence of a third party. In separate private meetings with the third party, each side may readily disclose its bottom line, it is then in the place of the third party to determine in an with you if a zone of possible agreement, or ZOPA, exists or not for your business deal. Otherwise it may indicate that it is time to move on. And you can also identify a deal with or without the mediator’s help. Mediators can help you develop mutually satisfactory solutions and strengthen relationships. You could enlist the help of a good and known business consultants, who are skilled and impartial. Involving a consultant during your business negotiation is really helpful as he/she can attempt to facilitate problem solving through effective communication and analysis. So whenever the negotiation becomes rather stressful and emotional, getting someone who can stand in the gap can be a wise thing to do. It is also recommended that when you lack technical expertise on the business deal you are negotiating, a third party with strong expertise in the field in question should be involved to balance the playing field. Generally when your sales strategy is not working, it is advised to bring in a third party.
7. See eye – to – eye. The key to any good relationship is understanding and it is one of the things to know before closing a business deal in Nigeria. The same principle applies in business relationships. You and your prospective business partner should be able to both understand your individual and shared goals. Be empathetic to the other party, put yourself in their shoes. We all want to make money in Nigeria, still there is room for empathy in any business deal you get involved in. It can certainly be frustrating when you and your partner are at odds with one another and never seem to get along smoothly. This has the potential of taking you further and further away from closing the business deal successfully. Sometimes it can prove necessary to educate the other party on ‘gray areas’ in the negotiation process . Also take control and direct documentation of all operational procedures. Seeing eye to eye helps you work on the same plane with your business partner and is needed for a more richer business relationship and is also a sure way to get a quick, smoother and more efficient closing on your business deal.
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