BACKDOOR SELLING
By Robert M. Benedict

There is a silent battle that goes on every day in businesses throughout the world.  But half the combatants have no idea that they are even involved in a pre-negotiation warfare.

It is a battle, because in a negotiation information is power.  In fact, many times the negotiation is won or lost before the formal negotiation even begins.  Key to this pre-negotiation stage is a process called back-door selling.

This technique includes a whole series of probing questions salespeople are taught to ask prior to the face-to-face negotiation.  They ask them not just of purchasing but also of other areas of the business.  Many times these other departments have no idea they're giving away vital information.  For instance, the salesperson might ask engineering: “Who is our competition?”  or "Who else received a request for quotation (RFQ) besides us?".

So, if the salesperson knows who their specific competitors are, what might they also learn?  Sometimes Everything!

Another Backdoor Question is; "Regarding Quality, How Do We Stack Up?".  If you or your people are too effusive in your praise, any comments made about how excellent the supplier's product is will be used by that seller later in the formal negotiation as a reason why they have to charge a premium price -- or why they can justify a higher price than the competitors.

Have you ever heard the seemingly innocent questions: "How's business?", "When do you really need to by?", or the old classic: "Are we in the ballpark on price?".  These together with many like them, can build the seller's leverage enormously if you or any of your colleagues answer them the wrong way.

It is drilled into salespeople to ask these questions in the most informal, "arm around her shoulder" manner, so as to not give the slightest clue of the devastation that can be inflicted upon your company's negotiation position.  Clients are often amazed when I read portions of popular sales negotiations books to them.  Aside from detailing what specific back-door questions to ask, the books bluntly list the sales person goals:
 
• Don't leave money on the table
• Undermine purchasing and engineering
• Be sure by the time you enter into a formal negotiation there is no negotiation left

If your company's negotiating leverage is being damaged by Back Door Selling, click here to receive a free article by Robert Benedict titled “Holding all the Aces” and 20 minute Back Door Selling video.