Negotiation & Sales Skills Training

Negotiating for Your Career

Individual Negotiations create a body of work which will define you as a specialty retail 

professional and ultimately determine your success personally and professionally.

Deals Don’t End Upon Closing

• Each negotiation leaves an impression on the person you negotiated with and on those within your own organization.

• Each negotiation leads to a relationship which must grow and evolve over time.

• The ultimate success of a transaction may not be determined until issues arise at a later date. 

Exercise 1

Write down the two people at your company who you feel are the best negotiators.

Success Criteria

What criteria did you use to choose these two people as successful negotiators?

Negotiating Style

Person A Person B

Career Arc

Person  A Person B

Current Success

Future Success

Two Degrees of Jim Rouse

• You will see this person again– Another deal– Future boss– Future Employee– Future Client– Tablemate at Vegas ICSC

(What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas but what happened before gets brought up)

Become an Expert

• Establishing credibility is essential and powerful

• You must know:– Your product– Your properties (Not just from an SR perspective)– Industry trends (SR and broader)– Tenant’s business– Your form

Become the Decision Maker

• To maintain credibility and strength in any negotiation you must be seen as the ultimate decision maker.– Understand your economic, legal and risk management parameters

– Require comments from the other side prior to a negotiation

– Review and obtain any internal guidance required prior to negotiation

– Challenge the parameters if you feel it will impede the transaction 

– Anticipate and review various alternatives for position

Internal Negotiations

• Internal Players– Boss– Mall Manager– Development Director– Committee– Legal– Risk Management

Internal Trust

• Integrity• Expertise• Advocate (Get the word out about the $$)• Colleague (You too can eat with legal)• Company wide perspective• Decision Maker

Benefits of Internal Consensus

• Understanding of what you need and what you can give on

• Expediting approval and review• Ability to walk away earlier if deal will not fly• Ultimately more latitude in stretching to close a deal

• Increased productivity, stature and salary

Can we Meet

• Timing• Location (Home/Away/Center/Neutral)• Goal (Intro/Fact finding/Offer/Negotiation)• Materials• Showing the property

Are They Listening?

• Is the prospect listening (“Tells”)– Eye contact– Head nod (aka bobblehead)– Blackberry– Responsive answers

Are You Listening?

• Focus on prospect (Illuminating, I know)• A little BS can go a long way• Answer his/her questions don’t stick to script• Let the prospect ramble (He could help you)• Empathize• Let him be an expert (Can you explain that to me?)

• Probing questions• Prospect is looking for same tells from you!

Evaluate the ProspectStrong Neutral Area of 

Weakness

Knowledge of Business

Belief inBusiness

Expertise

Decision Maker

Excitement for Deal

Negotiating Style

Focus

Phone Negotiations

• Focus (If you are currently talking to a prospect, please log off now!)

• Silence is useful• Keep an open issues list• Confirm open issues and tasks at end of call• Listen for tells (If you hear their head bob question the deal)

Why I Don’t Listen

1. I anticipate the answer so I can respond quickly                                                    2. I am trying to hold a thought in my head and 

focus on that issue rather than the one being discussed (the, “Script”)

3. If I have to hear one more person complain about the insurance clause…

4. I impute knowledge to the other side and work toward the typical compromise position

Crushing them in Negotiation

“I negotiate such favorable deals that the last three companies I dealt with went out of business”

Kinder and gentler

• Keep in mind that you want these businesses to succeed

• Negotiate hard but understand their needs and goals

• Share with them your constraints• Give a little to get a little (Issue banking)

Don’t Be Afraid To Be Forceful

• Be a passionate advocate for your company and yourself.

• Aggression can enhance leverage or mask weakness

• Many good negotiators are not well liked by everyone

• Social Dynamics– Differences in age/experience– Differences in sex– Cultural differences

Adaptive Style

To create a great body of work as a negotiator you must be willing to adapt your style based on individual transactions, the relationships between the parties and the style of negotiation of the other party.

Exercise 2

Write down the name of two people who you have negotiated against who you thought were very good negotiators.

Success Criteria

What criteria did you use to choose these two people as successful negotiators?

Negotiating Style

Person A Person B

Outcome

Person  A Person B

Concessions Obtained

Effect on Relationship Between Businesses

Lessons Learned

Adopted Style or Technique

The Proposal

• Should it be in a formal term sheet?• Internal Consensus and Input• Just business terms? (If so which are these?)• Deadline/goal for execution of agreement• Don’t get bound! (Career Altering Event)

Negotiating the Agreement

• Know the form • Understand the form including legal and risk management

• Have explanations and responses for your positions

• Don’t have to rationalize all positions (I understand but I can’t sell that to my people)

• Understand leverage and weaknesses and adapt style

Prioritize Open Issues

1. Know what you can and can’t give on and be honest with your prospect

2. Do your homework internally3. Try to determine prospect’s priorities4. Frame discussion before diving into 

document or term sheet

Legal Help?

• Many in‐house counsels can be:– Very busy– More interested in other aspects of their company’s business

– Lacking in knowledge regarding SR– Slow or unresponsive– Heavy with the ink– Dominating in negotiation

Willing To Walk

It is a time honored truth that the party willing to  walk away has the most power in any negotiation.

Exercise 3

How many deals in the last year cratered after you started to negotiate the actual agreement?

Who Walked and Why?Prospect

Who Walked?

Deal Breaker

Strength of Prospect

Tenor of Negotiation

Should Deal Have Been Salvaged?

Anticipated?

Threatened

List the deals where the other side threatened to walk.

List the deals where you threatened to walk.

Concessions Given or Obtained

Did the threat of walking away actually result in a concession or concessions being made which would not otherwise been given? 

Should You Have Walked

Name a deal you completed which you should have walked away from and why?

Utilizing In‐house Counsel

• Frame the Deal (why deal is important)• Frame the Outstanding Issues• Discuss relative bargaining positions• Be selective in introducing them into negotiations• Know the counsel’s strengths and weaknesses• Provide prior examples and language• Know when to involve your management• You will need them again

Outside Counsel

• Similar issues and techniques as in‐house– Dominating in negotiations– Too busy– Heavy ink– Need to Frame

• Unique to 0utside– $$$$$$– Risk aversion– Lack of exposure to broader objectives

You Might like it Outside

• Motivated by client relationship• Perspective on how other developers handle certain issues

• SR priority/experience• Less internal politics

Outside Survival Guide

• Choose wisely– Probe experience (SR not just leasing or RE)– Business acumen– Personality– $$$$ (Negotiable/Alternate billing arrangements)

• Clearly define relationship– Business v. legal issues– Who is lead in negotiation– Lines of communication

Remain the Decision Maker

• To maintain credibility and strength in any negotiation you must be seen as the ultimate decision maker.– Understand your economic, legal and risk management parameters

– Challenge the parameters if you feel it will impede the transaction 

– Anticipate and review various alternatives for positions

– Do not cede control of negotiation even if using counsel

When Negotiating with Me Please Don’t

• Insist‐“Give me your 5 most important issues”• Say‐“Give me all of your issues while I sit like a stone and then I will respond at some later date”

• Emphatically state‐“We never give that!” (Someone with more internal consensus probably has and I have a copy)

• Yell, scream or get snarky• Try any of that BS you just learned in a negotiating webinar

Selling to Prospective Retailers…

What does your Center need the Specialty Leasing

Program to accomplish?

Overall Leasing Plan

• Each property is different and needs to review the overall leasing plan

• What are the space opportunities in the common area?

• What vending needs do you have?

• What is your inline availability?

Partner With Perm Leasing

• What are the goals and objectives for the property vision?

• What is happening in the short term and long term?

• What are the merchandising voids and/or successes to build from?

Work With Perm Leasing

• Understand your properties financial structure

• What are the Perm Leasing market rents?

• What are the extra charges?

Work With Your Marketing Director

• What is the marketing plan for the Center that includes events, promotions and seasonal pop-ups?

• Have a strong knowledge of your market demographics and who your property is striving to appeal to

• Understand what your marketing program has to offer as far as retailer support

Retailer Support• Internal Marketing Opportunities- directories, signage,

opening soon• Large-scale Media buys- banners, clings, tall boys and

sponsorships• Websites

• Social Media- Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc.

• Events

Retailer Support

Example:Center Advertising Opportunities

Directories of store names (special specialty section)

In-Mall signage- featuring special events, promotions, etc.

In-Mall banners /elevator door signage featuring ads of showrooms, vendors, manufacturers

Marketing/Advertising

Example:Electronic Advertising

Does your Center have a website? If so, how is it used to help market the stores within your Center? Floor plans, listings, direct links? Be sure to tell your prospects about it and what is available and how this will help them be known within your Center.

Marketing/Advertising

Example:Social Media

Facebook, Twitter, Blog. Does your Center use these? Update regularly. Tell your prospect all about it.

The internet is a major factor now in all business sectors, and this includes retailing. Is it a factor in your business? Are you knowledgeable in it?

Develop Your Specialty Leasing Plan

Recap what you have learned about your program:

• What are the goals of my program?• What is available?• What are our leasing needs?• Who is our market?• What do we have to offer?

Develop Your Sales/Prospecting Plan

• What is interesting about your Center?

• What unique opportunities can you create?

• What is unique about your market?

• Always build from a position of strength

Prospecting For Retailers

• In today’s competitive retail environment, presentation is critical. Identify retail prospects who either already lead by this example and/or are open to being guided and mentored in ways to showcase product.

Where To Prospect

• Competitive retail shopping Centers

• Lifestyle Centers

• Specialty malls and mixed-use Centers

Where To Prospect

• Local festivals, craft fairs

• Seasonal pop-up markets

• Large scale venues- Gift shows, Boat shows

• While on vacation

• Everywhere, every place, all the time

Proposal

• Once you have identified interest from a prospect in a particular space with a specific size, you can provide the proposal.

• What to include in this proposal?

ProposalAnywhere Center

9/1/14Type of Space:DBA:Space #:Square Footage:Use Clause:Term:Rents:Breakpoint:Termination Terms:

Proposal(continued)

Signage: Details for store or cart

Utilities: Included? Need to be placed in tenant’s name?

Hours of Operation:

Insurance: Note minimum and see lease for details

Deal specifics that pertain to just this deal or to your Center

Proposal

(continued)

Attach a floor plan with the space you are quoting highlighted and with the neighboring store names listed

Deal disclaimer- property/ownership specific per legal

Price

• Do you have different rates for different locations?

• If so, how do you determine which spaces warrant the higher rates?

• What spaces are considered the 50 yard line locations?

Follow Up

• Timely follow up is key to the closing of a deal• Need to know their initial thoughts to the timing

and usually pricing• If new to the Specialty Leasing program- then

lead time may be longer than with an established operator

Overcoming Objections

• Price- know your limits of minimum you can accept to get approved

• Location- understand your co-tenancy

• Timing- are you flexible?

Overcoming Objections

• Competition- exclusives

• When to say Yes- building relationships

• When to move on- knowing this is key to your time management

Key Points To Close The Deal

• Listening to the tenant and their needs

• Stop selling and listen

Where To Prospect

Open Discussion

• Where do you prospect?

• Great suggestions or ideas of where you have found some exciting and unique new retailers?

• Creative ways to close a deal?

Class Evaluation:Please take a minute now to complete the class evaluation by using your smartphone or tablet.  The 

same link (listed below) will give access to complete each class throughout the week.

Class Evaluations Link:

survey.icsc.org/2015SAZ