Customer Troubles (1)

Negotiating skills are an important part of customer service

Hey, Uncle Bob.

Hi, Ben. How's business?

OK, but I'm having trouble with some customers.

What kind?

I feel like they are taking advantage of me. I keep getting pushed into doing more work for less pay.

Give an example.

OK. When I give one of my customers a price quote for a job, he'll agree to the price. But then when we're about to sign the contract, he'll say something like "Technical support is part of this package, right?"

So what do you do?

What can I do? I basically agree to whatever he's asking.

It sounds like you're having trouble with negotiations.

Negotiations.

Yes. Your customer is using a negotiating strategy called "the nibble."

The nibble?

It's called the nibble because each of those little requests is like a little bite. It's effective because you've already made the deal in your mind, and the extra concessions seem small compared to the bigger deal.

What can I do to stop the nibble?

There are many ways to counteract the nibble. The easiest is probably just to show your customer a written price list that lays out the costs of additional features or services.


Info Cloud
Teaching Topic: The Question Mark
English punctuation is sometimes likened to the notation on a music score. It instructs us how to read and speak with appropriate rhythms and melodies, showing us when and how to navigate transitions and accents.

Now, one of those notations is the question mark. Born in the eighth century, it originally looked like a lightning bolt, striking from right to left.

Eventually, it morphed into what we know it as today, a symbol that looks something like a seahorse.

Right! You're often see question marks in dialogues and narratives. In formal articles, not so much.

Question marks are used to express surprise, skepticism and uncertainty. Mostly though, they're used for direct questions, like "Are you hungry?"

But, beware, they are not needed for indirect questions, as in "She asked if I was hungry."

Right! Question marks are also used when there is missing or unknown information. For example, since we're not really sure when Joan of Arc was born, we might see her date of birth written "January 6, 1412 (?)", then the question mark in parentheses.

That's right! Finally, except for very informal situations, like say texting, avoid using more than one question mark at a time.


Language Lab
push someone into something 
to force (someone) to accept (something)
- Howard felt that he was pushed into taking over his father's business.
- Max got pushed into joining the football team by his friends.

package n.
a group of related things that are sold together for a single price
- The package includes train tickets and a one-night stay at the Hilton.
- I thought medical insurance was included in the package.

concession n.
/kənˈsɛʃən/
something that you allow someone to have in order to end an argument or a disagreement
a special right that a particular person or group of people is allowed to have, for example by the government or an employer, or the act of giving or allowing something as a right
- The company decided to make a concession in order to get the contract signed.
- The president declared that the government would make no concessions to the terrorist.

counteract v.
act against (something) : to cause (something) to have less of an effect or to have no effect at all
counter v.
to do something in defense or in response to something — often + with
- The doctor prescribed some medicine to counteract the side effects of the treatment.
- New measures were taken to counteract bullying at school.


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