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Email ThisWhen I first started to haggle I would get the same knots in my stomach as I would when I asked a girl out or told her that I liked her. I was scared–scared that the salesman or manager might think less of me, scared they would say know, scared they would be offended. Why was I scared? I really don’t know, I never had a situation that scarred me, but I think it all stems from my historically low self esteem.Today when I was haggling for a new pair of over-priced running shoes, I happened to be haggling with a cute woman, and it all clicked! The nervous feeling I would get when wanting to ask a girl out is the same nervous feeling I get when haggling…except haggling is way easier. Haggling is a confidence builder!
I implore you all to at least try haggling, whether you get a discount or not it ends up being a rush so it feels good afterwards, but when it does work and you save some money, it builds your confidence, and you get that rush. Also, as an added bonus, if the salesperson is a member of the opposite sex you can subtly flirt and complement the person to help you haggle! Pretty soon, haggling will be no big deal, and you can turn that confidence and flirting into picking up members of the opposite sex!
To help you haggle, I’ve listed some good steps below to help you build that confidence!
- The more you buy, the more of a discount you can get. Mary and I went shopping for a new TV for her parents at Best Buy, and I allowed them to sell us more stuff because they could discount other items more. All in all, her parents bought a 46″ LCD, a 26″ LCD, a PS3 (Blue Ray player), a sound bar (If you can’t have wired surround sound, this is the next best thing), and an HDMI cable (DO NOT BUY MONSTER CABLES. They are a rip off, I don’t care what the salesman tells you. If you need cables, go to www.monoprice.com or look up blue jean cables). All in all we saved about $1000 because I was able to haggle and bundle with extras.
- Talk to the manager. Some stores are giving employees the power to knock off 10% or so, especially in the current economy, but it’s still better to haggle with a manager.
- Ask what you might think are stupid questions. Even if there are no sale signs posted, ask if there is a sale going on, when a sale will be going on, or if there is a sale price they can give you. It allows a good entry into haggling. They may tell you that the item will go on sale next week so it might be best to wait, but that gives you leverage to ask them to discount it now. It also breaches the subject of a discount nonchalantly. If they discount it or give you a “sale” price, ask them if they can do better! I asked the manager at best buy 3 different times if he could do better, and on the 3rd time he finally said no, he couldn’t, the computer wouldn’t let him discount it any more.
- Look for floor models or imperfections. Mary and I were at Crate and Barrel looking for things for our new house and we found a lamp we liked that was a floor model and had a scuff. I asked the questions in the previous step, and she said she could give us 20% off for a ‘damaged’ item. The item is by no means damaged, and we knew we could get the scuff out, so we said great!
- Ask if there are any discounts or coupons that you could use. Many stores have mailers that contain coupons, and most have them behind the counter to scan to help entice you into buying. If you don’t ask you won’t know.
- Let them know that you usually shop there. The woman I haggled with for my shoes today was obviously more willing to talk after I mentioned that my current shoes were purchased from one of their other stores. She then pulled out a mailer coupon to give me a discount!
- Be likable. Last summer when Mary and I were working on our current place of residence I needed paint and paint supplies so I went to Sherwin Williams. The salesman was younger and I was cracking jokes. When I got up to the counter, I half-jokingly said “are there any: I just graduated from college, moved cross country, don’t have a job, and am about to get married discounts?” He laughed, and said absolutely. He gave me 30% off!
- Walk Away. If you aren’t getting the deal you want, don’t be afraid to walk away. This advice is particularly good to use on hungry car salesman, but car buying is a whole other beast.
- Offer Cash. Cash is a huge bargaining tool. It shows that you are serious and ready to buy, it also means a great deal to smaller shops. Small shops will be more inclined to discount your product(s) more if they know you will pay cash. There is nothing worse than discounting a product and then seeing another 2-3% of the purchase price go to credit card processing fees. Don’t worry about your precious credit card points when you haggle, just worry about price.
- Research. If you aren’t sure about a product get the salesman’s card go do your research and come back. Also, see a related post: Secrets of a Bargain Hunter.
These tools will most likely allow you to get some good discounts, and when you get those discounts it will build your confidence so you can pick up girls (or guys).
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Although I by no means think that you shouldn’t do it, just please don’t come off as an ass to the poor sales people, or the manager. Yes, you can get a better deal, and maybe the $50 off a $500 purchase is worth it to you, but you do eventually become obnoxious to the person you are haggling with if you push the point.
I love the example at Sherwin Williams, and it never hurts to *ask*, especially in case there are promotions or coupons going on or you are buying a number of things, but at some point the people you are haggling with are going to get fed up with you. I was shopping the other day and they happened to have a discount for AAA members (which I am not), and they had no problem scanning an extra coupon for me, and it made my day.
However, you should be aware that by the third time you’ve asked for a discount, the manager and the sales people are probably pretty much fed up with you.
If you couldn’t care less what strangers think about you, go for it, all out. But personally, currently being a sales manager at a major retailer, if I’m at another store, asking once is really enough. Knowing how it annoying it gets on the other side of the counter, even if I am saving an extra 5%, its not really worth it to me. Because at that point, trust me, they want the sale, but they want you to go away nearly as much.
Nicole, thanks for the response. I appreciate hearing from the other side of the negotiation.
Obviously, coming off as an ass doesn’t help the situation, that’s why “Be Likable” is one of the pointers. I also know for a fact that many of the big box retailers are now allowing store clerks to take discounts off without approval of the manager (I work for a retail corporation as well).
In the best buy example, all the guy would have had to do is tell me no, he couldn’t do any better and I would have stopped asking, but he kept saying, well let’s see if I can do better. He knew we meant business, he knew we were ready to walk out the door with a few G’s in merchandise, and he knew that we were price matching him against competitors.
The bottom line is that it shouldn’t be frowned upon to haggle. In fact we are one of the only cultures in the world where it is. Most cultures look at you like you’re an idiot if you don’t haggle. I’ve never had anyone look at me like an idiot, and I’ve only had one person tell me flat out…”No, we don’t deal.” Obviously no one likes an ass. There are ways to respectfully do this, and ways to disrespectfully do this. I always take the high road.