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TR U M P STR A TEGI ES FO R R E A L ESTA TE

P—Stands for the persons attending the negotiation. Learn who
they areand theirfunctions. Never negotiate if there are uniden-
tified people present. Find out who they are and what role they
will play in the deal. Learn who isdecisionmakerforeachele-
ment under discussion.
O—Stands for the objective you wish to accomplish at the meet-
ing you are attending. Figure this out before you start any meet-
ing. Your objective must be measurable by the end of the
negotiation meeting to be useful. If you believe your objective in
an initial meeting is to finalize a deal, you’re aiming at the wrong
target. A better objective is, “Let’s see if the seller is someone I
want to do business with.” That’s a clear target, easy to measure.
S—Stands for the strategy you intend to use in the negotiation.
This is your game plan or overall approach that you intend
to take. The strategy will dictate who talks on what topics,
who answers specific questions raised at any time, and who
makes notes of what was discussed and what the result was of
such discussion.
T—Stands for tactics to be used. This is a subcategory of strat-
egy. It is the “nuts and bolts” to be used for the implementation
of the game plan. For example you might say, “We’re going to use
the good guy-bad guy approach. Sam, I want you to play the
tough guy and appear to be hard-nosed and inflexible. I’ll play
the good guy and act as a mediator.” How you script the negotia-
tion is up to you but don’t go into one without knowing what you
plan to say or do. However, your tactics should differ if there is a
long-term versus a short-term relationship being created. Long-
term relationships must be nurtured with an abundance of ten-
der, loving care. You can be more aggressive in negotiations that
involve short-term relationships.

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