The Time Crunch leads to Poor Negotiations and Personal Loss

My first exposure to buying timeshare investment properties started with a free trip to the Carolina shore, and an overnight stay at one of their properties, with a tour of possible investment properties to follow. It started with a call most of you have received – a special offer for a free overnight stay at one of your choice locations. They had to know right then and there on the phone, no time for thinking about it or checking with past buyers. When we arrived, the tour involved one of their vacation properties, but the overnight stay was in a run down hotel down the street – surprise! In the morning, they loaded us up for the tour and headed down to the properties; timeshares for sale. I have to admit, the properties were nice, but at the time I was not in a position to buy. As we drove around, the person driving would make announcements about properties that had been sold. It was like they were disappearing before our eyes. Then, when the tour ended, we were ushered in to a room with a high pressure sales person with an assumptive close. Again, the pressure was strong and most of the selling directed to my wife. They wanted me to feel guilt for not buying, and needed a commitment right then and there to get the deal. Timelines have been used for centuries to press people into buying – often leading to poor buying decisions. What happens when this same tactic is used by purchasing?

The Strategy

You, the seller, receive a last minute call. Budget is available, but only so much and it must be spent today. The buyer has in mind a specific need, and offers you the money. The only question is, can you do the deal? This sort of timeline pressure places tremendous pressure on the seller. In fact, on a coaching call today, my client related a story about a sale he recently made where he left out software licenses on the product portion of the deal, all because of a short timeline. In another case, one of my clients quoted a deal at his cost by accident. These are common errors, made simply because the client was in a rush. The most common mistake I see is where the sales person takes the offered amount, and assumes they can make the project work. It’s an easy close, so they are willing to take the risk. In the end, the deal turns out to be non-profit.

Counter Strategy

First, hasty decisions rarely turn out in your favor, so avoid them. If a client has money to spend, don’t go with their initial proposed scope, but rather build your own. If the client is in a rush, let it be their hasty decision to approve your scope rather then your hasty decision to go with it. If the budget dries up tomorrow, chances are they can’t find another provider in time to make this happen anyway, so propose something you know will work. I understand there is not always time to go through the proper steps, but you can’t afford to over commit.