ORGA 314 - Mastering Negotiation: A Used Car Purchase in Edmonton

This report details the negotiation process involved in purchasing a used Cadillac Escalade in Edmonton, focusing on strategies employed to achieve a favorable deal. The buyer set a budget, researched the vehicle, and visited dealerships to assess pricing and deals. Negotiation strategies such as BATNA (Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement) were used to counter the seller's tactics, resulting in a successful purchase within the buyer's budget. The report highlights the importance of preparation, understanding the seller's strategies, and being willing to walk away to secure a better deal. It also discusses negotiation tensions and recommends maintaining a cordial but firm approach, emphasizing that buying a car should be treated as a business transaction with minimal emotional involvement. The conclusion underscores the significance of strong negotiation skills, thorough preparation, and a willingness to walk away when the deal is unfavorable for a successful outcome.

Running head: MANAGING NEGOTIATION 1
Managing Negotiation
Name
Instructors name

MANAGING NEGOTIATION 2
Introduction
Description of the vehicle
Getting behind the wheels of a used or a new car can be exiting. However, the buying process is
not enjoyable for many buyers. With persistence and preparation, one can buy a car without
blowing their budget. When one gets a great deal, buying a car becomes exiting and better.
Mastering negotiation skills make the process easier and creates confidence in navigating the
processes in buying a car. Buying a car is one of the most important financial decisions one has
to make.
About the Vehicle
In this case the car being purchased was a used Cadillac escalade from Edmonton. The main
accomplishment of the buyer was $104935, allowing weekly installments of $800, to consider
getting the car type a reasonable price. The other requirement was that the car should still look
new and function properly. The car should also have a mileage of not more than 35,000
kilometers. The car should not be more than two years old as they still look good and do not
have a lot of problems. Once all the information was available, the buyer visited the dealership,
look at the pricing and the deals available. A test drive was also carried out.
This particular vehicle, Cadillac escalade, was being negotiated for because it has many
advantages and suits the budget plan in place. Also, getting a car which is not two years older
means it will look new and still most likely be in a good condition. Generally, when a car is new,
it significantly drops in value in the first two years, while it mostly remains as new as a first hand
car. The escalade is also relatively big, the head lumps are brighter, whiter lights compared to
most cars, it has a free liftgate, it has a Bose cabin surround system. The vehicle is powerful as

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well as efficient because of its V8 engine. This car also has a a fast-acting suspension whereby
the ride control is controlled by magnet, thus enhancing driving and handling when one is on the
road. It has larger wheels than the average vehicles. Cadillac escalade has an infotainment
system which is advance and has features with handwriting and gesture recognition. This car also
has more safety options, which warns the driver when a car approaches and comes too close.
Negotiation strategies
At the beginning before any steps are taken the buyer made a decision on the goals he needed to
achieve and what he wanted. Starting with the preparation is the first step. Having goals and
making a pre-approved budget was the beginning. The buyer made a budget depending on the
type of car. Also he carried out a background check to see the functionality, rankings and
reviews on the car. The decisions to choose the Cadillac were based on reliability and safety, as
well as consensus and opinions of those who have used such cars before. Also, all information
about the car is crucial from the invoice price to the sticker price. Comparison was also done on
what other dealers paid for the same car. At the bottom of the reviews, demand for the vehicle
can help in identifying low and high demand cars (Holden, 2012).
The issues to be negotiated in this case are whether the car still looks new, the mileage as well as
the price. These are the most important factors. The other factors are the color, preferably black,
SUV, it should be automatic and the fuel it uses. When it comes to all these requirements, the
seller had more information compared to the buyer (Gates, 2011).
At the site, the strategies employed were resolved by BATNA, where in case the initial
agreement plans failed to factor in, other options could be considered. In this case, when the
buyer was pushed to Buy at the price higher than the budget, he walked away and the sellers

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went after him and accepted his offer. His resistance point was when they asked for more than
his budget, and he was only willing to compromise on other factors like mileage or color. This
made the seller get a good deal other than paying more for a car he knows he could pay less for
in another dealership.
The other negotiation strategy was knowing the sellers’ strategy and countering it in advance. IN
this case, the buyer knew that the salesperson usually pushes for sales and he had advance
knowledge of the minimum price they would accept for the car. In this case, the buyer was the
one who was quick to be annoyed and walk away, but the sale-person were patient and tries to
convince him. So in that, compromise was also involved as strategy. The sellers were ready to
compromise the extra amount they hoped to get so that they could make a sale. At the close of
the negotiations the buyer advices the sellers that sometimes, they can compromise in order to
make sales. I would advise that next time, the buyer can close the negotiations by making sure
that the dealership feels like they closed at an equal point where both parties remain satisfied
(Gates, 2011).
Negotiation tensions
Buying a car is the last bastions of freewheeling and negotiation usually happens between the
seller and the buyer. Sometimes the negotiations are very unbalanced. Sales people who deal
with cars, sell a lot of them annually, while a buyer can averagely get one car in four years. The
sales-person is focused on pushing sales while the buyer only buys a car once in a while.
Fortunately, there is a lot of information in regards to cars available everywhere.
Recommendations

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It’s important to keep in mind that one cannot be attached to the dream car, and that it should
just be taken as any other business transaction.one ought to remain cordial and polite, but firm.
Less emotions should be involved in the process so one has a clear head regarding the processes.
The focus should be getting the best deal, and for the dealership, they are just supposed to drive
sales and make as much profit as possible. The dealers are skilled negotiators who have perfected
their skills over time and they only need one to accept the deal they are offering (O’brien, 2016).
Conclusion
The key to a successful sale or buying is in the negotiations. The better negotiating skills one
has, the more likely they will get what they want. The negotiators also need to know that earlier
preparations and processing proper negotiations take proper time and planning. Hence, it is
important to have a strategy before negotiations and be willing to walk away during negotiations
when the deal is not favorable.

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References
Gates, S. (2011). The negotiation book: Your definitive guide to successful negotiating. John
Wiley
& Sons.
Holden, R. K. (2012). Negotiating with backbone: Eight sales strategies to defend your price
and
value. Pearson Education.
O'brien, J. (2016). Negotiation for Procurement Professionals: A Proven Approach that Puts the
Buyer in Control. Kogan Page Publishers.