Get the other side’s attention even if you’ve never done a deal before.
In Selling to Vito, Parinello goes over 4 main topics that businesspeople are always worried about.
And they are: Making more money Increasing efficiency Saving money Maintaining compliance
If you can connect your deal's benefits to those areas, you'll get more interest from the other side.
Now let’s go over how to use each of these in an acquisition or joint venture negotiation.
If you’re reaching out about a potential joint venture, focus on the key benefits and not the features.
For example, you could create a menu of your digital footprint as below:
20,000 email list
5,000 on Instagram
10,0000 on Facebook
7,000 on Twitter
Then explain how a cross-promotion would make the other side more money, fill up their funnel, and save them advertising money (by stating what you charge to promote others, but they don’t have to pay it).
Waiving your regular fee makes your deal a no-brainer.
Now, what if you’re trying to acquire a business instead of partnering with it?
The most important thing here is not to approach the deal head-on.
If you can build a relationship pre-acquisition as a consultant, you’ll get a lot less push back.
When you decide to pitch the business's acquisition, bring up if they've thought about an exit strategy?
Then go over how selling to you would make them money and save them money, time, and headaches during their transition.
The only flaw that I see with these 4 areas is that they only cover the business side.
You still have to ask questions to make sure that the deal is a win-win.
The two books that will help you the most with that are Socratic Selling, and Never Split the Difference.
Here are a few questions that you could use in an M&A negotiation.
How can we structure this deal so that the workers that will be affected are happy?
Have you thought about an exit strategy?
What is most important to you when looking at a potential buyer of your business?
If you need more help with JVs and M&A check out the rest of the blog here.
And if you prefer video content on M&A and JVs head over to our YouTube channel.
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