NEGOTIATIONS (The General Approach)

NEGOTIATIONS (The General Approach)

Latest update: 10/6/2025 - (please check yellow highlights for the latest update)


Overview: This article provides insights into the general approach to negotiations. It highlights key concepts, fundamental ideas, and essential strategies for effectively negotiating deals or claims. 

What you need:


  • Revised Estimate (from INS) highlighted

  • List of Unwarranted line items

  • Calculations (if needed)

  • ADJ’s phone number

  • Script (if necessary)


Contents:


  1. Principles of Negotiation

  2. Negotiation 9

  3. Negotiating your Deal (Steps)

I. Principles of Negotiation

1. Mindset and Progress
  1. Negotiation is not a fixed skill; it improves exponentially with practice.
  2. Your beliefs and values shape your negotiation style; expanding them allows for growth.
  3. Developing a positive attitude towards negotiation makes the process more enjoyable and effective.
2. Building Rapport (Connect First!)
Establishing trust and a connection with the other party sets the foundation for a successful negotiation. This can be achieved through:
  1. Smiling: A simple yet powerful tool to create warmth and openness.
  2. Mirroring: Repeating key phrases or words the other party uses to build subconscious trust.
  3. Managing Temper and Volume: Maintaining a calm and controlled demeanor fosters productive discussions.
  4. Choosing Words Wisely: The words you use shape the conversation and its outcome.
  5. Using Encouraging Sounds: Simple acknowledgments like "mm-hmm" or "I see" keep conversations flowing.
3. ABC of Negotiation
  1. Acknowledge: Validate the other party’s perspective.
  2. Be Curious: Ask questions, listen actively, and seek to understand.
  3. Call to Action: Move the conversation toward a resolution.
4. Understanding Leverage
Leverage is a crucial aspect of negotiation. Recognizing what the other party values and what pressures they face allows you to frame your requests effectively
  1. Act as if they have a "$1M check" for you – assume value in the conversation.
  2. Ask "Why?" to uncover their motivations and constraints.
  3. Avoid assumptions – instead, confirm through active questioning and listening.
5. Vicki’s Key Insights
  1. Top 3 Lessons She Wishes She Knew Earlier:
    1. The power of emotional intelligence and tactical empathy.
    2. The importance of patience and silence in negotiations.
    3. How framing questions can shift the negotiation dynamics.
  2. Top 2 Costly Mistakes in Negotiations:
    1. Making assumptions about the other party’s motivations.
    2. Accepting the first offer without exploring alternatives.
  3. Top 1 Proudest Win:
    1. Successfully negotiating a major deal by leveraging patience, curiosity, and rapport-building techniques.
II. Negotiation 9

1. What is Negotiation 9?
N9 is a skill set designed to improve communication and negotiation effectiveness across various settings, including business, customer service, and personal relationships. The core principles are adapted from active listening techniques pioneered by Carl Rogers and later refined for crisis intervention and business negotiations.

2. Key Objectives of N9:
  1. Demonstrate tactical empathy
  2. Build rapport with counterparts
  3. Reach resolution and agreement faster
  4. Develop trust-based influence in various scenarios
  5. Improve communication skills through practice in low-stakes situations
3. Understanding Tactical Empathy:
Tactical empathy is the strategic application of emotional intelligence. It involves:
  1. Recognizing the perspective of others
  2. Vocalizing understanding without necessarily agreeing
  3. Encouraging open dialogue and validation
Unlike sympathy, which involves sharing another person’s emotions, tactical empathy is about demonstrating comprehension and making the other party feel heard.

4. The Negotiation 9 Skills:
  1. Labels – Use phrases like "It seems like..." or "It sounds like..." to encourage elaboration and uncover motivations.
  2. Mirrors – Repeat the last few words of a statement to prompt further explanation and establish rapport.
  3. Dynamic Silence – Create intentional pauses to encourage the other party to continue speaking.
  4. Paraphrase – Restate what has been said in your own words to show active listening and understanding.
  5. Summary – Summarize key points during and at the end of a conversation to ensure clarity and agreement.
  6. Calibrated Questions – Ask open-ended questions (preferably "What" and "How") to guide discussion and reveal challenges.
  7. "I" Messages – Use structured statements to express concerns non-confrontationally (e.g., "When you do X, I feel Y, because Z").
  8. Encouragers – Provide verbal and nonverbal cues (e.g., nodding, "mm-hmm") to show engagement.
  9. Rule of Three – Obtain agreement on a point three times to ensure genuine commitment rather than passive compliance.
5. The Role of Tone in Negotiation
Tone is a critical element in negotiations. It influences perception and sets the emotional tone of an interaction. The three primary negotiation personality types include:
  1. Assertive Voice: Direct, commanding, often counterproductive.
  2. Analyst Voice: Calm, steady, used to communicate key information (20% of conversation).
  3. Accommodator Voice: Friendly, engaging, essential for rapport-building (80% of conversation).
6. Key Takeaways for Effective Negotiation:
  1. Stay curious about the other party's needs and perspectives.
  2. Focus on making the other person feel heard and validated.
  3. Practice N9 skills in low-stakes scenarios to build confidence.
  4. Be mindful of tone, as it is five times more impactful than words.
7. Further Learning:
  1. Read Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss.
  2. Explore additional training by the Black Swan Group: https://www.blackswanltd.com/services/training-for-individuals
By applying the Negotiation 9 framework, individuals can improve their ability to influence, resolve conflicts, and communicate effectively in all areas of life.
III. Negotiating your Deal (Steps)

1. After HLX
  1. Review the highlighted estimate
  2. Identify or make a list of unwarranted line items - this is recommended, but not required.


2. Identify line items to negotiate with INS/ADJ.
  1. It is best if you can negotiate all the unwarranted/partially warranted to be able to get more increase and to practice and get used to negotiating. But as a start, it’s good to select at least 3 items to discuss with the Adj.
  2. In selecting line items to discuss with INS/ADJ, choose the ones with the highest RCV so it can help get your increase higher.
  3. Try to negotiate O&P as well - in cases when O&P is not warranted.
  4. Prepare photos and calculations if needed.
  5. Study and review the deal.
  6. Check out the following documents to help you understand more about the following line items:
    1. Asphalt Starter Asphalt Starter
    2. Roof Flashing ROOF FLASHING
    3. Ice and Water Barrier ICE AND WATER BARRIER.docx
    4. Overhead and Profit Understanding Overhead and Profit (O&P).docx
    5. Ridge Cap RIDGE CAP 2.docx
    6. Roofing Felt Roofing Felt (1).docx
    7. Roof Vents Roof Vents
  1. Use the most recent field in the CRM (effective 7/16/2025):
    1. Fill up with your top 5 to 10 items that you're pursuing. This will allow us to be guided during negotiating.
    2. When bringing your deal during 3D discussions, this is also going to allow us to better guide your negotiation strategy, Plus, it makes it easier for Vannesa to review everything when you're ready to close the claim.

3. Negotiation Call
  1. Refer to “Principles of Negotiation” and “Negotiation” for Etiquettes during a negotiation call.
  2. Have your scripts, questions, and calculations (if needed) ready
  3. Always ask for the best time to follow up when ADJ agrees to review again.
  4. Check out RolePlay sessions to get more ideas on how to do Negotiation Call: Role Play Sesh
4. Send emails recap
  1. It is best to send an email recap to your adj especially if you discussed items that he agreed to take a look into to review more.
  2. If you have extra documents and additional photos to send, you can add it together with the recap email.
  3. If you send extra documents and additional photos, change the stage to Sent to INS, and call to confirm the next day.
  4. Sample recap email:


5. Follow up for updated RE
  1. After the Negotiation call, follow up with the ADJ for the latest copy of Revised Estimate.
6. Close the deal
  1. WHEN TO CLOSE?
    1. If the increase is more than $1K and you are done negotiating, proceed to closing the claim (it doesn't matter when the production date it).
    2. If the increase is less than $1K and you are done negotiating (and still have a potential to get more increase when there are photos available), then leave it open and wait for the production date.
  2. Please note that we need to close the claim if we get an increase of $20,000 up as part of our process but still continue with negotiation.
  3. If there is nothing more to fight or negotiate, close the deal.
  4. Refer to KB - Closing (CLOX): https://claimsupplementpro.zohodesk.com/portal/en/kb/articles/closing-claims-clox
If you have any comments, feedback or questions, please let us know—we greatly appreciate your input: GOOGLE FORM

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