VANELLENCE
Research: understand both sides and prepare a focused conversation
Good preparation connects the target customer’s situation with your own offer. Research considers both sides: which changes or interests could matter to the customer, and what can you actually deliver, justify commercially and commit to? This creates a basis for relevant questions and realistic negotiation options.
Free foundation: a focused view of both sides
The starting point is the most relevant connection between your offer and the target company. Describe your industry and offering, preferably using your company website, and identify the customer and its public website. Add your conversation objective and important conditions.
The concise preparation highlights relevant connections, visible gaps and useful opening questions. This also suits smaller, regularly recurring deals: a clearly framed question can help reveal an unsuitable assumption before a proposal is made.
Pro: explore connections and options in greater depth
Pro allows more scope for additional sources, fuller business and offer context, and different possible courses of action. For complex B2B conversations, dependencies, relevant functions, commercial consequences and counterarguments can be explored more extensively.
The extra depth helps prepare alternatives. Which conditions favour a limited initial engagement? What reciprocal commitment might justify a longer contract? Scope and depth distinguish the plans. Supported statements and responsible handling of information remain the standard throughout.
Four fields keep the reasoning traceable
- Fact: Which specific statement does the available material support?
- Evidence: Which original source, passage and date belong with it?
- Interpretation: What could the statement mean for this conversation?
- Open question: What needs confirmation, further information or challenge?
Conflicting information belongs in this structure too. A company announcement about growth may suggest new requirements; it does not establish a budget or a contact’s personal motivation. Statements about your own offer are also checked for conditions and points that still require confirmation.
Leave with a concrete conversation question
Our article Good research starts on both sides of the negotiation walks through an example. Our glossary entries on evidence and context explain the foundations.
Tell us about your offer, target company and conversation objective. We will establish a sensible scope for your situation and clarify how you can access the application.