You Must Be Trippin'

Negotiate Your Way to a First-class Vacation

November 7 2008 by Neal Mueller

During my adventure travels I keep coming back to two central truths:

1. It's amazing what you can get just by asking


2. A little kindness goes a long way

This post will focus on how to upgrade your vacation with a little negotiation.

I'll start with a few over-arching negotiation principles that apply across many facets of life. These should be no-brainers, but are often minimized or forgotten in the heat of a negotiation.

1. Find the decision maker. It is a complete waste of time to negotiate with someone who does not have the power to grant what it is you are asking for. The good news is if your requests are not overly ambitious, the person you are speaking with can help you out.
2. Baby steps. Don't ask for the world 3 minutes into a conversation. You'll fail every time. Incremental gains will get you much further.
3. Know your limits. And try to reach them. Once the negotiation begins, there are three things that will help you move mountains: Be interested. Be kind. Be smart.

Be interested: Talk to them about the weather. Ask them if it's been a long day for them. If they bring up any particular topic, engage them in that topic (family, friends, weekend plans, etc.). It's not creepy to care. It's not fake if you are interested.

Be kind: If they respond in a kind voice tell them that you've had a long day of travel, and what a pleasant surprise to finally speak with a friendly person in customer service. Then say "thank you." More than likely they've had a long day as well, filled with dozens of customers - most of whom were rushed, many of whom were rude, and few of whom took five seconds to say a kind word. In 2 minutes of interaction you've just broken down walls that hours of "arguing" or "convincing" wouldn't accomplish.

Be smart: At this point they are probably willing to help you. Now, be smart about what you ask for. Certain things are easy for them to grant, other things are more difficult. General rule, if it costs the company money it falls into the latter category. You are now in a position to get just about anything from the former. Hotels and rental cars are the easiest examples. If it's a slow night the hotel should have plenty of rooms sitting empty. Politely ask if they have any upgraded rooms or suites available? Most airport rental car companies have a surplus of cars on any given week, and it is within the power of the customer service reps to grant an upgrade to an SUV or Premium class without much hassle. Again...Don't be greedy. Don't reserve a Mid-size and expect to drive away in a convertible or Cadillac Escalade.

Email This Comments (0)

Categories : Packed & Ready

0 Comments

Leave a comment

Name
Email Address
	Remember personal info?

Your comment may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.

Comments (You may use HTML tags for style)

Captcha:

Type the characters you see in the picture above.

I certify that I am the author or sole owner of all content I am submitting in my comment. I have read, understand and agree to the Terms and Conditions of this Site.