As a startup, navigating the expensive world of business can be daunting. Every product or service can seem out of reach, especially when you’re trying to make every dollar count. This article explores how to leverage your assets to negotiate better deals for your business, maximizing your value and saving precious resources.
If you have a product or service that’s just as valuable as the one you’re trying to buy, a swap might work. This can be a mutually beneficial arrangement, where both parties benefit from the exchange.
Don’t limit yourself to only thinking about your business’ main product or service as your trading leverage. You have other skills that you’ve had to learn as you’ve grown your business, and those can be very valuable to others facing similar challenges.
Hustling isn’t just for discounts. You can often get more value out of deals than you would have, simply by asking. Sometimes, the things you can get might not have been available to you otherwise, but because you’re already doing business with your partner, they’re incentivized to work with you on what you’re asking for.
Even if you don’t have a product or service that would be interesting to your potential partner, you still might have something non-obvious to offer. This is where thinking outside the box pays off massively.
You can't get everything by bartering, but you’ll never get anything by staying quiet. Don’t be afraid to ask for what you want. The value you gain from hustling often outweighs the fear of being told "no." Always be thinking about how you can add value to your deals and create win-win partnerships.
Ask anything...