Khoa Bui - The Online Entrepreneur

Today was an interesting day.


It’s Saturday and it’s one week to go before I pack my bags and start my Around the World holiday. Lately I’ve been so busy finishing off client work that I honestly haven’t had much time planning what I was going to pack and prepare.


Anyway, today I had some free time so I wrote down on a scrap piece of paper what I definately needed to buy.

1. New Back Pack that’s light, easy to carry and durable. (My last trip to China, I bought a huge back pack but the “metal” plate that held the pack together snapped)
2. New Digital Camera. (I’m Asian…)

I then headed off to the city and began my shopping for the back pack and digital camera.


First stop was Mountain Designs which is a place where they sell various camping, hiking and travelling gear. There was great backpack that caught my attention. After trying it out a few times, checking the straps, material etc and speaking with the friendly assistant, I decided to purchase the back pack (there’re great at sales arn’t they?)


As he started to process the goods, I started to think about whether I should ask for a discount. Of course usually when I do this, many thoughts occur - “Are you a cheap skate?, He won’t accept it, it’s a big business, he might get offended, it’s rude, just pay it” Anyway, being stubborn as I am and always challenging negative thoughts, I said to the man “So, it’s $220 right? Let’s make it $200″ I paused and waited. The man smiled and said “sure!”. I handed over the money and off I went with my new back pack saving myself $20.


As I was shopping around for a new digital camera, I found one for sale at a popular store for $380. It was the Cannon IXUS 85I5 10 megapixel. I thought that was pretty reasonable and decided I was going to purchase it. Anyway, before I did that, I decided to quickly pop by the store next door to see if they had any better deals (who knows) and they did. They were selling the same camera for $350. So I saved another $30 by walking a few meters.


I spoke to the assistant about puchasing the camera. After trying it out and speaking with the assistant I once again tried negotiating the price using the same line I did at that other store. “So, it’s $350 right? Let’s make it $300 buddy” The guy said “no worries, come over to the counter and I’ll get you to sign a document that gives you a further 10% discount when you are at the airport” Not only I just saved another $50, I also gained another 10% of the total price to claim when I arrive at the airport which was a bonus!


Today I realised that by asking a simple line and having the attitude of “you’re going to buy the damn thing anyway so why not give it a shot” I managed to save over $130 dollars which all it took was a few seconds to voice my offer, if I never did, I would be lower in cash.


So you might be thinking, “whats the big deal anyway, it’s only $130″ yes it’s true. However it’s not the amount that you should focus on, it’s the techinque and deal you can apply it to. For example, the start of this year, I successfully purchased a house and used the same negotiating techniques to form a deal on my house. I managed to save over $32,000 by simply asking for a better offer and negotiating a win/win situation.


So if you thinking of purchasing that nice dress you always wanted, why don’t you try asking them a better deal. The only thing that is holding you back is your mind. Getting a better deal by simply voicing a few words can make the difference by either not having enough cash to pay some bills and struggling or having a champagne with friends while wearing your favourite dress that you bought on sale and knocked off a further 30%.


Try it.