Money Saving Tip #2

Have you ever gone into a car dealership to buy a car? It's a pretty cool place to go to look, and dream. It's a little bit harrowing to actually talk to a car salesman. Why? Because, of course, he's there to sell you a whole lot of car. Now, not just a car. A whole lot of car. Because the car you want and the car you can afford are sometimes not the same thing. There are all the add-ons--those fabulous features that raise the price. What can you live without? You live on the coast? You don't need air conditioning, do you? I mean, it's negotiable, right?

Negotiating is Part of the Game

You didn't know? There is never just one price for a car. There are so many possible prices. Don't spring for the posted price. You've got to play the game first. I knew a woman once who went in alone to buy a car. She was in her 50s and she supported herself by budgeting carefully. And she was no dummy. She followed the very nice salesman into his office to finalize the sale. But she was prepared to say no to the first offer. And the second offer. In fact, the salesman quoted her 4 prices, each one lower than the last.

How it works

I asked her in amazement how she managed that. She said, "I listened to him, then I picked up my purse." What? "You picked up your purse and then what?" I asked. She told me then that each time she thought the price was too high for her budget she took a moment to consider it then reached down to pick up her purse to stand and leave. The salesman knew what that meant---no sale. He picked up the cue, and lowered the price. She came out all right and so did he.

Just say no, or later....

I played this game the other day, though I didn't know it at the time. I was sent an email about renewing my website. It was nice enough of the company to send me a notice 3 mos in advance, but I had time. So I ignored it. I received another couple of emails regarding the coming expiration of my domain name. Procrastinating and being busy are sometimes the same thing, you know. Again, I ignored them. Each email had a better offer. Finally I signed in with the promotion code to renew. But the code didn't reduce the price...and I didn't complete the transaction. Instead I noticed the live chat button, so i pressed it.

Live chat will save you money

I love live chat. The people are so helpful and patient. I explained that I had a code and it wasn't working. Regina said she might have a few better offers for my renewal. I listened and said, no to the 2 years at 30% off and the 5 years at 65% off offers. She counter-offered with another --this one considerably reduced-- 70% off for 9 years.

Keep an open mind

No, I just want to renew one more year--not really interested in more than that. She counter-offered with one last offer--one year at 25% off. I did a quick price comparison and took the 5 year offer. Obviously 9 years and 70% off was the best offer, but I just can't think that far ahead.

So, this is the tip: Don't be afraid to negotiate. Pick up your purse. And lastly, keep an open mind. And you may just save money in the long run.