Sales and customers
How to respond when a client asks for a discount
A discount request at the end of a deal is often a test, not a condition. Do not say yes or no straight away: ask where the request comes from, and if you give something, always get something back. A discount with nothing in exchange teaches the client that your price was inflated.
How to handle this conversation
Ask where the number comes from
“I understand. Is that figure driven by your budget, by another quote, or by your procurement rules?” What you offer next depends on the answer.
Trade, do not give
“I can take five percent off with a two-year contract or with payment upfront.” Every concession has a price on the other side.
Change the scope, not the rate
If the budget is fixed, offer less for less: “We could start with one department and expand in the second quarter.”
Know your floor before the call
Decide in advance the lowest point you will accept. Then you can calmly say: “I cannot go to that number, but here is what I can do.”
A client is asking me for a discount
- Difficulty
- Medium to hard
- Duration
- 8-12 minutes
The situation
After several weeks of talks the client has accepted the scope and timeline. At the final meeting, when the contract was about to be signed, their buyer asks for fifteen percent off. You have some room on price, but not that much and not for free. You want to close the deal and keep a reasonable margin.
Who you talk to
Buyer in the client’s procurement team
Experienced and polite, but has a bonus tied to savings. Says competitors offer more, that “all our suppliers give us a discount”, and waits in silence for you to give ground.
The counterpart also has private goals and information that are never shown upfront. You discover them only through the conversation, the same way you would in real life.
What makes it hard
- The request comes at the end, when you already want the signature.
- The buyer cites a cheaper quote they never show.
- Silence after your answer pushes you to add more concessions.
Your goals
- Find out what is behind the discount request
- Concede only in exchange for something specific
- Close the deal on terms above your floor
What the report looks at
- Whether you asked about the reason before answering
- Whether concessions were trades, not one-way gifts
- How you handled silence and references to competitors
- Whether the call ended with clear agreed terms