Bargain Betty: Subtle tips for haggling

Good Guys. Photo / Doug Sherring

Warning: Santa is on his way to do liposuction on your wallet. One way to cut back on spending is to haggle on price.

They'll do it in a market in Fiji or Bali, but most people don't even think to negotiate when they're shopping on the high street. Yet it's no different to negotiating on a car.

There are numerous approaches to haggling. You can try the Third World market approach of saying, "I'll give you this" and showing them the money.

First World haggling can be more subtle. You might want to ask "what's the price for two?" Or even say outright, "I can't afford it", followed by a pregnant pause.

Another favourite of mine is: "Can I have that at trade price please?" My brother, who speaks electrical shop lingo, used this approach successfully at a branch of Ideal Electrical a couple of weeks back when I sent him to buy supplies.

The old price-matching game is an easy one. Ask a retailer to match another's price.

Sometimes you can do this up to a month after the purchase. A friend of mine bought a washing machine from The Good Guys only to notice it cheaper online at Noel Leemings. The Good Guys lived up to the company name and paid back the difference. Two weeks later, the Noel Leeming price dropped further and my friend got a second refund from the Good Guys.

One approach I like is to ask a retailer to match last week's or last month's bargain. If you missed the sale - such as the pesky one-day-sale-during-the-week ones by Farmers, Briscoes, the Warehouse and others of their ilk - ask if they'll sell you the item at the sale price.

Good hagglers stick to some straightforward rules:

One: The first big rule of haggling is to keep your cool. You'll never see a book on negotiation suggest that you get aggressive. Instead you need to work with the opposition to find a solution to your "problem".

Two: Make sure you're talking to someone who has authority to make the decision.

Three: Be willing to walk away. If you really want something badly, you might need to pay more than your bottom line.

Four: Do your homework. Find out how much the item sells for at other retailers and keep an eye on sale flyers.

Five: Never say never. I once met an accountant who haggled with the ASB to get his mortgage rate down half a per cent.

Six: A smile, compliment, good grace and even a joke can take you a long way if you want to get a price down.

Personally, I have a moral code that doesn't allow me to haggle in small owner-operated shops. Retailing is hard enough for them without some smart alec grinding down their profit. It's fair game, however, in large retailers - especially those sending profits overseas.