Lady Cross seals the deal

Hi all

I thought I would share with you a quick hint about how to save money when making purchases, by sharing a recent shopping experience with you. I am not sure whether it is because of my non-practising lawyer status, or because of my Chinese heritage, but when purchasing items, I always remember the number one rule of negotiation - never accept a first offer.

Take for example the approach I took to buying a piece of jewellery for a close relative's special birthday. The piece that I picked out was not in the sale, and was priced at over £200. I sent a polite e-mail to customer services asking if they could offer me a discount code as I was buying a present for a 60th birthday. I pointed out that the item I wished to buy was not reduced, was retailing at a couple of hundred, and I would really appreciate any help they could offer me in relation to a special deal. A couple of days later, a very friendly and happy e-mail from a customer services adviser from H Samuel offered me an online code with a 15% discount. I also benefitted from cashback from my favourite cashback site Quidco (have you seen their latest advert on TV?).

I spoke to a friend at work about my success and she said she felt she could not bring herself to ask such a thing of a salesperson. I do have sympathy with that. If you feel uncomfortable about asking, then just don't. And to be honest, if you have that kind of vibe as you nervously ask Mr-Shiny-Shoes-in-a-Suit for a deal (while avoiding eye contact), the chances are that you will probably not strike gold. My friend agreed however that the worst response she could receive was a no. Which is true. And it is their prerogative to say no after all, so be prepared for that.

The key thing is to be polite, firm and non-abusive (non-abusive is important). After all, the staff are there to serve you and they probably make commission from your sale, so if they can help you commit to the sale with an incentive, then it is win-win situation - the best outcome in a negotiation scenario.

I know at times, customer service can be frustrating (you know my history with Santander), but at the end of the day, these people we encounter are not personally responsible for the bad experiences you have had. To be fair, sometimes they add to your irritation by being rude when you complain, which only exacerbates the situation, but generally I like to think that people are not horrible and do not have anything better to do then make your life a misery. Or has my foray from the steely legal sphere into the world of legal publishing left me soft and less cynical?

I'll let you be the judge of that.