SLC-S24/W1 - Tangled Emotion | The Powerful Conversation.

‎Hello, Steemians. How are you? I hope you're fine and doing well. I am Muhammad Sabbir Akib from Bangladesh.
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‎I thought about both topics. The emotional one gives me a hard time. In my opinion, that's very critical. If peaking both of them were compulsory, I am pretty sure I would be bad at that. Well, I am kind of a shopkeeper. Every shopkeeper is a customer, too. I work as a pharmacist. So I am dragging it here, pretending to be a patient who is going to buy some medicine from a Pharmacy. It will help me because I am experienced in this sector.

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Customer: Hello. Can you serve me these medicines in this prescription?
Pharmacist: Let me take a look. OK. Well, I can. Just give me a few minutes.

Customer: Take your time. I am waiting.
Pharmacist: Well, I am giving you a one-month course.
Customer: Sure.

_{After a while, gathering all the prescribed medicine,}

Pharmacist: Here is your desired medicine, sir.
Customer: How much does it cost?

_{After calculating.}

Pharmacist: All of them will cost you $200.
Customer: That’s a lot. Can I get a discount?

Pharmacist: Well, medicine offers very little profit for us. It’s hard to give a discount.

Customer: Yeah. I heard about that. But you can consider a thing. I am newly come this town. If you offer a discount, you may get a permanent customer.

Pharmacist: Good to know that. I also like those who come here regularly. Let me see what I can do for you. But you know, Pharmacy is a different kind of business. We had to maintain the temperature. No other shop needs to do that as a mandatory requirement. This cost us more for maintenance.

Customer: That’s true indeed. But we, the customer, are helpless. You know, all those medicines for a combined patient of Type-2 Diabetes, Cardiac diseases, and heart failure. He needs to take these medicines until he is alive. It’s cost me most of my salary.

Pharmacist: I felt sorry for this. Yes, you are right. He will need this till he is taking his breath. Well, after considering all of your matters and in order to get a regular customer, I am giving you the highest discount we can offer is 7%. Are you OK with this?

Customer: So nice of you. Yes, I am OK with this. It will help me to save something for the future. You just got a permanent customer.

Pharmacist: Yes, that was my initial thought. After all, $200 from a customer is a lot. See you next month.
Customer: Sure.

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Have you ever successfully bargained your way to a great deal? What worked for you persistence, politeness, or a little humor?

‎I am not a good bargainer. I usually don't shop much. I go to a shop and ask politely if I can get a discount. Back in 2014-15, I was a good bargainer when I used to go to get some clothes.

Do you believe it's fair to negotiate prices in local or small shops? Where do we draw the line between saving money and respecting hard work?

‎It depends on what kind of shop it is. Shop for medicines, groceries; don't offer much discount. According to our culture, bargaining is a habit. When you go to buy some clothes, vegetables, fruits, or fish, you have to bargain. There is no other option. No matter how large or small that shop is. There is a secret in all kinds of business. No one sells his/her goods or products without benefit. There is too much competition in the business sector here. Everyone has to give a discount to the customer to keep their business. Sometimes, it's hard to survive in that condition.

What is your strategy when you ask for a discount? Are you more of a sweet talker, a quiet smiler, or a straight talker?

‎I mentioned earlier that I am not a good bargainer. I just asked politely for a discount. I am a shopkeeper and I know how to convince another shopkeeper. When they do not agree to give me a fair discount, then I tell them that I am a business person too. Like all other sectors, there is a soft corner for a businessperson for another businessperson. I never argued, never disagreed, everything he said, I am just, okay, I know that. This is how I convinced a shopkeeper to give me a discount. It's always working

What is the most unexpected or hilarious response you have ever heard from a shopkeeper? Some replies stay with us forever. Share your funniest memory!

‎It is not hilarious, nor funny; there is some response I remembered. It was in 2015 that I went to a shop to buy a shirt to attend my uncle's wedding ceremony. We were negotiating the price of a shirt that I like. In the end, the shopkeeper agreed to give with the money I offered by saying, You are a tough customer. You talk sweetly. That's why I couldn't be rude to you or ask for something higher. Well, you can get this with the money you offered.
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‎I remember another negotiation. That was when I first got a saree for my mother. I checked some and chose one, and then I told the shopkeeper, Look, I have no idea about the price of this saree. I am buying this for my mother for the first time in my life. So whatever price you ask, I will give it to you. After hearing this, he becomes confused. After a bit, she told me, What can I say? You are taking the toughest exam of my life. I can't go high. It will be a betrayal to a man like you. Then he told me a price that I can't imagine. That price looked so cheap. I simply thanked him and bought the saree with a great feeling.

In a pricing debate, who do you usually support, the customer looking for value or the shopkeeper trying to survive? Why do you lean that way? Personal experience or principle?

‎I am always with the customer, despite being a shopkeeper. Every business has its secret. Many people think they know the secret, but they do not until they get into it. In our country, Bangladesh, the Businessman who can't survive even after giving a discount, in my opinion, is not a businessman. He is like a person who can't swim but still goes to the river and jumps in. Drowning in the water is the only destination for him. No excuse at all for his failure.
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I want to mention @impersonal, @zulbahri, and @abubakar121.