I was walking through Greenmarket Square in Cape Town this week and got to witness the local craft market selling tactics first hand. Each time I slowed to look at an item I was accosted by the store holder with a well thought out selling speech and deal makers. At first this was fun and I got to interact with the seller about their work and what they did, where they came from and their business. But then it was the same with all the engagements, selling turns to desperation and the negotiations turned into unnecessary leverage to secure the sale.

Techniques went from guilt about their starving families, to just hold this in your hands and then refusing to take it back, I was also told time and time again that specials were only for today. One guy even wanted to walk with me to an ATM to draw more money for his goods. As much as I appreciated their enthusiasm to sell, it is unnecessary to use blackmail to close the deal. My experience of wanting to taste some of Cape Town’s culture ended up as a bad almost fearful time and instead of having time to enjoy the time browsing the awesome array of crafts, I had to duck out and walk away from the market to keep my mood from turning sour through the constant harassment. I think in the interest of the market growing and welcoming more visitors to the market and surrounding restaurants and other similar places in our city some sort of education and workshops for the stall managers would go a long way to improving their selling and negotiation skills.

This is also a good lesson for small business owners, take stock of your selling skills and ask yourself if you ever use any techniques that may offend or leave the potential client feeling as though they were blackmailed into the sale.