Deception is tricky because it can be used in a number of ways. People can deceive intentionally by lying about a product’s reliability or simply only tell half the truth or omitting information when recommending something to a consumer. People can deceive by bluffing and they can deceive by misinterpreting information. People deceive for different reasons such as greed, to compete, for social reasons and for reasons unknown. If the deceiver will benefit from the deception then they will typically deceive in order to obtain their incentives. I feel a lot has to do with the mood of the deceiver and the same for whose being deceived. Typically when I am dealing with car salesmen I am already on guard because I know they are in a competition with other sales men and they will do anything they have to in order to get their incentive, which is money. Going in I have a defense mentality and they can pick up on it through my responses and they tend to become pushier with me because I am being so aloof. However when I usually go shopping at the mall I tend to have a great experience because I am open and friendly with the sales associates and that behavior is reciprocated. I know they typically don’t receive any incentives for sales and they just want to help me. These experiences are usually pleasant and I almost always end up purchasing products, thus everyone is satisfied.
Recently I have been deceived by my cable company At&t Uverse. When we signed up to receive their service we were promised a number of things such as better customer service overall, better channels and better prices. The first 6 months after switching were fantastic. We recommended them to all of our neighbors, friends and family members. However after the 6 months ended we noticed our bill jumped by about $100. I was stunned and very confused. I actually thought they messed our bill up so I called to complain. Once I waited 30 minutes on hold after going through a prompt five different times I was finally connected with a lady that barely spoke English. She explained to me that we were sold a promotional package and she was sorry we were never made aware of that. If we wanted to cancel our service it was going to be an additional $200 dollars on top of our bill. I as immediately irate I could not believe a company as large as At&t was deceiving their customers like this in order to increase sales in a new area. It appeared that we were the first in the area to be able to connect with the company and they installed a line especially for us. After going back and forth between her and the manager I was finally offered a resolution of the same promotional package for the rest of the year and they discounted our bill.
Flash forward 6 months we are still with At&t however our contract is terminating this time. After calling around to the other companies it would be more beneficial for my family to remain with At&t but only if we continue to have this discounted rate. Knowing we were deceived by them we never developed a trusting relationship. We look at them as deceivers and actually have the same mentality calling this time around. I get on the phone with a representative and explain to them that I am now highly dissatisfied with my service and I am cancelling since my contract is ending. I told them I had already contact the local competitor and planned on switching that week. Although I was bluffing I noticed I was treated much differently. I negotiated with the lady and she presented us with a full year for the same price we were already paying on the current promotional rate except now she through in a couple movie channels as an incentive to stay. I was of course satisfied and signed the contract for another year but I knew I had lied to get what I wanted. The original communication between the company and I left me with a bad experience and taught me to get what I wanted I was going to have to become a deceiver. I was positively reinforced with the same price for my cable for the year plus I was rewarded extra movie channels I was originally receiving. They reinforced by bad behavior.
Going forward I will become a better investigator when negotiating. I will establish trust, shift the frame, ask direct questions, listen carefully, pay attention to nonverbal cues and keep records and get things in writing. In the very beginning of the negotiation I will look at my partner directly in the eye and make small talk about something personal like family or something I am familiar they are interested in. I will then shift the frame of my point of view and try to be open to theirs. Seeing things from others frame of minds will help me be more flexible and willing to develop a balanced agreement. In my doing this it will allow them to reciprocate this type of behavior. During the negotiation I will continue to look at them directly and I will also ask them direct questions. Asking direct questions allows engagement to occur and people usually feel more connected to the other. Once I have asked questions I will open my body language up to listen and I will be attentive in hearing what they have e to say. Paying attention to their use of vocabulary, verbal cues, non verbal cues and visual cues will allow me to perceive if they are trying to deceive me. Once we have come to a conclusion and an agreement has been reached I will be sure to document it in writing as this will guarantee that they cannot manipulate or change anything.
Hoch, S. J., & Kunreuther, H. C. (2005). Wharton on making decisions. (1st edition.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Inc.
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