Crucial Tips For Bartering

Bartering, haggling or negotiating - they all mean the same thing when it comes to shopping and trying to get a good price, so if you plan on visiting a country or city where bartering is key, it is well worth reading up and getting some tips.

To many Westerners, the idea of not paying a fixed price for something - or having the price on a label - is almost incomprehensible. We live in a world of fixed price goods, sales, reductions and special offers - but in all these instances, the price we pay is the price on the label of whatever it is we wish to buy. However, there are places in the world where nothing has a price and everyone is waiting to haggle. These places are becoming increasingly accessible with affordable air travel, so you need to have your wits about you if you want to avoid getting ripped off.

The principle of bartering is a very simple one; a salesman will have a price they want to charge, and you will have a price you want to pay - bartering gets both parties to somewhere in the middle. However, there are many subtle complexities here that make the process a lot more intense. The first thing to remember is that the salesman knows you are a tourist and that you will generally have a lot of money compared to locals. The salesman also knows that the prices you are used to paying at home are far bigger than the prices that he needs to charge to make a good profit, but that won't stop them from trying to inflate a price by up to ten times.

You will almost always be asked to propose a price that you want to pay for an item. Think about what price you want to pay, and then (at least) half that price; you can even third the price to get a lower starting off point. You will need to be able to do the currency conversion in your head - don't worry if it is only approximate. The worst thing you can do at this first stage is to propose a price that is really far too high, so if in doubt, go with the lowest price you can.

The next stages of the bartering process involves the salesman counter offering your price - this will usually still be significantly higher than what they would need to make a profit, so be sure to keep this in mind and do not immediately counter offer with the half way point - the salesman will just increase this further towards his price.

The bartering process will continue until you either reach a price that you are happy with, or with you walking out the shop or away from the salesman. This in itself can be a very powerful tactic, as the salesman will think they are about to lose a sale; you can use this as a bluff, but you do actually have to be prepared to walk away from the sale.

Always remember that bartering is a way of life in many cultures (but not western cultures), so you are almost always going to be paying more than a local would, but that is also part of the tourism industry. Also remember that many sales people enjoy the process, and find it fun - do not insult or offend them.

As a final note, when bartering, remember that it is often an exercise in "saving face" - if you are not prepared to move up from your lowered price, you will not get a deal; it is better to propose a lower price in the first place, and then come up to meet the salesman's price, as this is considered to be "good for everyone

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