Rejection: Quotes

I like haggling. Being able to buy crap in bulk that I didn’t need for a fraction of the cost of something authentic which will last a fraction of the time as the authentic item is invigorating. Pitting my wits against a wily old shopkeep is the enthralling. I’ll even haggle (albeit unknowingly) during every day grocery transactions. We went to buy Magnum’s from a servo the other day and it was $3.50 for one or $6 for 2. I was happy with just the one but the shopkeep tried to upsell to the 2 for $6 option. I said, on the balance of things it probably wasn’t worth it but if it was 2 for $5 I’d do it as it presented a better value option. My mate looked at me and said “Are you haggling with Caltex?” I said no but now, upon review I see that I was. Is it a bad thing? Not really, perhaps socially unacceptable but unbad.

Recently my haggling skills have been used in a more formal setting; receiving holiday quotes. Just like the stock market is gambling for white collars, I reckon requesting quotes is just a more sophisticated version of haggling. I had to get quotes for the impending honeymoon as I’ve allowed Marissa to do everything else so far and she’ll probably crack it if I continue to do so. The process went well and we were able to save about $1800 on requesting quotes and different package options; money that will go straight on the oversized cocktails and tacky tourist crap. The worst part about requesting these quotes is that I have to tell people that they weren’t successful with their submission to create a honeymoon package for our wedding. We fear rejection and I think people try to shy away from rejecting people. I don’t. It either makes me a tender soul or completely oblivious to the needs and feelings of others. I’ll let you decide.

I like to add a personal touch and I’ll type up a little rejection email and send it out to them sandwiched between compliments.

Dear Agent,

Thanks for your recent submission for Cashman Honeymoon 2009. Out of all the travel agents we saw your carpets were by far and away the cleanest. (You can interchange this with your teeth were the whitest, you had the most picturesque posters on your wall or perhaps come up with your own.)

We were overwhelmed by the quality of the quotes and we regret to inform you that unfortunately you were unsuccessful with your pricing.

It’s not all bad news though. We believe you should keep at it. You have a winning attitude, just not this time and we’re sure you will be successful with another couple in the not too distant future. (I like to keep this part standard. Some people think it may be condescending, I like to think it’s encouraging)

Regards

Ray Cashman

Try it yourself with tradesmen, professionals and even your local supermarket and let me know the results. Letters for the people!