你好，歡迎來到直路外貿學院。
Hello！ Welcome back to another episode of Simple University！
今天，我將根據義大利商業文化和談判中最常見的話題詳細介紹商務談判的方法。
Today I will enter into the details of the negotiation process according the Italian business culture and the most common topics of the negotiations。
1、靈活性，也適用於時間安排
在義大利的談判中最重要的一個特徵是靈活性。
與義大利公司的談判中剛性規則效果應用不佳。
義大利人非常具有“創造力“，以至於他們經常採用可以反覆修改或調整的短期或中期的計劃和戰略。
The first important feature of Italian negotiation process is flexibility。 Rigid rules do not work well in Italian companies。 Italian people are very “creative” people， even when they often adopt short/medium term plans and strategies that can be repeatedly modified or adjusted。
有時候這種工作方式具有優勢：他們可以根據現有情況不斷調整計劃，輕鬆解決問題，他們可以用更開放的方式解決他們的合作伙伴客戶的需求。
Sometimes this way of working can be an advantage： they can adapt their plan to the current situation and solve some issues easily； they can be more open to make some customization to answer the requests of their partners or clients。
但其他時候達成協議會變得更加困難，因為他們經常改變計劃。所以，要有耐心，不要從一個固定的的計劃開始，準備做一些改變。
But other times it can make harder to reach an agreement， because they are changing their planning too often。 So try to be very patient， never start with a rigid plan and be ready to make some changes。
而當靈活性和時間相互適應時候，會出現一些問題。正如我們之前探討的那樣，守時不是義大利人優先考慮的事項，但是如果你成為他的客戶或者合作伙伴則另當別論。
事實上，我們要嚴守時間，不僅要準時開會，還要準時考慮生產、交貨和付款！
It is also a problem， when flexibility is applied to time。 As we discussed before， punctuality is not a priority for Italian people， but it can be for their clients or partner。 In fact we have to consider punctuality not only as being on time for a meeting， but also for producing， for delivering， and for payments！
如果從義大利進口食品，我習慣於解決以下問題：我問我的供應商生產時間，他告訴我2周，並且在至少3周以後準備好一切一直到產品準備離開工廠。
Importing food from Italy， I am used to meet this problem： I ask my supplier the timing for production， he tells me 2 weeks and after it is at least 3 weeks to have everything ready to leave the factory。
所以，
當你和一家義大利公司打交道時，嚴格承諾按時完成工作不是個好主意，最好提前開始安排好談判過程。
例如，告訴他們你需要一個月完成所有過程，實際上你需要在2個月內完成它，這樣一切都會更好！
So when you are dealing with an Italian company remember that it will not be a good idea to work with strict deadlines and it will be better to start the process of negotiation in advance。 For example， tell them you need to finish all the process in one month when in reality you need to finish it in two months， and everything will be better！
2、注意談判過程時間長度
與義大利公司的談判過程還要注意時間長度。由於義大利人的靈活性，談判經常進行的會比較慢，因為義大利人傾向於仔細評估優勢和風險，而且義大利公司都有逐級決策的過程。
Negotiation process is also characterized by its length。 Often negotiations are conducted slowly， because of flexibility， because Italians tend to carefully evaluate advantages and risks， and because of the hierarchical decision-making process of Italian companies。
在談判期間，你可能正在和具有特定角色（技術、財務、市場導向）的不同人員交換資訊，而這些角色對於正在談判的事項具有有限的決策權。
大多數情況下，他們會向老闆報告以給出具體決定，從而減緩了整個談判流程。由於嚴格的公司登記管理結構，談判的最終決由主席集中並決定。
During the negotiations， you might be contacting and/or providing information to different people with specific roles （technical， financial， market oriented） who have limited decisional authority on the matter being negotiated。 Most often， they will report to their boss to take a specific decision， thus slowing down the process。 Final decisions， due to rigid hierarchical management structures are centralized and taken by the chairman。
即使開展業務的時間表很短談判的時候都耐心等待，重要的是給您的義大利合作伙伴留出時間。一種緊迫感通常會削弱一個人談判地位的企圖。另一方面，一旦達成協議，您的義大利合作伙伴將堅信他做出了最佳決定。
Be patient， even when the timescale for conducting business is short， it is important to give time to your Italian partners。 A sense of urgency is often taken as an attempt to weaken one’s bargaining position。 On the other hand， once the agreement has been reached， your Italian partner will be strongly convinced that he/she has made the best decision！
3、切忌討價還價
當我們的談判涉及價格方面時，週期會很長，價格談判是中國商業文化的重要特徵之一。作為外國人，我們很難想象從第一次會議以來，中國商人用他們的計算機討價還價。
但是如果你真的想和義大利人建立合作關係，就不要和他們一起討價還價。
Negotiation are also long when we come to negotiate the price。 Price bargaining is one of the most important features of Chinese business culture。 As foreigners， we imagine Chinese business men going around with their calculating machines to bargain prices since from the first meeting。 Well never do it with Italians if you really want to establish long relations with them。
首先，正如解釋的那樣，對於義大利人來說，關係是第一位的，而不是價格。
First of all because， as I explained， for Italians， relationship come first， not prices。
因此，
第一次會議只是為了相互瞭解，他們會將價格談判當成一種侵犯。
一旦你與他們建立了良好的關係，就可以討價還價，他們越信任你越會同意折扣，折扣是隨著時間而來的。多年來，他們合作的介乎往往具有更好的條件，不僅僅是價格，還有付款條件。因為他們已經將這些客戶視為朋友。所以，請你嘗試對義大利人進行耐心的等待。
So the first meeting is just to come to know each other and they could take a price bargaining as a kind of personal offense。 Once you establish a good relationship with them you can discuss about prices， the more they trust you the more they will agree on discounts。 Discounts also come with time。 Often clients that they have known for years have better conditions， not only on prices but also on payments terms， because they already consider those clients as friends。 So， again， try to be patient with Italians。
根據同樣的邏輯，如果你有一些義大利客戶，請準備經常重新協商價格。實際上，當你經常與他們開展業務往來並保持良好關係時，他們會將價格降低。不要當做負面訊號，他只是我們文化的一部分。即使是我的媽媽，當她去市場購物時，談到價格問題，她都會說，沒有問題，因為我一直是你們客戶。
According to the same logic， if you have some Italian clients， be prepared to renegotiate the prices often。 In fact they aspect the prices to go lower when you start to have regular business and a good relationship with them。 Do not take it as a negative signal， it is just part of our culture。 Even my mom， when she goes to the market， she negotiate prices telling to this or that shop “come on！ I have been your client for years！”。
4、注重產品質量
與義大利人談判的另一個重要方面是質量。
正如我們在第三節課看到的那樣，無論我們談論的是食品或者市場，義大利製造的產品最重要的特徵就是
高品質的原材料
。義大利人對他們的產品質量感到非常自豪。因此，永遠不要直接與他們爭論質量方面的問題，特別是你剛剛開始談判歷程，他們會告訴你：價格高，是因為質量很好！
nother important aspect of negotiation with Italian is quality。 As we saw in the third lesson， no matter if we are talking about food or about fashion， one of the most important feature of Made in Italy products is high quality of the raw materials。 And Italians are very proud of the quality of their products。 So never argue directly with them about quality aspects， especially if you are just starting a negotiation process。 They will tell you “the price is high， because the quality is high！”
在大多數情況下都是如此，但你應該知道質量是否真的那高，以確保你不浪費你的錢，對吧？如何在不冒犯義大利合作伙伴的情況下做到這一點？
and in most cases it is true。 But you should know if the quality is really that high to make sure you are not wasting your money， right？ And how can you do that without offending your Italian partners？
別擔心，你會想到的更容易，在談判開始並且您已經收集一般資訊時，你可以詢問一些質量認證。許多重要的國際質量標準在義大利也有應用，許多公司獲得了該標準所要求的認證。
Don’t worry， it is easier of what you can think。 After the negotiation already started and you have collect general information， you can ask some quality certification。 Many important international quality standards are also used in Italy and a lot of companies obtained the certifications required by this standards。
例如，許多義大利公司都有ISO9001質量管理證書，但每個行業都有不同的證書。因此，在您開始談判之前，很重要的是在Google進行研究。並列出所有適用與你所在行業的義大利國際質量證書，當您進行談判時，您可以詢問你的合作伙伴給您發一份副本。
For example， many Italian companies have certificates ISO 9001 for quality management， but for each industry sector there are different certificate。 So it is very important， before you start the negotiation， to make a research on Google and make a list of all the international quality certificate that are applied for Italy to the sector you are working for and when you are negotiating you could ask your partner to send you a copy。
當您與義大利客戶打交道時，質量也是一個非常敏感的話題，同樣在這種情況下，質量對義大利人非常重要。通常，義大利人依然認為中國製造的產品便宜並且價格很低。事實上，在過去幾年內，義大利從中國進口的大部分產品都是超級便宜，質量很低，也是假冒產品。
Quality is also a very sensitive topic when you are dealing with Italian clients。 Also in this case quality is very important for Italian people。 Usually Italian people still think that Made in China product is cheap but the quality is very low。 In fact， in the past until few years ago， the majority of the products imported in Italy from China were super cheap and the quality very low and also fake products。
在新聞中我們看到了很多關於中國產品質量的醜聞。例如義大利必須使用CE標註作為認證標誌，表明符合歐洲經濟區域內的產品的健康、安全和環境保護標準。
Also in the news we read about a lot of scandals about Chinese products’ quality。 For example， in Italy is compulsory the CE marking that is a certification mark that indicates conformity with health， safety， and environmental protection standards for products sold within the European Economic Area。
曾經發生了一件事情，在中國製造的一些兒童玩具商有假的CE標誌，對孩子們來說根本不安全，這個醜聞使義大利人對中國產品產生了強烈的影響。在過去的幾年內，情況正在改善。而義大利人開始欣賞更多的中國產品，這也歸功於像華為這樣在義大利取得成功的大品牌，
It happened in the past that some toys for kids made in China had a fake copy of the CE marking and were not safe at all for kids。 Scandals liked this one had a strong impact on the perception that Italian people have of Chinese products。 In the last years the situation is improving and Italian people start to appreciate more Chinese products， also thanks to some big brands like Huawei that had a big success in Italy。
但是大多數情況下，對中國製造的質量仍有偏見，因此，如果你有一些義大利客戶，請確保你的產品質量有充分的認可，例如提供貴公司擁有的國際質量證書副本。
But in the most of the cases， there is still a prejudice about the quality of Made in China。 Therefore， if you have some Italian clients， make sure you have strong arguments on the quality of your products， for example providing copies of international quality certificates your company may have。
總結
讓我們回顧今天關於與義大利人談判的情節。
我們看到與義大利人進行談判的過程中，你需要記住的4個主要特徵是：
Let’s recap today’s episode about negotiating with Italians。 We saw that the four main characteristics that you should remember before entering in a negotiation process with Italians are：
1、靈活性，也適用於時間的安排
2、談判過程的時間長度。
3、習慣於在不同的時期重新協商價格。
4、質量的重要性。
-Flexibility， also in timing
-Length of the negotiation process
-Habit to renegotiate the prices during the time
-Importance of quality