( B2-C1 ) Pré-Expert B2-C1 — Leçon 5

Negotiation & Persuasive Communication

Proposals, counteroffers, concessions, persuasion and win-win agreements in international business.

Négociation et communication persuasive · Leçon 5 / 20

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( 01 ) Introduction

🎯 Objectifs de la leçon

10 objectifs · 75–90 minutes

Cette cinquième leçon développe la négociation professionnelle : proposer, contre-proposer, concéder, persuader avec diplomatie et conclure un accord gagnant-gagnant.

Conduire une négociation professionnelle.

Présenter une proposition claire.

Faire une contre-proposition.

Défendre une position avec arguments.

Faire des concessions mesurées.

Persuader avec diplomatie.

Identifier les intérêts de l’autre partie.

Rechercher un compromis.

Trouver un terrain d’entente.

Construire une solution gagnant-gagnant et conclure un accord.

( 02 ) Vocabulary

📚 Advanced Negotiation Vocabulary

A. Négociation et accord

negotiation

négociation

negotiator

négociateur

bargaining

marchandage

proposal

proposition

offer

offre

counteroffer

contre-offre

agreement

accord

contract

contrat

terms

conditions / termes

condition

requirement

exigence

demand

demande ferme

expectation

attente

priority

priorité

objective

objectif

interest

intérêt

position

concession

compromise

compromis

trade-off

contrepartie

settlement

règlement / accord final

deal

accord commercial

commitment

engagement

flexibility

souplesse

deadline

échéance

budget

price

prix

payment terms

conditions de paiement

delivery

livraison

warranty

garantie

penalty

pénalité

incentive

incitation

alternative

solution de repli

bargaining power

pouvoir de négociation

mutual benefit

bénéfice mutuel

common ground

terrain d’entente

win-win solution

solution gagnant-gagnant

B. Persuasion

persuasion

influence

credibility

crédibilité

trust

confiance

argument

evidence

preuves

reasoning

raisonnement

benefit

bénéfice

advantage

avantage

drawback

inconvénient

concern

préoccupation

objection

justification

rationale

logique / raison d’être

impact

outcome

résultat

value

valeur

added value

valeur ajoutée

convincing

convaincant

compelling

très persuasif

reasonable

raisonnable

realistic

réaliste

C. Verbes de négociation

persuade

persuader

convince

convaincre

influence

influencer

demonstrate

démontrer

emphasize

souligner

highlight

mettre en avant

justify

justifier

propose

proposer

recommend

recommander

suggest

suggérer

reassure

rassurer

encourage

encourager

challenge

contester

acknowledge

reconnaître

clarify

clarifier

strengthen

renforcer

undermine

affaiblir

negotiate

négocier

compromise

faire un compromis

concede

concéder

leverage

exploiter un avantage

secure

obtenir / sécuriser

reach

parvenir à

D. Exemples en contexte

Our bargaining power depends on credible alternatives.

Notre pouvoir de négociation dépend d’alternatives crédibles.

We made a concession on delivery in exchange for longer payment terms.

Nous avons concédé sur la livraison contre des délais de paiement plus longs.

Their counteroffer highlighted the added value of a three-year contract.

Leur contre-offre soulignait la valeur ajoutée d’un contrat de trois ans.

Let's identify the interests behind each position.

Identifions les intérêts derrière chaque position.

A compelling argument relies on evidence, not pressure.

Un argument persuasif repose sur des preuves, pas sur la pression.

We finally reached a settlement based on mutual benefit.

Nous sommes enfin parvenus à un accord fondé sur un bénéfice mutuel.

( 03 ) Expressions

💡 Expressions de négociation

A. Présenter une proposition

I'd like to propose the following.

Introduit une proposition formelle.

One option would be to...

Présente une option sans l’imposer.

What I'd suggest is...

Met la suggestion en relief (cleft).

We would be prepared to...

Annonce ce que vous êtes prêt à accepter.

We could consider...

Ouvre une possibilité prudente.

B. Contre-proposer

I understand your proposal, but we'd need to consider...

Reconnaît puis nuance.

Would you be willing to consider...?

Contre-proposition très diplomatique.

Could we meet somewhere in the middle?

Propose un compromis.

What if we were to...?

Teste une hypothèse sans engagement.

Perhaps we could find an alternative.

Suggère une autre voie.

C. Concéder

We could be flexible on...

Signale une marge de souplesse.

We might be willing to...

Concession prudente et conditionnelle.

We could make a concession if...

Lie la concession à une contrepartie.

If you could..., we would be prepared to...

Échange conditionnel classique.

We could agree to that provided that...

Accord soumis à une condition précise.

D. Justifier une position

The main reason we're asking for this is...

Explique la logique de la demande.

Our priority is...

Clarifie la priorité réelle.

The key issue for us is...

Isole le point essentiel.

We need to take into account...

Introduit une contrainte à considérer.

E. Terrain d’entente

I think we have some common ground.

Signale un terrain d’entente.

Let's focus on what we can agree on.

Recentre sur les points d’accord.

We're both looking for a workable solution.

Rappelle l’objectif commun.

I think we can find a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Annonce une logique gagnant-gagnant.

Let's see if we can reach a compromise.

Invite au compromis final.

( 04 ) Grammar

🧠 Grammar – Conditionnels de négociation et modal perfect

Ces structures permettent d’échanger des concessions, de poser des conditions et de commenter le passé d’une négociation.

A. Conditional bargaining

If you reduced the price, we would increase the volume.

Marchandage conditionnel : condition + contrepartie.

If you could confirm delivery in 30 days, we'd sign this week.

Could adoucit la demande dans la condition.

We'd be prepared to commit to three years if the price dropped to $92.

La contrepartie précède la condition.

B. Provided that

We could agree to that provided that payment is made within 60 days.

Provided that = à condition que (formel).

Provided that quality is guaranteed, we can accept a shorter warranty.

Condition placée en tête de phrase.

C. As long as

We can be flexible on quantity as long as the unit price is reduced.

As long as = tant que / à condition que.

As long as the deadline is respected, penalties won't apply.

Condition et conséquence claires.

D. Would you be willing to…?

Would you be willing to consider a longer contract?

Demande polie d’ouverture.

Would you be willing to review the payment terms?

Formule non agressive pour relancer.

E. Modal perfect

We could have accepted the offer if the terms had been clearer.

Could have : possibilité passée non réalisée.

They must have expected a counteroffer.

Must have : déduction sur le passé.

We should have clarified the delivery schedule earlier.

Should have : regret / critique.

The delay may have affected their bargaining power.

May have : hypothèse prudente.

( 05 ) Conversation

💬 A Difficult Business Negotiation

John

Thank you for coming back to us. I'd like to propose the following.

Merci de revenir vers nous. J’aimerais proposer ceci.

Mary

Please go ahead, but I should say our margins are already tight.

Allez-y, mais nos marges sont déjà serrées.

John

Our priority is the unit price. We're looking at ninety-two dollars.

Notre priorité est le prix unitaire : quatre-vingt-douze dollars.

Mary

I understand your proposal, but we'd need to consider the volume.

Je comprends, mais nous devons tenir compte du volume.

John

What if we were to commit to a three-year contract?

Et si nous nous engagions sur trois ans ?

Mary

That changes things. We might be willing to review the price.

Cela change les choses. Nous pourrions revoir le prix.

John

We could agree to that provided that delivery takes thirty days.

Nous pourrions accepter à condition d’une livraison en trente jours.

Mary

Thirty days is difficult. Could we meet somewhere in the middle?

Trente jours est difficile. Pouvons-nous trouver un terrain d’entente ?

John

Thirty-five days would be acceptable if payment terms move to sixty days.

Trente-cinq jours seraient acceptables si le paiement passe à soixante jours.

Mary

We could be flexible on payment as long as the volume is guaranteed.

Nous pouvons être souples sur le paiement tant que le volume est garanti.

John

The main reason we're asking for this is our own cash-flow cycle.

La raison principale est notre cycle de trésorerie.

Mary

That's reasonable. We should have discussed it at the first meeting.

C’est raisonnable. Nous aurions dû en parler dès la première réunion.

John

Would you be willing to include a quality warranty as well?

Seriez-vous prête à inclure une garantie qualité ?

Mary

Provided that inspections are shared, yes, we could consider it.

À condition que les contrôles soient partagés, oui.

John

I think we have some common ground now.

Je pense que nous avons un terrain d’entente.

Mary

We're both looking for a workable solution rather than a quick win.

Nous cherchons tous deux une solution viable, pas un gain rapide.

John

Then let's confirm ninety-three dollars, thirty-five days and sixty-day payment.

Confirmons alors 93 dollars, 35 jours et paiement à 60 jours.

Mary

Agreed. I'll send the revised terms for signature tomorrow.

D’accord. J’envoie les conditions révisées demain.

Questions de compréhension

1. What is John's priority?

2. What does John offer in exchange?

3. What condition does John set for 35-day delivery?

4. On what is Mary flexible?

5. How does the negotiation end?

Score : 0 / 5

( 06 ) Listening

🎧 The Principles of Effective Negotiation

Écoutez le texte (2 à 3 minutes, voix masculine standardisée), puis répondez aux 5 questions.

1. What do experienced negotiators define first?

2. What is a position?

3. Why do interests matter?

4. How should concessions be made?

5. What defines a win-win outcome?

Score : 0 / 5

( 07 ) Reading

📖 Persuasion and Negotiation

Persuasion and negotiation are often treated as the same skill, yet they operate differently. Persuasion attempts to change how another party sees a situation; negotiation organises an exchange between parties whose interests only partly overlap. A negotiator who relies exclusively on persuasion may win an argument and still fail to secure an agreement.

Credibility is the foundation of both. It is built through accuracy rather than confidence. A negotiator who overstates a constraint, then quietly abandons it, teaches the other side that every statement is negotiable. By contrast, a party that explains its reasoning, acknowledges genuine drawbacks and provides verifiable evidence gains influence precisely because its claims can be tested.

The most persuasive arguments are framed around the other party's outcomes. A supplier is rarely moved by a client's internal budget pressure, but may respond to predictable volumes, reduced administrative cost or a longer commitment that justifies investment. Reframing a demand as a shared benefit does not disguise the demand; it makes acceptance defensible inside the other organisation.

Concessions require the same discipline. Every movement should be conditional, explicitly linked to a counterpart and presented as a trade rather than a retreat. Negotiators who concede to avoid discomfort typically end up conceding more, while those who trade calmly preserve both value and the relationship.

Finally, agreements survive only if they are realistic. Terms that one side cannot deliver generate penalties, renegotiation and mistrust. The purpose of a negotiation is not to extract the maximum in a single meeting, but to reach a settlement that both parties can implement and would willingly renew.

1. How do persuasion and negotiation differ?

2. How is credibility built?

3. How should arguments be framed?

4. What is said about concessions?

5. Why must agreements be realistic?

Score : 0 / 5

( 08 ) Speaking

🗣️ Speaking Practice – Negotiation

Répondez à chaque question dans un registre professionnel, enregistrez-vous puis réécoutez-vous.

How do you prepare for a negotiation? / Comment préparez-vous une négociation ?

Exemple : I define my objectives, priorities and limits before the first meeting.