The Surprisingly Robust Effects of Narratives in Supplier Negotiations

Abstract

Narratives—or stories—are commonly viewed as powerful means to convince others, although it remains unclear how the narrator's use of deception in supplier negotiations influences their effectiveness. Grounded in narrative transportation theory, the authors investigated these dynamics using a vignette-based experiment with 332 business-to-business (B2B) sales professionals (Study 1), followed by post hoc interviews with 33 B2B sales professionals (Study 2), and a second vignette-based experiment with 290 B2B sales professionals (Study 3). The findings suggest that reliability-focused buyer narratives are associated with suppliers' integrity- and ability-based trust in buyers as well as suppliers' willingness to make concessions. Unexpectedly, these positive effects remain robust even when the buyer used deception beforehand—a result that differs from what schema theory would predict. Interviewees indicated that deception and narration are often viewed as independent tactics and that narration has the power to overshadow earlier communication. In addition, several participants described deception as part of the normal “negotiation game,” which might explain its limited impact on subsequent narratives. The findings suggest that receivers should remain vigilant and confirm the factual grounding of any narrative they encounter.