Should i negotiate salary

Those details might include information like:. Reach out to the recruiter or hiring manager to set up a time to speak over the phone.

Speaking over the phone or in-person allows you to have a back-and-forth conversation, express gratitude and clearly communicate your requirements. Try to be respectful and clear as the recruiter or hiring manager will be the ones advocating for your salary to the decision-makers.

Practicing your talking points can help you gain confidence and identify areas of improvement. The best way to practice would be in front of a trusted friend or colleague that can provide helpful feedback.

Alternatively, you can try recording your conversation on a camera or speaking in front of a mirror. Delivering your negotiation with confidence is as important as the words you say. The more confidence you convey, the more confident the employer will be in their consideration of your feedback. Confidence, an appreciation of our own abilities and qualities, should not be confused with arrogance, an exaggerated sense of our importance.

Lack of confidence can also result in over-explaining or apologizing for your ask, neither of which is helpful in a negotiation scenario. Instead, confidently and simply state your requested salary, including a brief summary of your reasoning. The pay an employer offers should account for the value you provide.

After all, you never know what opportunities they may have available for you in the future. One fundamental rule of salary negotiation is to give the employer a slightly higher number than your goal. If you provide a salary range, the employer will likely err on the lower end, so be sure the lowest number you provide is still an amount you feel is fair. Recruiters and hiring managers negotiate often, so they will likely be prepared to ask important, sometimes intimidating questions to figure out your motivations.

Some questions you can expect include:. Even if the employer is unable to provide the salary amount you want, they may be able to offer other forms of compensation. For example, you may be able to negotiate more stock options , extra vacation days, a sign-on bonus or additional work-from-home days to combat a lengthy commute.

Be ready to ask for alternatives in the situation where the employer immediately lets you know they cannot increase the salary offer. In some cases, they may be just as valuable or more so than a paycheck. Meet their reaction with open-ended questions to find out more information and keep the conversation going. In some cases, an employer may not be able to meet your minimum salary requirement or offer additional benefits that make it worth your while. However, if not, you should consider walking away and seeking other opportunities elsewhere.

Here is how you might approach the situation if you want to begin the negotiation process via email:. Thank you for sending over the job offer package for the Marketing Director position. I want to state again how honored I am to be considered for this exciting position and appreciate you sharing these details.

Before I can accept your offer, I want to address the proposed compensation. As I shared with your recruiting manager, I have more than ten years of experience in digital marketing and have worked in leadership positions for the past six years. I know I can bring a great deal of value to ABC Company and help you exceed your revenue expectations this year. Please let me know when we can discuss the salary further. Related: Average Salary by Age. Here is how you might approach the situation if you are negotiating face-to-face or via phone:.

But by negotiating, you could make more money and learn more about the current value of your skillset and experience. Well, unless you underestimate your value. But what if you start working and find out someone else with a similar background to yours is making a lot more money? That could be pretty frustrating and you might not be as happy anymore. This is a pretty good plan and it helps with a lot of these other items. Well, except that most companies are pretty strict about how much of a raise you can get at any given time.

So what if they offered you the absolute best, budget-busting salary they could possibly afford? So why bother? But how do you know they made their best possible offer? And what if there are other things you can negotiate in addition to salary? Companies usually leave themselves some room just in case you negotiate.

I guess that complicates things a little. Come to think of it, a good way to figure out if they actually made their best-possible offer is to counter offer and see if they budge. Aaaaand I came up totally empty here. Some people feel you should take the first offer if you're happy with it. Never negotiate just for the sake of negotiating. Other people disagree with that position and believe anytime you're given the chance to negotiate, you should.

Here's a deeper look at both sides of the issue. When a company finds the right candidate, it is more than likely willing to negotiate salary. Recruiters usually have a second and third choice lined up but it's never as good as the first choice. There's usually more budget available for Candidate No. Obviously, companies have to abide by their budgets, but negotiating a salary offer is just part of the hiring process.

If you're at the stage where the employer is negotiating salary with you, the employer wants you—they're aware of your value. Just because you push back at their first offer doesn't mean your value is going to up and disappear.

Another salary negotiation tip to know is that for some positions, you are simply expected to negotiate regardless of the offer. For example, if you're pursuing a business development or sales position, a casual acceptance of the initial offer might actually hurt your chances because it shows a neglect for a basic element of all business dealings: negotiation.

Meaning, salary negotiation is a prime chance for you to show your skill and appreciation for the exercise. If you let that opportunity pass you by, the employer might think you're inept.

Some career experts say there are definite instances when you shouldn't be negotiating a salary offer at all. For instance:. But in other cases, if you can't justify your salary ask, you risk having the offer rescinded. Negotiating salary when there's a big gap between what the company is offering and what you want is also a waste of time.