18 Proven Techniques for Negotiating Salary Offer

Negotiating salary offer is a sticky subject.  No one wants to seem to greedy, but we all want more money, in most cases.

If you want to learn about getting a better starting salary, then you’ll want to read this guide on how to negotiate for a better salary before you accept the job.

After reading and applying the tips provided in this guide, you should be able to get the salary you deserve.

Negotiating Salary Offer Tips

1. Be Prepared to Negotiate

The real secret to a successful negotiation is to know as much as you can about your potential employer. So preparation as well as patience is very crucial.

2. Know Your Value

The absolute worst way to value yourself is to undervalue yourself.

This means you should know how much the average yearly salary is for your skill.

One proven way to accomplish this is to search for a source.

The source should help you with account size of the company, the industry and the region.

If possible, the source can help you to determine your potential value based on your skills, education, length of experience, certification and any other background you may have.

Three of the best web sites you can use for this are:

• salary.com
• payscale.com
• careeronestop.org

Negotiating salary offer will be much easier after a little research.

3. Don’t be the first

The absolute worst way to determine your pay is to be the first to give a specific figure.

If you allow your potential employer to be the first to give a figure, you will have the confidence to tell him your requirements.

However, in the event that this is impossible for one reason or the other, provide a broad range based on your research in number 2 above.

Also, two questions to ask when you find yourself in such a position are; “what is your budget for this job?” and “what do you consider as a reasonable offer”.

4. Don’t accept the first Salary Offer

One of the biggest reasons you fail in getting your choice salary is to accept the first offer you are given without offering any counteroffer.

Most of the time, employers expect a counteroffer.

Not preparing a counteroffer will hurt you when you factor in future bonuses, salary increases, and insurance coverage.

If you wait for your potential employer to give you what is fair as a wage, you are in for a rude awakening.

5. Negotiate beyond the basic

Here are the top seven other pay additions you can negotiate upon aside from your basic pay – variable pay, performance expectations, benefits, incentives, schedule for salary increase, and minimum severance.

6. Hold off

An often overlooked way to sidestep questions about negotiating salary offer, is to inform the interviewer that you will prefer to be offered the position before discussing salary.

The best way to do this is to ask about the responsibilities your job entails

7. Be willing to learn

If you want to negotiate better, it only makes sense that you learn how to do so. With the vast array of free resources available on the internet, you have no excuse.

8. Get The Offer in Writing

One of the biggest mistakes you can make is to accept the job offer without everything being in black and white.

9. Salary Attitude for Negotiating

A friendly smile and a thank you response are two of the attitudes you should display during the negotiation process. Do this whether or not the negotiation was successful.

10. Salaries is not set in stone

You have done your research and you know your worth, but the employer is not willing to pay you as you have desired, it is only advisable for you to compromise a little.

However, the compromise does not have to be on the basic pay.

Here are three other components of your package that you can negotiate on; one week of week of paid vacation, additional leave and time off for personal development.

New evidence suggests that most companies will accept a compromise based on this rather than on the pay package.

11. Don’t fall for temptations

Two common ways companies tempt their would-be employees are; re-interviews and tests. Be sure not to lose your guard, otherwise, you may lose a worthy opportunity.

12. Subtle Negotiation

The real secret to ensuring that your counteroffer becomes your benefit is to express your full interest in the job.  This will make it easier when negotiating salary offer.

13. Practice Negotiating

A secret weapon you can use to get better at negotiation is to practice what you want to say.

Two proven techniques to accomplish this are; practice in front of the mirror, and ask one of your friends to sit across the table and be the boss.

Make sure that you and your friend make the scenario like a real life situation.

 

Additional tips for negotiating salary offer if you are a woman:

14. Don’t be less satisfied in comparison to men

If your skill sets are the same as that of the men, it is only right to ask for the same pay package.

15. Don’t be afraid to Negotiate Salary Offers

Be confident of your abilities, and don’t sound too eager when you are approached either during the first contact, the interviews or during the negotiations.

Ask for what you deem is your worth no matter the approach adopted by the negotiator.

16. Ask for a neutral Offer Territory

This is what you do when you not comfortable with your negotiating environment.

The best example would be a conference room instead of the office of your would-be supervisor.

17. Focus on what you can offer

Do not be tempted to focus on how this potential job can advance your career.  This can distract you from negotiating a fair starting salary.

18. Don’t be Emotionally Attached

The absolute worst way to negotiate is to base your negotiations on emotions instead of logic. One proven way to accomplish this is to have a strategy.

 

Job Offer Excepted

In conclusion, one of the biggest challenges you face when starting your career as a young grad is salary negotiation.

This guide has provided you with eighteen proven techniques how to negotiate for a better pay when starting out.

The only thing left for you is to fully understand each technique and take massive action on each of them when next you are at the negotiating table.

If you follow the steps properly, you will not only become a better negotiator but also earn a greater reward for your efforts.

Welcome to the rest of your life!