Salary negotiating can be nerve-wracking. It can be difficult to strike the right balance between assertiveness and politeness. Here we discuss how to determine the right salary to negotiate for and negotiating tactics to land it.
By Lora Korpar
Negotiating a salary makes many people nervous. You must toe the line between advocating for the pay you deserve while remaining polite and grateful for the job offer.
Bad negotiation tactics could squander the job offer in some cases. But a good negotiating strategy will convince the hiring manager that paying you more is a win-win situation.
Many tend to avoid negotiating. A survey by Glassdoor showed that 59% of Americans didn’t negotiate salary after receiving their most recent job offer. The survey also found that 68% of women accepted the first job offer, making them less likely to negotiate than men.
“People may feel uncomfortable about [salary negotiation], but it's part of the process and it's expected that you would negotiate,” said Lissa Appiah, the founder and lead career strategist at WeApply Career Services. “So if you know that you can get more than the offer says, go for it.”
Brandon Bramley is the founder of The Salary Negotiator, a company aimed at helping clients negotiate their salaries. Anne Genduso is a career coach and owner of the coaching program MPWR Services.
I spoke with Appiah, Bramley and Genduso to discuss how to determine a reasonable target salary, the best negotiation tactics and what to do if the company says no.
Choosing a Target Salary
The first step to strong salary negotiation is showing confidence in the number you want to request.
Appiah said many factors determine a salary, so it is important to research them all. Analyze salary averages for your specific job, location, level of experience and company. This provides a pay range.
Appiah, Bramley and Genduso recommend resources like LinkedIn, Payscale and CareerOneStop to find these average salaries. You can also search government data like the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
However, Bramley said to be careful with some of these websites because anyone can add their salary to it, which leaves room for error. For example, someone could accidentally add their bonus into the base salary, or long-time employees could input their current salary as an entry-level one.
“You have to take those with a grain of salt and draw averages across different sites to make sure you're getting an accurate representation of the compensation,” Bramley said.
Genduso said to ask other people who work in the target job about their salary range. Appiah and Bramley added that you can also ask the hiring manager about the salary range during the interview.
“At the beginning of the interview, asking the recruiter what range they have approved for the role – if they’ll disclose that – is a good way to set expectations because that will give you a better idea of where they sit,” Bramley said.
Once you have a range in mind, you can determine how much of an increase to ask for. Bramley said his business, The Salary Negotiator, achieves an average increase of 11.8% for clients, so that is the baseline he uses.
“If it's less than that amount, it's usually a pretty easy ask,” Bramley said. “If it's higher than that amount, maybe you need a little more focus and double-confirming the compensation before you throw out an aggressive ask.”
“As long as you've done your research, you're comparing apples to apples and not going completely out of the realm of [what is possible,] I think most companies are receptive [to a salary increase],” Genduso added.
Appiah said salary expectations also depend on career trajectory. If you are using this job as a stepping stone, you might be willing to take a lower salary than if you plan to stay longer.
“It's best to look at your full background, your full career history, the level of experience that you have to offer and what exactly the employer is looking for,” Appiah said. “They have a need, and that's why they're hiring. So it's really important for you to do that research and understand how you are solving the problem for them and how important this problem is. If it's a big problem and you're bringing a solution to them, they'll be willing to put in more as a result.”
Salary Negotiation Tips
Remember your value when you start negotiating. Your hiring should be beneficial for you and the employer.
“It's important to know that both parties are working together,” Appiah said. “You're bringing value to the organization, you have something to offer and they're looking for talent. So it's a two-sided conversation.”
Genduso recommends hinting at negotiation the first time you speak about the salary. Ask the manager, “Is this a firm number, or is there wiggle room?” This way, you introduce the possibility for future discussion.
Bramley said to slow the negotiation process when possible. Don’t negotiate right after receiving the offer. Take some time to research and prepare follow-up questions and reasons for asking for a higher number.
Bramley also recommends emailing the request because that is a good way to slow the negotiation while ensuring exact wording. Be polite and demonstrate that you are open to adjustments while making your point.
However, Appiah recommends negotiating in person or by video call if possible so you can pay attention to elements like body language and the tone of the conversation.
“Something I recommend a lot to my clients to do is just pull out your phone and record yourself,” Appiah said. “What are you going to say? Pay attention to the tone of your voice. You want to be as confident as possible when you're going into such a tough conversation.”
Also, be prepared to handle any counter negotiations after you suggest a number. Be open to compromising.
How to Avoid Losing a Job Offer
A survey from XpertHR found that 89% of U.S. organizations said they were open to salary negotiating. So initiating a negotiation is unlikely to scare away a hiring manager.
“I always say to take the risk in terms of asking for what you really want and what you deserve because the data shows you're more likely to get it,” Genduso said.
It is possible to lose a job offer while negotiating a salary, but Appiah said it only happens in certain contexts. The job offer tends only to be rescinded if the candidate is “negotiating for the sake of negotiating” or the number they are proposing is unreasonable.
To avoid this outcome, remain polite and respectful. And as mentioned above, do your research to ensure the salary you ask for is fair.
“A lot of people think salary negotiation is almost what you would experience in a car dealership, where you throw out a high number and you argue at each other to meet in the middle,” Bramley said. “But salary negotiation is working with the recruiter as a friend. They're helping you feel comfortable moving into the new company. So as long as you take a reasonable approach with the numbers you're requesting as well as the tone in the communication with the recruiting team, you shouldn't run the risk of them rescinding the offer.”
Appiah added that sometimes a job offer is rescinded for other reasons, like budget changes or choosing an internal candidate. So don’t assume negotiating caused the offer’s removal.
Knowing Your Salary Negotiation Limits
Most companies are willing to be flexible in their salary negotiations. However, sometimes negotiations don’t go as planned, and a company won’t budge. Then you must decide whether you are willing to take “no” for an answer.
Appiah said this depends on your career situation. Some people might be working a different job and can afford to wait until the next opportunity. Others might be unemployed and need income fast.
“Everyone's situation is different,” Appiah said. “Consider the value you offer, the budget and your own personal life situation and how it's going to impact your finances.”
Bramley added that most companies won’t lowball you on purpose, so it is important to consider the employer’s perspective. Ensure the accuracy of your research on how much the company can afford to pay a new employee.
Also, Genduso said it is important to note the other elements of the offer that could be costing the company money, like benefits and paid time off.
“Look at the total compensation package and think about what you truly want and deserve,” Genduso said.
Genduso tells her clients to have three salary numbers in mind; The first is the ground floor number which is the minimum needed to live a normal life. The second is the middle, which you would be happy to receive. The third is the no-brainer you would take in a heartbeat.
“Whatever you're looking for, you want it to be within that range,” Genduso said. “But you also need to look at other factors that are important to you. And that's where knowing your career values comes in. So if work-life balance is important to you, do they have good structures in place around that? If remote or hybrid flexibility is important to you, what's the policy around that? A lot of times, these things are also negotiable.”
Top Takeaways
How to negotiate a salary
