How to Give a Salary Range for Job Negotiation
After sending out resumes and attending interviews, you finally have received a job offer. However, now is not the time to sit back and relax. Negotiating a salary often is one of the most challenging parts of the experience of finding a new job, because you want to earn the maximum amount of money that the employer is willing to pay. The salary range you present during a job negotiation must be thoroughly researched.
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Instructions
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Research salaries for the position you have been offered before meeting with your employer or preparing your counter proposal letter. This includes contacting the company’s human resources department, finding out what people at other companies in a similar position earn, factoring your years of experience and training and considering the cost of living in the area if you are relocating. Choose the bottom of the salary range first, which is the lowest salary you are willing to accept, then decide on the top end of the range, which should be as high as you believe you can justify earning.
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Create a list of reasons, based on your past work, that explains to the employer the benefit of paying you a higher salary. This includes highlights from your previous accomplishments in sales revenue or ways in which you improved productivity and efficiency at your former companies.
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Give the employer your salary range either orally or by writing a counter proposal letter, depending on which method feels most comfortable to you. Begin by expressing your interest in the job and thanking the employer for the offer.
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Follow with your key selling points, which are the reasons you listed in Step 2, explaining how you will make a positive impact on the company.
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State your salary range and make it clear that this range is based on your research. Include applicable expenses and benefits that are negotiable, such as moving expenses, vacation days and professional training.
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End by again expressing your enthusiasm for the job and interest in beginning as soon as possible.
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Tips & Warnings
The U.S. Department of State suggests that you keep the job negotiation process focused not on what you need but on what you can do for the employer. This requires research into the interests of the company and what the employer will expect from you in the position.
Avoid negotiating salaries during the interview or at the moment the job is offered. Quint Careers recommends thanking the employer for the offer and expressing interest in the job, but taking time to consider everything before giving an answer and beginning negotiations.
Avoid using a confrontational or demanding tone. Job and salary negotiations should be about asking questions and making fair requests.
References
Resources
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