Salary Negotiation Mistakes to Avoid

Salary negotiation is a big part of job-hunting and it makes many young applicants as well as experienced professionals uncomfortable and anxious. Especially when effective tactics are not known. After all, you might ask for too much, ask for too little, or otherwise sabotage your own chances of getting the best possible salary. Negotiation will go more smoothly if you know what landmines to avoid.

When it comes time to negotiate salary for a new job, make sure that you don't make these key errors:

1. Being Unprepared.

At some point, employers are likely to ask what salary range you're looking for, possibly as soon as their first contact with you. If you're caught off-guard, you risk low-balling yourself or otherwise saying something that will harm you in salary negotiations later. It's crucial to do your homework ahead of time so that you're ready when the question comes up.

While salary sites might seem like the most obvious way to figure out what to ask for, these sites are frequently unreliable, in part because the job titles they list often represent wildly different scopes of responsibility. Professional associations in your industry might do more reliable salary surveys, but even then, you're more likely to get the right range by talking to people in your field.

Apart from conducting research online, you should also gather information on your prospective employer’s salary levels, promotion and salary hike policies, benefits, etc.

2. Negotiating Before You Have an Offer.

There's no point trying to negotiate before you have a job offer; after all, the employer still hasn't even decided if they want to hire you. Your leverage will be far stronger once someone is certain that you're the one they want. Once you have the offer you are in a powerful position to negotiate. To start the process, ask more details about the salary and the entire compensation package including health insurance, bonuses, and other perks.

3. Discussing Salary in Your Cover Letter.

Some candidates announce their salary requirements in their cover letters without being asked, and some even include their salary history on their resumes. There's no reason to talk money at this stage, and doing it unprompted at the application stage can come across as naive. By doing this you leave no room for negotiations. Or you may not even get an opportunity to interview with the company even if you are a good fit for the job.

4. Citing your Need or Finances.

Salary conversations should be solely about your value to the company, not about your own finances or your need. Employers don't pay people based on financial need, so don't cite your mortgage or your kid's college tuition as a reason you're asking for more money. Your emphasis should be on the value you bring to the company.

5. Accepting Job Offer Too Quickly

In the current economy, it may take several weeks to get a job offer. When you get one, you will be tempted to accept it immediately even if it doesn’t match your expectations. But even such offers should be reviewed before making a decision. Don’t be in a hurry. The employer has chosen you because you are a good match for the position. So, if you feel you deserve a better deal, negotiate further and then make a decision.

6. Asking for too Much Time to Respond to an Offer.

It's normal to request a few days to consider an offer, and sometimes employers will give you a week or so. But if you ask for much time beyond that, you risk signaling that you're not excited about the job, but might settle for it if you don't get any other offers. That's a good way to lessen the hiring manager's enthusiasm and bring into question your own.

7. Asking For Too Many Changes in Counteroffer.

If you have a strong interest in the job, but the offer is not what you expected, you can consider making a counteroffer proposal. You should only pick the one or two most important elements; you can't negotiate every aspect of the offer. If the salary is too low, focus on that aspect in a counteroffer. If you know the company will not negotiate on salary, then focus on modifying a few of the other terms of the offer such as additional vacation time, earlier performance reviews, signing bonus, relocation expenses. Just remember that you cannot attempt to negotiate the entire offer; conduct your research, and write a short counterproposal.

8. Declining Job Offer Too Quickly.

When an employer doesn’t offer a salary that you expected and if it is much lower then rejecting the job may be a wise decision. Yet, take time to think it over before rejecting it. If the money is not very much lower than your expectations, take a look at the benefits.

Salary is only one part of a compensation package; you also need to factor in benefits like healthcare, retirement contributions, and paid leave. After all, if you'll be paying significantly more for healthcare or receiving fewer paid vacation days than you're used to, that might cancel out part of any salary gains you hope to make. On the other hand, being able to work from home or having an on-site day care might be benefits that make it worth it to you to take a slightly lower salary.

9. Underestimating Happiness as a Factor.

A higher salary generally won't make up for a job where you'll be miserable, so think carefully about factors other than money: the work you'll be doing, the people with whom you'll be working, the company culture, and even the length of your commute. It might be worth giving up a bit of extra pay to ensure that you're happy going to work every day.

10. Listening to Bad Advice.

Negotiation advice that worked a few decades ago isn't always effective now. In fact, some of it can hurt your chances. For instance, delaying the salary conversation as long as you can or refusing to name a figure first—common advice in previous generations—can backfire today by turning the employer off and making you look like you're playing games.

11. Not Negotiating.

Whatever you do, negotiate. If you simply take the first salary you're offered, you'll never know if you could have received more by simply asking. Settling for a lower salary than you are worth has some major negative consequences; you will earn less, receive smaller raises (because most raises are based as a percentage of your salary), and have a smaller pension (since pension contributions are usually a percentage of your salary). But settling for an offer that you feel in your heart is too low will not only set you back financially, but also eat at you until you finally begin to seriously dislike your job and/or employer.

12. Taking Salary Negotiations Personally.

Whatever you do in this process always stay professional in handling the negotiations. If the employer has made you an offer then you are their choice, so even if negotiations go nowhere, or worse, keep in mind that you did receive an offer, even if it is not what you expected or deserved. And if negotiations break down between you and the employer, move on graciously, thanking the employer again for the opportunity because you never want to burn any bridges.

13. Not Asking for Final Offer in Writing.

Once you have received a job offer that you find acceptable, the last thing you should do is ask for the final offer in writing. No legitimate employer will have issues with putting the offer in writing, so if yours balks at your request and accuses you of not having any trust and tries to bully you to accept the verbal agreement, take it as a MAJOR red flag that there is something seriously wrong.


[Courtesy: Alison Green, USNews & Randall Hansen, Quintessential Careers]