Asking for more money from your employer can be an uncomfortable conversation, we get it. As staffing professionals, we see and hear negotiations happen every day. The truth behind this anticipated topic is that you don’t need to be nervous. If you are well prepared your conversation will end in a smooth agreement. To help you confidently power through this process, we’re revealing five tips to help you negotiate your salary so you start earning what you deserve. 

Do Your Salary Research

Whether you’re negotiating a new job or your current job’s salary, you need to research basic information about your role and industry. Going into the meeting with knowledge and facts about your market worth will help you confidently compare and explain why you deserve a fair salary. Credible tools like these, Glassdoor, PayScale, and Salary.com will help you accurately calculate the current market value of your position based on a number of contributing factors – geographic location, years of experience, certifications, skills, education level, etc.

Timing is Money

Planning out the perfect time to ask for a salary adjustment is crucial. Once you know what you should be earning, you need to plan for the appropriate time to ask. If you’re interviewing for a job wait as long as you can before discussing salary with the hiring manager. You don’t want to bring it up on your first or even second interview but instead, wait until the employer starts the “salary” conversation. If you’ve been in your position for a while, bring up the conversation months before any performance reviews. If you wait until the day of your annual review, chances are your boss will have already decided what your pay will be and any negotiation opportunities will be off the table.

Performance Review and Reflection  

It’s important to explain why you are deserving of a raise. Before your conversation, prepare talking points and be ready to share proof of what you have contributed to the organization and all your accomplishments. Although bragging about yourself may feel silly, it highlights things you’ve achieved in your role and shows how you’re a key player to the organization. Summarize what you have done and mention what you will continue to do and any new ideas or projects that you plan on tackling in the future. Showing that you’re eager to take on more responsibility moving forward validates that you’re a hard worker and deserving of more money.

Keep positive

Many people associate negotiation with fighting and awkwardness. This, however, does not need to be the case at all. Approach the situation on a positive note by opening the conversation with an optimistic outlook. Share why you enjoy working at the organization and the work you’re proud of. If you collaborate with your boss your conversation will be far more successful. Don’t be pushy but also make sure not to shy away from what you’d like to say and what you want to get out of the discussion.

The Total Package

When analyzing your salary don’t forget about your employee benefits. Often overlooked, benefits hold an additional value like travel, flexibility, promotions, PTO, growth opportunities, etc. Some benefits come as an additional cost to the organization and some don’t cost anything. With this being said, when negotiating don’t hesitate to ask for benefits that don’t cost anything like flextime or health and wellness programs. If you offered a number lower than expected keep in mind the overall value of the package and less about the dollars. Once you have thoroughly reviewed all employee benefits, then make a decision on how you want to negotiate.

Negotiating your salary will most likely happen more than once in your career. Like most things in life, practice makes perfect. Before negotiating anything, practice your pitch with someone you feel comfortable with. The more you practice the more comfortable and natural you will sound. Use these tips as a guide before and during your next negotiation!

 

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