Here are five best practices to follow (plus five mistakes to avoid) the next time you discuss salary with potential employers.

5 Dos for How to Negotiate a Salary

1. Do Prepare with Research
As you learn how to negotiate a salary, hear this loud and clear: you can only get what you’re worth if you know what you’re worth. With the number and variety of salary resources available online, you only need to put in a little effort to know your current market value and what recruiters are likely to offer.

Check your worth by using a salary calculator and do research on salaries for your position in your location. Use other online resources such as Glassdoor.com to research your prospective employer’s historical salary levels, negotiation policies, and performance appraisals.

Regardless of whether you know how to negotiate a salary, this research will give you a better understanding of the market for your services and your value in that market, which will serve you well in all your interviews.

2. Do Focus on Your Value to the Employer
A common mistake when learning how to negotiate a salary is focusing on what you feel you need or think you deserve as opposed to what your prospective employers need. They don’t care that you’re aiming for a salary to cover your mortgage, student loan payments, overall living expenses, or whatever else. They have a budget for the open position that limits what they can offer, so don’t ever tell the employer that you need a certain salary.

Instead of focusing on your needs, use your research to show clear evidence of what someone with your breadth of experience typically earns and emphasize your credentials with respect to the employer’s needs.

Probably the biggest mistake you can make is simply deciding in advance to take the first offer you get. Research shows that younger jobseekers and women often make this mistake — either because they don’t know how to negotiate salary, lack confidence and dislike the act of negotiating, or because they don’t understand the potential impact of their decision.

3. Do Be Professional
Whatever happens during your salary discussions, always stay professional. You might not like everything you’re going to hear, but keep the big picture in mind: when an employer makes an offer, they appreciate your candidacy and you are a finalist for the position. Even if negotiations break down or ultimately go nowhere, graciously thank the employer for the opportunity, and move on. Don’t burn bridges; they may decide to up their offer later.

4. Do Consider Other Benefits
Many jobseekers reject job offers very quickly when the employer offers a salary much lower than expected. While rejecting the offer might actually be the right decision, you should still take time to try negotiating a better offer before rejecting it outright.

If the money is close to what you were hoping to earn but not quite right, take a closer look at the benefits. For example, some firms offer lower salaries but have larger bonuses or stock options, or pay the full expense of health insurance.

Ask about all the perks the company offers, like discounts on gym memberships and cell phone reimbursement, as these can add up to a real value for you.

5. Do Get Final Offers in Writing
Once everything is said and done and you’ve received a job offer that you find acceptable, ask for it in writing. Why take a chance on something changing before you sign a contract? This is an important step in learning how to negotiate a salary.

No legitimate employer will have issues with this step of the process, so if your potential new bosses balk at your request, take it as a major red flag that there is something seriously wrong. Skipping this step doesn’t make you look like someone who knows how to negotiate a salary, it makes you look inexperienced.

5 Don’ts for How to Negotiate a Salary

1. Don’t Skip Negotiating
Probably the biggest mistake you can make is simply deciding in advance to take the first offer you get. Research shows that younger jobseekers and women often make this mistake — either because they don’t know how to negotiate salary, lack confidence and dislike the act of negotiating, or because they don’t understand the potential impact of their decision.

Settling for a lower salary than you’re worth can have major financial consequences, both immediately and down the road. In the short term, you’ll earn less, receive smaller raises (because most raises are based on a percentage of your salary), and have a smaller pension (since pension contributions are usually a percentage of your salary).

Long-term, being underpaid can make you resentful. Accepting a lowball offer can also hurt your earning potential later, as future employers might ask for a salary history when determining how much money they should offer you.

2. Don’t Accept a Job Offer Too Quickly
All too often, the interview process can drag on longer than you expect, making you impatient. In 2015, it took companies 52 days on the average to fill positions. When you finally obtain an offer after weeks (and in some cases, months) of searching, it’s understandable that you’d want to accept it right on the spot. However, even the best offers should be reviewed with a clear head — and without the pressure of your future boss or HR director staring at you.

Always ask for time to review an offer and respect the time limit agreed upon to make your decision. If they asked for a decision within a week, all negotiating should be done within that time frame.

The ideal time for talking salary is when you have the most leverage, which is once you get the job offer. It’s at that point when you can ask for more specifics about salary, bonuses, commissions, health insurance, and other perks.

3. Don’t Reveal How Much You Would Accept
Information is the key to any kind of negotiation, and a common mistake jobseekers make is telling the employer what they’ll accept. It can be hard not to offer this information, especially if the employer asks for a salary history. Some employers will also use preliminary interviews to ask what salary you’re looking for.

The earlier you give up this kind of information, the less room — if any — you’ll have for negotiating a better offer later. Always try to remain as noncommittal as possible when asked about your salary requirements early in the interview process. Emphasize that while you’re aiming for fair market value, you’re flexible but will be able to respond better later once you have a more complete understanding of everything the position entails.

4. Don’t Make a Salary Pitch Too Early in the Process
Continuing in the same vein as above: someone who knows how to negotiate salary knows that the longer you wait, the more power you have. Yet, there are many job seekers who jump the gun and begin salary negotiations too early in the process.

The ideal time for talking salary is when you have the most leverage, which is once you get the job offer. It’s at that point when you can ask for more specifics about salary, bonuses, commissions, health insurance, and other perks.

Asking earlier in the process can be perceived as being too focused on money rather than on the job itself, and it may also force your hand to reveal what you would be willing to accept.

5. Don’t Ask for Too Much in a Counteroffer
It’s not a good sign if you want to renegotiate everything in a job offer. If that’s the case, either you or the employer has misunderstood the situation or one of you is trying to take advantage of the other. Trying to swing things your way isn’t likely to work in this scenario.

However, if the job and the employer feel like a good fit but the offer is not what you hoped, propose a counteroffer that tweaks the biggest issues for you. If the salary is too low, focus on that aspect, and use your market research to back up your request as being more in line with market value.

If you know the company will not or can’t negotiate on salary, focus on getting more and better benefits, such as additional vacation time, a signing bonus, work-from-home days, or relocation expenses.

https://www.livecareer.com/resources/careers/planning/salary-negotiation-mistakes