Job Offer Negotiation: How to Land Your Dream Job

Job offers are exciting! But with all good things, taking your time to consider what’s at stake is critical. Job offer negotiations represent a crucial jump-off point for employees and help establish common ground and clear expectations. Feeling unsure how to approach these conversations? Here are three things to do before you enter a new work relationship.

Do Your Homework 

Researching prospective employers will help you get a feel for their salary practices, work culture, benefits, and more. You’ll want to look for stories about company culture and leadership on LinkedIn or Glassdoor, annual workplace distinction awards, and any current news reporting about the organization. 

Reach out to your network, too. Talk to peers who work for the prospective employer or in similar industries. You can also ask for advice from people with comparable positions in other fields. These activities will help you gain perspective on employee satisfaction and give you a sense of what is reasonable to ask.

Once you’ve made it past the first interview and done your homework, check in with your potential employer or recruiter to see if you are close on salary, benefits, vacation, remote work and anything else that is important to you. The last thing you want to do is get down to the offer and find out you are worlds apart.

Understand Your Must-Haves and Your Dealbreakers

Make a list. What’s essential? What can you be flexible about? Not only will this help clarify what to negotiate for, but it will also boost your confidence. Going into negotiations unsure of what you really want only complicates the process, creates confusion, and worst of all wastes everyone’s time.

Remember—salary is important, but so is growth potential and opportunity. Sometimes you have to sacrifice in order to take advantage of the experience that will kickstart your creative or marketing career. If making certain compromises isn’t in the cards for you, refocus your digital, marketing, or creative job search on a role that meets those needs. This saves you and the prospective employer a lot of hassle.

Evaluate Benefits Beyond Salary

Jobs are more than just paychecks; they also provide vital career positioning. How you grow as a professional (and a person!) depends on a whole range of benefits and opportunities. Here are some benefits beyond salary that can also factor into job offer negotiations:

• Schedule, e.g., WFH or flexible hours
• Signing bonuses
• Profit-sharing or goals-based incentives
• Paid time off and vacation accrual policies
• Medical and dental insurance
• Wellness/fitness programs and discounts
• Tuition reimbursement and continuing education opportunities
• Relocation packages

Job offer negotiations have a lot of moving parts! That’s why True Talent Group acts as a partner to clients and talent to help them successfully manage this part of the hiring process. Whether you’re looking for an outstanding new hire or the next adventure in your career, we’re in your corner! To learn more about how True Talent Group can help you, visit us here.