We've gone deep into how salary negotiations start before your very first recruiter call, and if you need a quick refresher, check out Part 1. Now, we'll wrap our overview by exploring the rest of the journey, picking up from that initial recruiter call and going all the way to the negotiated final offer.
Changing the conversation
If you're new to salary negotiation, you're probably dreading the "What are you currently making?" question. As we covered in our prior article, this is just a budgetary check. Depending on which state (or country) you reside in, the legalities will vary, but broadly speaking, in terms of:
- Whether recruiters can ask you about your pay, assume "yes"
- Whether recruiters can verify your current pay, assume "no," though it's technically possible
But legalities aside, the approach to handling both questions is the same: instead of revealing what you're currently making, shift the conversation to what you'd like to make. There are multiple ways to deflect and reroute — find the approach that works best for you, or visit our Flight School for help with live mentoring! — but the goal is to stop litigating the past and focus on your future instead.
Getting to a verbal offer
If the stars align and your pitch fits within the hiring budget, you should see the recruiter schedule additional interviews. For practical tips on how to ace your interviews, check out some of our favorite resources here:
But since we're focused on pay at Countress, let's skip to the final chapter of your screening: you've made it through a gauntlet of questions about your experience and painted a compelling picture of how you'd contribute to the new team. You've met your future boss, peers, and direct reports, who are all excited for you to join. This leads to a verbal offer, which… ends up being lower than what you pitched on that very first recruiter call. What should you do?
The road from verbal to written
Your first instinct may be to accept the verbal offer. After all, you don't want to seem ungrateful or create a fuss. Saying "yes" immediately is the polite, friction-free path, right? Kind of, but you'd be doing yourself a disservice. As we've explored here, the majority of folks who counteroffer are successful. Remember, you aren't a random candidate — the recruiter confirmed you fit in the budget, you clicked with the team, and now they want to bring you aboard.
If your role requires any advocacy, too, whether with partners, vendors, or internal customers, you don't want to come off as a wet blanket, either. Showing backbone with a counter, in other words, signals the same kind of grit you'll need in day-to-day situations on the job.
Ready to be your own best agent, cheerleader, and champion? Every negotiation journey will have its own unique twists, but the broad arc will look something like this: you'll respond to the verbal offer, they'll respond in kind, and typically, there will be one final round of back-and-forth, leading to a written offer. Now, let's walk through each step.
How to unpack and respond to the lowball offer
When you receive your verbal offer, it may be delivered over Zoom or email. If over email, you'll have plenty of time to breathe, consider, and respond. If over Zoom, don't sweat it. You won't have to answer right on the spot, and you can buy yourself more time. You're not picking between different boxes of Girl Scout Cookies, after all — this is a consequential life decision. Don your poker face, thank the recruiter for the offer, then ask them when they'll need a decision.
This sets the dance in motion. Unless your prospective employer bucks the trend and offers you more than your initial pitch — unlikely, aside from the rare LinkedIn viral post in your feed — you'll likely get a number lower than what you asked. Deferring your decision shows you're serious about both a) your initial pitch and b) this opportunity.
Recruiters will often try to sell you on the total compensation package, but you'll be wise to unpack this and have them break down the offer. Typically, there will be a base, bonus, maybe equity. There may be other elements, too, like a signing bonus, remote work allowance, PTO, and other perks. Take the time to rank what's important to you — maybe base salary is paramount, for instance, and you're OK with giving ground on equity. Or conversely, maybe you're looking for that long-term payout and would rather push hard on equity over base and bonus.
Your first counter
If you're lucky enough to be juggling multiple offers, now's the time to say so — don't show all your cards, but alongside your first counter, mention you're weighing other offer(s). Why? This flex a) reminds your hiring manager you're a hot commodity, giving that much more weight to this counter and the next and b) increases urgency for the hiring manager, since someone else might snatch you off the market.
Let's dig into the numbers, starting with your original walkaway and pitch. For a reminder about how you arrive at these numbers, check out Part 1 of this series.
When the recruiter first asked about compensation
Your walkaway (which you kept to yourself)
- Base = $110,000/yr
- Bonus = 15%
- Equity = 5,000 shares
Your pitch
- Base = $145,000/yr
- Bonus = 30%
- Equity = 15,000 shares
Their lowball first offer
- Base = $120,000/yr
- Bonus = 12%
- Equity = 2,500 shares
Don't just repeat your initial pitch — that'll come off as tone-deaf. Instead, thank them for the offer, mention competing offers (if true), state how their initial offer is a big delta from what you were targeting, and then ask them whether they'll be amenable to this package instead.
Your first counter
- Base = $140,000/yr
- Bonus = 25%
- Equity = 12,500 shares
You're coming down from your original pitch, which shows you're engaged in the dance, but you're not deeply discounting yourself. Proofread your reply twice for good measure, cross your fingers, then hit "send."
Your second counter
Now, play it cool. If it's a larger org, multiple layers may need to review your counter. (But if you mentioned you have competing offers, this should help accelerate things.) If you don't hear back after, say, three business days, follow up with a brief check-in note. Resist the urge to check back in sooner — you've said your piece in your first counter, after all, and you don't want to overplay your hand and come off as overeager.
When they reply, it will likely be higher than their initial offer, but there's probably room for one more counter.
Their revised offer
- Base = $125,000/yr
- Bonus = 15%
- Equity = 5,500 shares
You'll need to read context clues, but as you approach their budgetary limits, you'll see phrases like "the best we can do," "the top end of our budget," "special approval," or similar language. Unless you see crystal clear phrasing that leaves no room for interpretation (e.g. "There's absolutely nothing more we can offer." "There's no more."), send a second counter. You've made it this far — why not shoot your shot? Let's start with the numbers.
Your second counter
- Base = $135,000/yr
- Bonus = 20%
- Equity = 11,500 shares
Equally important is how you frame these numbers. Acknowledge their movement (e.g. "Appreciate the flexibility. We're getting closer!"), restate your greatest hits from your screening process (e.g. you can bring transformative talent to bringing X initiative to life to address Y pain point), ask if there are other creative levers in the comp package they can pull (e.g. signing bonus, more PTO, etc.), remind them about your other offers or the pile of equity you're walking away from, and then deliver your ask.
Signed and sealed
Once you've delivered your second counter, you'll likely need to sit tight for an answer. Again, play it cool, and if you do have multiple offers in play, run the same playbook with them. While there may be room for a third round, it's unlikely. This isn't a high-stakes acquisition or merger necessitating weeks of back-and-forth, and they likely want to wrap the search for this role and get you on board.
With luck and all the sweat you put into countering, they should come back with something like this.
Their revised offer
- Base = $130,000/yr
- Bonus = 18%
- Equity = 10,000 shares
If you zoom out, what you're looking for is a package well north of your walkaway price and something you're proud to accept — and, on tougher days on the job, a compensation package that helps the medicine go down easier.
Assuming the offer checks those boxes, go ahead and sign the written offer, pat yourself on the back, and breathe a sigh of relief. Congrats on your successful counter! You can read book after book on negotiation — or blogs like this one! — but time spent in the crucible will be your greatest teacher. It gets easier over time and you'll rack up your own war stories after a few job offers. Along the way, ask friends and family for help, practice with your favorite AI chat app, or tap into live help with Flight School or our forum. Help is there for your negotiation journey when you need it.