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Career Devlopment
Last Reviewed: 30 June 2025 - 4 min read
As an employee, or a job seeker, in today’s competitive market negotiating a salary can be very intimidating and often stressful.
Although discussions about money are sometimes considered taboo, it’s vital to have salary negotiations to ensure you’re receiving the best and most appropriate compensation for your skills, experience and qualifications.
Unfortunately, many professionals don’t possess the critical ability to recognise and be able to defend their worth in the job market, until much later in their career, once they’ve gained some experience and have grown in confidence.
While it can be tempting to accept an employer’s initial offer, to avoid rocking the boat and creating a bad first impression, it can lead to a missed opportunity if your salary doesn’t reflect your true value or expectations.
This blog, therefore, serves as a guide, complete with tips, for appropriately negotiating a better salary and increasing your earning potential.
When it comes to considering whether or not you should negotiate a salary, it can be intimidating and such discussions can be uncomfortable but it’s important to remember that you’re not the only one who’s considering this.
In fact, according to Empresia Group’s ‘Future of Work’ trends for 2024 report, salary was selected as the most important factor amongst respondents, for whether or not to join an organisation, with 73%.
However, a study carried out by YouGov found that across all UK adults, only 4 out of 10 have asked for a pay rise, with 53% stating that they have never asked for one.
While these numbers are evidently alarming, it’s essential to understand why so few employees are seeking higher compensation from their organisations.
According to a Reed Recruitment survey employees stated that there were “impediments” preventing them from requesting a pay rise from their employers. The most common of these include:
Yet, it’s vital to know how and when to have salary negotiations, whether you’re accepting a new job offer or seeking to get a pay rise in your current role, in order to be compensated for what you’re truly worth and not simply settle for what you’re being offered.
Knowing your worth in the professional market is vital when preparing to negotiate your salary, and perhaps the most important aspect of it. Consider it as the starting point which will help drive every other facet of your negotiations.
Understanding what you have to offer to an employer will enable you to build a strong case about why you deserve the monetary compensation you're going after, so extensive research and preparation are important for this.
The first thing you should do is research what the current salaries in the industry are that are similar to your role, which will help you present a case of the industry standard to your employer to have your negotiations from an informed position. For this, make use of websites such as Glassdoor and Indeed.
Along with that, take into consideration your level of experience in the field, as well as all your relevant qualifications, which help showcase your expertise and the value you bring to the company.
For instance, a candidate with 5+ years of relevant experience and a higher education degree is in a more advantageous position in receiving a pay rise, compared to an entry-level individual with a similar degree.
Understanding your position in the job market will help give you more confidence and build a strong foundation for your bargaining position, giving you the upper-hand in salary negotiations.
A useful tool to utilise in order to figure out the salary margins for your role is the Hays Annual Salary Guide, which features the average salaries for the main industries and sectors across the UK economy.
When preparing to enter into a negotiating phase with an employer, it’s crucial that you have a detailed plan of action and are prepared to justify every argument you make with measurable evidence.
In order to effectively do that, create a comprehensive list of your achievements and professional experiences that would justify your reasons for seeking a pay rise.
Discuss how your experience and work have allowed you to drive success to the business, or previous organisation if you’re a job seeker, by providing data that showcases that. Such evidence can include:
Additionally, share stories and draw on times you went above and beyond, in your current or previous role, to complete a project or assignment on time and on budget successfully, proving to the employer that you’re a valuable member to their team.
Building a compelling case of evidence, based on your previous successes, and demonstrating why attaining or keeping you is a benefit to the organisation in the long-term, is far more likely to give you a strong negotiating position for a better salary.
Oftentimes, certain moments within a year, or your career in general, provide you with better odds in securing a pay rise so take full advantage of them. Perhaps one of the best moments to negotiate a better salary is during a performance review, where you evaluate and appraise your achievements and successes that far.
For example, if you are on-target, or even better, ahead of the objectives you had set for yourself, you’re then in a great position to argue your value to the company and give yourself better negotiating powers.
Additionally, another excellent instance to request a salary increase is once your organisation has reached certain milestones such as meeting or exceeding their annual revenue goals, or following the successful launch of a new product.
There are certainly cases where raising compensation is advised, such as to reflect the inflation rate and the market norms, so in these cases take advantage of the opportunity to raise your salary.
Finally, and possibly the most obvious scenario in which you have a strong negotiating power is when you’re receiving a promotion. Typically, a promotion also involves an increase in responsibilities, and subsequently an increase in workload, so it’s essential that you're adequately compensated for the added work you’ll be performing following the promotion.
It’s one thing to develop your negotiating pitch, and another to implement it. In order to be successful in our salary negotiations, create a pitch, where you outline your reasons, justifications and evidence, in a comprehensive and cohesive manner.
However, to successfully deliver your point across make sure to rehearse your pitch before presenting it to your employer.
Enlist a friend or trusted colleague to listen to your pitch and ask them to present you with counter arguments to your points, in order to be prepared to argue your case more effectively. Prepare to tackle some of the most frequent counter arguments, such as:
Through this role-play you’ll be able to practise your quick-thinking skills and prepare for all the different scenarios that could take place during your negotiations.
Along with that, rehearsing your pitch will give you more confidence in your delivery, enabling you to be more assertive and less likely to back down.
When considering an employment package, it's essential to remember that it doesn’t just involve monetary compensation, and although salary is important, there are other benefits, incentives and perks that can significantly impact your overall salary.
If, during your salary negotiations, you find that there’s very little possibility that you’ll receive the pay rise you’re aiming for, perhaps you should consider different forms of compensation instead. Some options you could consider include:
Through allowing yourself to remain flexible and open to compromise, you can ensure that a mutual solution is reached that benefits both parties.
It may be a hard pill to swallow but more often than not reaching an agreeable wage range, both you and your employer are comfortable with is difficult and unlikely.
Instead, focus on a fair compensation package that is tailored to your needs as an individual without going overboard in your demands from your employer. Employers are appreciative of professionals who are reasonable in their requests and are willing to compromise in order to find solutions that benefit both sides.
It’s important to remember that you don’t need to accept a salary proposition at face value.
Ultimately, when it comes to your career, it’s up to you to take ownership of it. Whether that involves securing the highest possible salary or finding a compromise which puts more emphasis on benefits, you are responsible for deciding what is best for your career path.
Your employer, or future employer, will always strive to provide you with the best and most fair compensation package. Regardless of whether you have taken on more responsibilities or reached a new level of seniority in your job, your employer will want to receive justification for the salary you’re seeking. It’s simply up to you to prove how valuable you are to the business.
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