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- Hi, I'm James Ball, Founder of The Interview Academy
and welcome to our series
on how to answer the most common interview questions
that you're ever likely to face.
Today's question is what salary are you looking for?
Now, this is a question that gets asked
in every interview.
Firstly, it's really important to understand
that the vast majority of companies will want
to pay you the least it can get away with.
Now, market forces, your skill level,
and how in demand you are will determine
what that figure is,
but inevitably it may be lower
than the number you're thinking of.
When you get asked this question,
it's really important to not just blurt out a figure
you have in your mind.
Salary negotiation is an integral part
of any recruitment process
and rushing into your answer could mean that you either go
in too high and don't get the job,
or you go in too low and get it,
but at a lower salary than you deserve.
Normally, in my experience at least,
you won't enter into a negotiation during an interview.
Typically, your interviewer will ask you the question,
you'll tell them the number, they'll write it down,
and they'll refer to it when they make the job offer.
It's at that stage that the negotiation starts,
but getting this number right in the interview
could make the difference to you getting the job or not
and at an appropriate salary.
It's really important to remember that when you apply
for a job these days,
you'd have almost certainly done so online
and there should have been a salary or salary range
in the advert.
That's the figure you need to be working to.
The first thing you need to do is to make a note
of that number and remember it before you go
into the interview.
If the salary wasn't on the advert,
then go online and do some research.
Go on Indeed.com and see what people in similar roles
in the same area are being paid,
or speak to a recruiter and ask directly what the package is
for the role.
Now, there's some scope for asking for slightly more money
than was advertised, but if you do,
don't ask for too much as you'll annoy the interviewer.
Secondly, you need a really good reason
as to why you deserve the extra cash.
This will be particularly difficult
if you haven't sold yourself well enough at your interview.
If you ask for a number that's outside
of the advertised range,
the next obvious question you get asked is,
why have you applied for this job
if you know it's not paying what you want?
I've had people sitting in front of me asking
for 10,000 pounds more than I'll advertise
and they crumble at this question.
I've heard answers like,
because I'm really good at what I do,
and to be honest, that's not good enough
and just annoyed the hell out of me.
Really thinking of the salary you're going to ask for,
bare all of that in mind.
Good interviewers will also ask you
what you're currently earning
and most people will leave a job in the expectation
that they're going to earn more in a new role.
Everybody knows that,
but if the jump you're asking for is too big,
that will also raise questions so be ready
for the follow-on questions about a lack of experience,
or the jump being too big.
Typically, what happens in those scenarios,
if you get offered the job, is you get offered the job
at a higher salary than you're currently earning,
but lower than the one you asked for
or worse still, lower than your salary that was advertised.
But, as I said earlier, it's at the offer stage
where the negotiation starts and not in the interview.
With all of that in mind, a really good way
to answer this question is like this.
I'm currently earning 20,000 pounds,
but after two year's experience
and a proven track-record of A, B, and C,
I'm ready to take on more responsibility
and I'm therefore looking for 23,000 pounds.
Having done some research online,
I think it's a fair salary for someone at my level.
This answer is balanced.
You don't want to be unrealistic,
you don't want to be greedy,
but you also don't want to undersell yourself.
Remember, employers will pay you the least possible amount
that they can get away with.
If you want to be a little bit cheeky,
you could throw the question back at them
and say something along the lines of,
based on the research I've done,
I've found that someone with similar experience to myself,
going into a similar role would earn
between 22,000, 26,000 pounds,
but I understand that all companies are different.
So, can I ask you how much you would typically pay
someone with my experience?
An answer like this is a little softer.
It still sets the expectations,
but you're putting the ball back in their court.
This is a tactic to use only if you are a confident person
and the interview is going well.
Don't say it if you're the nervous type,
or if you're facing a difficult interviewer.
On another note, it's probably wise not to apply
for jobs that you wouldn't take
because the advertised salary is much lower
than you'd accept in the hope that you can push it up
in a negotiation.
You'll probably just end up wasting your time
and the interviewer's.
Okay, that's it.
If you want full details on how to answer this question
and the other remaining nine
most common interview questions,
then click the link below and download our free guide.
It'll give you full details on what you should be saying
in these questions and some sample answers.
Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel
by clicking on the subscribe button on this page,
and there you'll find our other videos
on how to answer the other nine
most common interview questions and much, much more.
Good luck with the interview.
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