As a reader of my blog and/or ezine, I know you have tremendous skills and abilities in the ways you can help companies grow or operate more smoothly or achieve their goals in some way. Spending some quality time looking inward and just identifying what you love to do and what happens when you do it is an important part of your job search success.

But what if you are one of those people that cringe when it comes time to communicate those strengths and “sell” yourself in a job interview?

I would like to offer you another perspective or belief system about what selling is – different from the one you might have now. It’s so important you know how to sell yourself because when you are able to communicate your strengths in a way that compels others, you are doing yourself and them a great favor. After all, you can’t help a company that doesn’t hire you.

To boost your know-like-and-trust factor in your job interviews, it’s vital you know how to encourage potential employers to hire you in a way that’s full of integrity and authentically you.

What this means for you is that you will attract the interest of more employers, receive bigger and better job offers, and feel confident in the way you’re communicating to the ways that you can help potential employers get the results they want…and that only you can deliver.

So, here are three tips to help get you started:

Tip #1: Steer the interview by frequently mentioning your value

So, if you’re offering turnaround expertise, you will frequently refer to your turnaround projects.

If you are a marketing expert, you will frequently share the results of your marketing efforts throughout the interview.

By focusing on the results you get, you will quickly and easily build the value of who you can be to your potential employers.

Tip #2: Create before and after stories
Everybody loves to hear before and after stories, even in an interview setting. And the best ones clearly paint a before and after picture

Think of all the problems, challenges and dire situations with your past company (or companies) and how great things are now that you have helped them.

Tip #3: Make THEM an offer they can’t resist

The point is to create an “offer” that’s so irresistible, your interviewers think, “We have to hire this person!”

To do this, you need to offer something they believe they can’t get anywhere else. Be creative!

Here are a couple examples:

One of my clients quickly received a robust offer because HE offered to produce at least two potential solutions to a challenge the company was facing and he said he would do it in 60 days.

Another client of mine set up as part of her interview process a 1/2 day on-site observation of the potential employer’s media company. She then presented an outline of 10 ideas to improve their work environment and boost their ratings. They offered her a whopping 100k over what she had been making previously. All this even after she was let go from that previous position. I love it.

When you learn how to communicate to your interviewers that you are willing to invest getting the right information into their hands that is going to help them, you are removing all the obstacles (including money, time and your competition) that might otherwise stand between you and the job offer(s) you want.

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Now let’s get into the nitty gritty details of how to counter a job offer.

Most professionals, when asked why they don’t counter their job offers share that they are simply afraid they will loose the opportunity.

After helping hundreds of professionals negotiate job offers I am happy to share with you I have never seen an offer pulled as a result of a counter offer.

That’s not to say it could never happen.. but my question would be –all things being equal if a potential employer did that, would you really want to work for them?

But back to point: the first thing to do when you receive a job offer is first off; make sure to get all of the details of the offer.

Then enthusiastically thank them! You might not be thrilled with the details of the offer but now is NOT the time to negotiate! Thank them and ask for a day or two to go over the details of the offer.

Now compare the terms of the offer with your professional goals. How many points does the offer satisfy…starting with the salary?

Make notes on each point of the offer compared to your professional goals. You must determine how important each point is to you. Title them A, B and C. Put the A’s at the top of your list. For example:

A list

Salary offered: $125k

Salary goals: $145k

Vacation offered: 2 weeks

Vacation goals: 4 weeks

Relocation package offered: 15k

Relocation goals: 20k plus temporary housing

When you are ready, connect with your potential employer and let them know you are excited to discuss the offer with them. A key point here is you will do well to smile and be as positive and enthusiastic as possible! If you act somber, concerned or pessimistic you will bring down the energy of the deal and in turn dampen the excitement of your contact person!

So, begin where you left off by thanking them for the offer and sharing with them how excited you are about the opportunity.

Then indicate that you would like to go over a few points of the offer.

If you are negotiating the salary range, always begin there. State to your contact that although everything about the offer is great, you were hoping that the salary range at the level and responsibility of the position would be more along the lines of $­­­­____.

If the salary is in a competitive range for your position you might do well to stay within a 20% negotiation range (You can check salary ranges by title and location using salary.com).

Wait for them to respond to your statement before you say anything else.

If they indicate that is a do-able figure then congratulations! Now you can discuss whatever other points are important to you… be it stock options, vacation time, relocation, bonuses or insurance.

If however your contact states they cannot offer you more – you can do one of two things:

You can state that you are still excited about the position and ask to move forward to discuss a few other components of the offer.

OR

You can state that you are still excited about the position and that you know they can work something out that is a WIN for everyone. Then ask if you can make another suggestion. That suggestion can include a signing bonus and/or a six month job review/raise based on your performance.

Using these negotiations techniques here are just a few successes I have seen my clients have over the years:

5% to 20% average increase in original salary offer

2k to 25k signing bonuses

25% increases in bonuses

4 months relocation housing covered

10% increase in relocation package

…and more!

I hope these simple methods will help you too…ask for and get more money!

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Do you want a simple yet powerful way to secure bigger job offers?

It all starts in the interview – when money comes up.

If money comes up in the first interview or in a phone interview, and you give up information such as how much you made in your last position or what you are looking for in terms of compensation, then you have successfully steered the focus of the interview….in the wrong direction.

When money is brought to the spotlight before a company has had time to get to know you and all of the value you could bring to them, then how much it will “cost” to hire you will take center stage. And when this happens you will have to work harder in order to compel your interviewers to see above and beyond your price tag.

Not only do you stand to loose your negotiating power by prematurely mentioning money, but the dollar figure you mention will now serve as an immovable backdrop against the successful communication of  your strengths and attributes.

It’s interesting how this works – but its very true.

You might be thinking “Well how do I get around such a direct question about money in my interviews? After all, I don’t want to appear rude and hurt my chances of being invited back.”  It’s wise to be considerate of these points; however you can successfully sidestep these questions and prolong discussions about money for a later interview by using these simple techniques:

Technique Number 1

When you are asked how much money you are looking for, simply state that salary is important to you but equally important are benefits. Ask them since you are on the subject, If they could share their benefit package with you.

This is a simple diversion that is extremely effective.

Technique Number 2

When asked about how much compensation you are looking for or what you currently make, you can share that although you would be happy to discuss money with them, you were hoping to get a better understanding of the opportunity and give them a little more time to get to know you – in order to see if there is a potential fit.

Follow this statement up with asking them “If that is OK.” After all, you are offering not to answer their question so your diplomacy and polite response will help you to successfully sidestep this question until a later interview.

Using these two simple techniques will help you keep a focus on your skills and abilities as they relate to the position you are interviewing for – and set the tone and pace for a bigger and better offer!

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