Differences in language and culture have made many foreign candidates fear “salary negotiation”. Generally speaking, they are worried that ask for higher salaries will be rejected leading to the loss of valuable job opportunities, while sometimes the salary provided by the company does not meet their expectations. So, how to negotiate with employers to obtain a suitable salary?
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“Company or salary, which one is more important?”
I know, a majority of expats cares more about the company. In their opinions, as long as a company can help them to get a work visa and accumulate working experience in China, getting a lower salary is not a big deal.
Well, that’s practical. But employees should never answer this question like “If I could get an offer from you, I would not care about the salary.” If the company know you real thought of the salary, they would try to persuade you to accept a low salary since they know you really want it!
Actually, asking a higher salary in negotiation does not mean that your requirement will be rejected as long as you are able to control “the amount of money”. For example, if the HR offers 10K RMB for a month, it’s possible to ask 11K RMB for a month, while 12K RMB maybe a bit too much.
Salary negotiation in Job-hopping
Here let’s take shopping as an example.
One day, you find a great coat in a clothing store but 7500 RMB is too expensive for you. So, you decide to bargain with the salesman and lower the price to 6000 RMB, but she tells you that “6000 RMB is the bottom price and I will not get any benefits” and try to persuade you to pay a more money by describing the fine materials and design. And finally, you decide to take it at 6500 RMB although the coat can cost 5000 RMB for the most. This phenomenon is called the "anchoring effect" in psychology.
And now, think of yourself as a salesperson and HR as a customer to start the "salary negotiation" If you think 20,000 RMB is the best you have expected, try to ask for 30,000 RMB (add 50% more). Also, remember to be confident although you know 30.000 RMB is too outrageous. Your potential employer will be likely to think that you have the ability to match the high salary even if it is severely beyond their budget. Therefore, they will give some reasons to bargain with you so as to persuade you to accept a “lower” price (maybe 20,000 RMB!) And you will successfully get your ideal job and a expected salary!
And it is important for you to know How Much Can You Earn As An English Teacher in China, in this way, you know how much you ask would be considered by your employer.