Do you know what to put for desired salary on application forms? Here’s my proven guide to navigating salary expectations on job applications. In this episode, I break down exactly why companies ask for your desired salary, what they’re really looking for, and how this info fits into their internal hiring process.
That way you have negotiation advice that is based on hundreds of salary negotiations and actually work for job seekers.
SALARY NEGOTIATION TOOLS MENTIONED
- Salary Negotiation Coaching: https://www.thesalarynegotiator.com/
- Salary Negotiation Courses: https://www.thesalarynegotiator.com/courses
- Salary Negotiation Scripts & Templates: https://www.thesalarynegotiator.com/salary-negotiation-templates
- How to Negotiate a Job Offer Guide: https://www.thesalarynegotiator.com/job-offer-negotiation-course
- Desired Salary Answers: https://www.thesalarynegotiator.com/resource-center/salary-expectations-answer-on-application
- Salary Expectation Scripts: https://www.thesalarynegotiator.com/store/salary-expectations-scripts-and-email-templates
- Video Guide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7H8kvL39fQM
Like and subscribe!
CONNECT WITH ME
WHO AM I
I'm Brandon, the Founder and Lead Negotiator at The Salary Negotiator®. As a former corporate negotiator, I now help employees increase their compensation. Through hundreds of salary negotiations, I've helped career professionals secure over $200 million in additional compensation. My expertise is backed by more than 150 five-star reviews from career professionals on Google and Trustpilot.
Episode Transcript
Most companies now ask you to share your salary
expectations on applications,but what do you put when a
company requests this?
In this episode, my goal is tocover everything you need to
correctly navigate the salaryexpectations questions on job
applications (https://www.thesalarynegotiator.com/resource-center/salary-expectations-answer-on-application).
I'm first gonna cover why jobapplications ask what your
decided salary is so you knowmore about their internal
application process and whatinformation this gives the
(00:20):
company.
That way you know exactly whythe company wants this
information.
Then I'm gonna walk you throughwhy I recommend not sharing
your expected salary answer onan application form.
And I'm gonna close the episodeout by sharing what to put for
salary exploitations onapplication forms.
That way you don't risk theopportunity and you do actually
secure competitive compensation.
So let's get into it.
Hi everyone, welcome back tothe channel.
(00:40):
If you're new here, my name isBrandon Bramley and I'm the
founder and lead negotiator athttps://www.thesalarynegotiator.com/.
I provide professional joboffer negotiation coaching,
salary negotiation courses, andtools to help professionals
navigate the negotiation processand secure competitive
compensation.
I'm not just a career coach orrecruiter giving out generic
salary negotiation advice.
There's already enough badadvice floating around online.
Instead, I personally ledhundreds of salary negotiations
(01:03):
across various roles, helping myclients secure millions of more
in compensation.
My background is actually instrategic negotiations, and my
goal is to debunk some of thebad advice out there and give
you proven negotiationstrategies that are actually
going to work and help you earnmore.
So if you are a careerprofessional and you're looking
to earn competitive pay,subscribe here for actionable
tips.
And when you're ready to takeyour negotiations to the next
(01:23):
level, visitthesalarynegotiator.com for
coaching courses and tools thatare designed to help you
negotiate the best possibleoffer in your next role.
Now, before we dive into whatsalary expectations answer to
put on an application form,let's talk about why recruiters
and companies want thisinformation.
Companies are often looking foryour desired salary answer for
several reasons.
The primary purpose is usuallyto filter out applicants whose
(01:44):
salary requirements are eithertoo low or too high, narrowing
down the pool of theircandidates for interviews.
Look, employers want to ensurethat they can afford to hire you
and they don't have an endlessbudget.
So recruiters are unlikely toinvest their time in
interviewing candidates whosepay expectations are far beyond
their reach.
So it's just not worth it.
The what's your expected salaryquestion also helps employers
assess if your priorities alignwith theirs.
(02:05):
Are you actually interested inthe role itself or are you only
focused on a high salary?
If someone has unrealisticsalary expectations for the
position that doesn't offer suchcompensation, it's likely not a
suitable fit for the role, ifyou think about it.
Employers also may use what'syour expected salary as a way to
validate if they're hiring theright skill set.
Compensation expectations,including your current salary,
(02:26):
can sometimes correlate closelywith the seniority level and job
title.
So keep that in mind.
And lastly, they use it to findout how much they need to pay
you and if they can bring you inat a lower rate.
Okay, this is a very commontactic that usually works
against most job candidates whenin search of competitive
compensation later on in theinterview process.
So you want to be careful.
Okay, now that you know whyrecruiters and employers want
(02:47):
your salary information, let'stalk through why I recommend not
sharing your salaryexpectations.
There are a few salarynegotiation mistakes people
make, and this one is at the topof the list.
Okay, so sharing your salaryexpectations or current pay of
the recruiting team is onlygonna work against you in most
cases.
Plus, you haven't even made itto the interview yet, so it's
impossible to share your salaryexpectations on an application
form when you haven't learnedmore about the role,
(03:09):
responsibilities, thecompensation structures and
benefits, and even if it's aright fit for you.
Okay, so think about it.
If you throw out a number onthe application that's lower
than what they could offer,you'll likely get less
competitive compensation packageat the low end of their pay
range, or you run the risk ofactually being downleveled,
which is very common for rolesat tech companies if you're in
that industry.
On the flip side, right, if youthrow out a number that's
(03:31):
higher on your job applicationthinking that it's gonna help
you, they might think, shoot,not sure if we can afford this
person.
So let's go in a differentcandidate instead.
So it's not a good strategy andit might not even get you the
interview.
And if you think about it, Iwant you to remember they know
exactly what they can pay forthe role.
And you unfortunately don'tdecide this because they have
set pay structures.
So don't get downleveled ortied to a low compensation by
(03:53):
accidentally providing yoursalary expectations answered on
application forms.
It's way too early in theprocess, so hold that until you
have an offer package.
Okay, so what should you putwhen asked for salary
expectations answer onapplication forms?
When a value went to put forsalary expectations on
application forms or interviewquestionnaires (https://www.thesalarynegotiator.com/store/salary-expectations-scripts-and-email-templates),
we suggest you recommend fromproviding specific numbers until
you have actually progressedthrough the interview process
(04:15):
and have a job offer in hand.
On the job applications, you'retypically going to come across
either a free text field whereyou can provide a written
response or a numerical fieldwhere only numerical values are
allowed.
If you encounter a free textfield, I recommend using phrases
like industry standard for thisrole or market average for this
role as your response.
If a numerical value isrequired and text is not
(04:36):
allowed, entering zero or zerozero one is usually the best
approach.
Following this simple strategyis usually the most effective
way to respond when asked whatis your desired salary because
during the interview, you mightstill be asked about your salary
expectations by the recruiter.
And my suggestion is still thesame that you should always
withhold that information.
The only difference in thosecases are that you should turn
(04:57):
the question back on therecruiter since they know the
pay ranges.
They're always gonna know thepay ranges.
You can either use my salaryexpectations responses and
scripts in my job offernegotiation course or on our
templates page to handle thosesituations if needed, because
that way these are gonna helpyou avoid disclosing your pay
expectations so that you canactually earn competitive pay
and you don't fall into some ofthese recruiter tactics before
(05:19):
you even interview and beforeyou get the job offer.
This wraps up the episode onwhat to put for salary
expectations on applicationforums.
I hope this breakdown of whyemployers and recruiters want
this information, how it canwork actually against you in
this process, and our provenexpected salary answers help you
feel more confident in thisprocess.
But honestly, if you're seriousabout getting the best possible
offer, I highly suggest youdon't go into the salary
(05:41):
negotiation alone.
Head over tothesalarynegotiator.com to
either work with me directly asyour salary negotiation coach or
check out my salary negotiationcourses (https://www.thesalarynegotiator.com/job-offer-negotiation-course)
andtools (https://www.thesalarynegotiator.com/salary-negotiation-templates).
You'll find all the links inthe episode notes below, and
they're all designed to help youget better pay at your future
company.
And honestly, if you found thisepisode helpful, make sure to
subscribe, leave a comment, andshare it with someone who could
(06:01):
actually use this advice intheir career.
Thanks for tuning in and goodluck negotiating.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandonbramley/
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