Before you do the interview, get an idea about the salary range being offered for your field, position, expertise, education qualifications, time, and exclusivity. You can use various job-hunting and company review websites that are available on the internet.

After you know the range that you should receive according to the industry, research about the company, the reviews and the salary offered by them. This can indicate if the average salary that the company offers is above, below, or just average according to the industry standards.

After this mandatory research, you will have a rough figure in mind.

Add 15-25% to that figure and quote your requirement. Remember to be professional and state your experience and expertise in the sentence. For example, “With the given expertise of so and so years that I would bring to the table, my expectation is so and so.”

After this, let them get back to you with an offer that may be 15-25% less than what you quote, or on a good day the Human Resource executive may agree that the figure you quoted is feasible for them.

Do make sure that you be firm during the interview but not rigid. Meaning, do not portray yourself as someone who can take anything for a salary (even if you can) nor be extremely rigid during the bargaining phase. Remember that when you are quoting a figure, leave a little room for the employer to play around.

If the counter-offer you receive is way below your expectations, you can ask them politely about their upper limit of the range that they are comfortable in. While doing so you can also remind them of your expertise and experience and how you can benefit the company. Furthermore, you can also quote the industry standards according to your research. For example, “Thank you for your offer, though unfortunately, I believe that it does not fit my experience and commitments well enough. According to the industry standards, a job responsibility of so and so can fetch a comfortable compensation of so and so. And therefore, I would request you to revise the offer. “

And if the offer is amazing and you want to respond with a ‘yes or no’, I am sure you already know what’s to be done. Here’s a little example, “I am humbled to receive your offer. At the same time, I am glad/sorry to inform you that I accept/do not accept. (Your wish!)”

Remember that the key here is to market your skills well and also indicate your flexibility and growth attitude at the same time. Be humble and use professional language at all times. All the best!