Useful Language — Making and Holding an Offer

The phrases that let you say no to a number and keep the person.

Tap the speaker to hear each phrase. Then listen to the full conversation below.

Presenting the offer

Let me walk you through the whole package, not just the salary.
The base is fifty-two, and on top of that there is the bonus and the training budget.
We also review salaries at six months for this role, not twelve.
How does that sound as a package?

When they ask for more

That is a fair question, and I want to give you a straight answer.
I cannot go to eight, and I do not want to pretend I can.
Three percent is genuine, it is not an opening position.
Anything above that would need sign-off I am not going to get.

Moving on other things

What I can also offer is an extra week of holiday.
I could bring the salary review forward to six months.
The training budget is slightly higher than standard for this role.
Which of those matters most to you?

Closing it

Shall I put that in writing so you can see it all together?
Take a couple of days, there is no pressure from us.
If the answer is no, I would rather know honestly.
I am really glad we could get there.

Listen: the offer conversation

Sara: Giulia, thanks for calling back. Let me walk you through the whole package, not just the salary.

Giulia: I appreciate that. But I should be honest, the number is a little below what I can accept.

Sara: That is a fair question, and I want to give you a straight answer. I cannot go to eight, and I do not want to pretend I can.

Giulia: I understand. Is three your opening position, or is it real?

Sara: It is real. Anything above that would need sign-off I am not going to get. But there are other things I can move.

Giulia: Such as?

Sara: An extra week of holiday, a training budget that is considerably higher than standard, and a salary review at six months instead of twelve.

Giulia: The six-month review is interesting. That is not a promise of money, though.

Sara: No, it is not, and I will not pretend otherwise. It is an earlier conversation, with your results on the table.

Giulia: All right. Put it in writing and give me two days.

Notice that Sara names her limit exactly rather than saying “let me see what I can do”, and that she moves on other dimensions instead. The quantifiers (a little below, considerably higher) do the negotiating.