How to ask for a pay rise

Let’s face it, talking money remains one of those topics we’d all rather avoid. Any exchange around how much we earn, how much our rent is or even splitting the bill at a restaurant can come with stuttering awkwardness, long silences and unnecessary phone fiddling.

Anything to avoid having a frank chat about the contents of our bank accounts really. But when it comes to asking for a pay rise that attitude is going to get you nowhere. It certainly isn’t going to get you extra on your pay cheque.

So, what will? Here are five invaluable tips to put into action the next time you believe you’re selling yourself short at work and deserve a pay rise.

Do your research

Never face the boss without a figure in mind. Asking vaguely for ‘more money’ without an idea of how much more you believe you’re worth will leave you in a far weaker position when it comes to negotiating.

Do as much research as you can before meeting with your manager to gauge expected salaries for your role elsewhere in the company, and the industry (websites such as glassdoor.co.uk can be really useful here), and use that as a starting point for what you should ask for. Start high but know the figure at which you’d be happy to settle.

Create a compelling case

A company won’t agree to pay you more simply out of the goodness of their heart. You need to convince them that you hold enough value to their success that it’s worth extra investment.

Put together a list of your responsibilities and achievements at work, making sure to highlight those that are either additional to your core role or that have been added to your role since your original salary was agreed.

Where possible monetise these. That’s easier in areas such as sales or finance of course, but even if you’re in a creative sector such as marketing, PR or journalism look at the wider financial benefits of your work. Did your article secure advertising for example? Did your suggestions for a PR strategy keep a high value client happy?

Pick your moment

For the right person a company can – and should – award a pay rise at any point in the year. But the fact is that for most companies there are times in the calendar when budgets are more flexible than others and if you can coincide your request with one of these then you have that much more chance of success.

For instance, each year companies will set annual budgets, which includes the amount they expect to spend on salaries, and there may be extra flexibility in the weeks leading up to this.

Similarly keep an eye on movements elsewhere in your department. If a senior member of the team leaves and a more junior staff member, at a lower salary, takes their place then it might be there’s some extra wriggle room in the budget.

Be willing to walk away

The fact is few companies want to pay you more if they don’t have to. But if it means they’ll lose you and the value you bring to the company then they’ll often see it for the smart business investment it is. If they know there’s no chance you’re going anywhere though, regardless of the outcome, that investment looks less savvy.

That doesn’t mean you need to threaten your boss with walking out that second or make up imaginary job offers with huge salaries, but it does mean making clear that you believe you’re worth more, and that you believe someone else will pay you accordingly.

Ditch the awkwardness

Finally ditch the discomfort. When you negotiate a pay rise you need to be calm, assertive and confident in your value, none of which you’ll communicate if you’re looking at the floor and falling over your sentences.

One trick is to distance yourself from the subject matter. Imagine you’re negotiating this pay rise for a friend or family member for example. You’ll likely feel much happier fighting their corner and remaining firm when the offer is too low. Or simply channel a colleague you know has aced this process before you, think about what they’d do and how they’d respond.

Even better, imagine how happy you’ll be with some extra cash in your bank account and realise all the awkwardness will be more than worth it.