How To Negotiate a Better Raise in the Printing Industry

To negotiate a better raise in the printing industry, you must be prepared, willing to step out of your comfort zone, and display strong communication skills. As your performance review approaches, make a plan to get what you deserve.

Here are five things to help you prepare to negotiate a better raise.

Step 1: Show Your Passion

“Why do you think you qualify for a better salary?” If you ask for a higher-than-average raise in the print industry, you’ll be asked this question, so be ready.

Your answer should reflect your passion and dedication to your employment, which reflects big-picture thinking about your print career. For instance, have you learned everything there is to know about your job – and more? Have you volunteered for company projects outside your department? Do you mentor new hires? Do you raise your hand to attend community events on behalf of the company?

Your answer should demonstrate your love for your work and for the company.

Step 2: Gather Facts and Figures

Compare the before and after conditions, and quantify the difference your involvement makes in your role and in the company.

Did you design a process that gets jobs through your department faster? How much faster? Did you help the department improve accuracy? What were the stats before and after? Did you get the team pulling together on a project that previously caused days of arguments? How many days? Did you introduce new customers to the company through a marketing campaign? How many new customers?

Make a list of everything that you’ve improved through your employment, and measure it in real numbers. Time saved, mistakes avoided, customers gained, money made, and money saved are good numbers to track and report. These will all help you to negotiate a better raise.

Step 3: Do Your Research

Remember, each raise compounds on itself throughout your print career. Even with perks and a prestigious job title, your career strategy should be to reach for the top of the range to maximize your salary over time.

Here’s what to research to support your salary negotiations.

What constitutes the job description for the title you have? What do others in your position make at similar companies? What do the highest performers earn with your job title? Do people in your city make more than in other cities? This is publicly available information.

Step 4: Communicate Your Ambition

Let your manager know that you want to stay on the team and grow with the company. The time to discuss your printing career is now, well before raise time. You want each person in your reporting structure to be aware that you’re on the upward path.

Corporate raises are discussed internally far before they’re announced. You want to be sure you’re placed in the “valuable employee” column. Your potential within the company is as important as your hard work and dedication. The awareness of your loyalty by management could even negotiate a better raise for you.

Step 5: Practice the Negotiation

Asking for a better raise is a lot like sales.

There’s ongoing dialog, timing, empathy, listening, presenting your side of the story at the right time, and then asking “for the order” – instead of staying quiet and hoping someone will reward you.

This type of communication takes practice to be smooth and confident.

You don’t want to reveal too much during negotiations, leave out important facts, or get nervous and clam up.

I recommend role-playing with a friend or mentor. Choose someone outside the company who has your best interests at heart and will be honest with you.

Practice until you can present your information smoothly and persuasively.

How to Push Back if the Amount is Not Enough

If you are offered a raise that’s too low, try these two tactics to negotiate a better raise.

First, ask how the company arrived at that number, and find out how raises are being distributed across the company. If the amount offered is based on cost-control measures, ask if you can accept the raise and then receive a second raise in six months or, say, in the month after the new fiscal year begins. If they agree, get the commitment on the calendar and in a written offer letter that is shared with HR. You may have to bird dog it to be sure it happens, but it’s one way to get around the “everyone is being treated the same way” argument for a low raise. I’ve successfully used this approach.

Second, ask if you have time to think about the offer. Once you are away from the office, without distractions, make a pros and cons list. Review your personal budget. Consider the offer and all perks. Think about your options outside the company and what a change to a new job would look like and cost.

You may worry that, if you ask for more time, all the money for raises will be “used up” or allocated to other people. That’s unlikely.

If you are a strong employee (and you should be!), a respectful delay gives your manager time to put together the best raise possible. You’re not threatening to quit, you’re simply asking for time to weigh the offer. This is a normal and acceptable part of the negotiation process.

Asking for a Better Raise Helps You Take Charge of Your Career

Once you follow the five steps, you should be ready to enter the negotiation. Preparation helps you stand up for yourself, defend your value in quantitative terms, and prove you’re worthy of investment.

Remember, you are the one who shapes and propels your print career. Taking charge of the process and negotiating a better raise is not just about money, it’s about asserting your value and worth in the company.

Start today to lay the groundwork for your next raise – a better raise.