champchamp

Certified Savage

Buying more time after receiving an offer....

Hey Fam,

I received an offer today, however, the base is pretty damn low. I have a friend at the company that helped me corroborate what the HM told me.

1 rep fully onboarded hitting quota, 1 rep just finished onboarding and is doing really well.

The base is super low and im confident i can negotiate it but it will still be a bit low.

However, I got a 3rd round tomorrow (Forgot if this'll be the final round or if there will be one more) and a final round Thursday next week.

So, I don't want to completely disregard this offer in case all else fails. But, I want to buy myself enough time to go through these other interview processes.

How do I ask for more time to make the decision? Tell HM about other offers? Simply ask for more time to consider?

And for how much extra time is it reasonable to ask for?

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31 comment

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Gasty

Notable Contributor

War Room Community Manager

They'll tell you the offer would expire if not accepted within 2 or 3 days. You can say you'd want some time before accepting the offer. They can roll out a fresh one.

I mean, it's a god-damned offer and not a goat-cheese packet that'd d expire in 2 days.

champchamp

Arsonist

Certified Savage

hahahahaha love the comparison.

SalesMama

Executive

Senior Account Executive

You don’t need to explain anything if you think you can wrap the other process this week. Just tell company A that you need a week to consider their offer.

jefe

Arsonist

🍁

Third'd

Sunbunny31

Politicker

Sr Sales Executive 🐰

This is a very good answer.

alonzoharris

Politicker

Partner Manager

second this!

champchamp

Arsonist

Certified Savage

Thank you. Wasn't sure as I saw someone mention in another post that 1 week was too long to consider

punishedlad

Tycoon

🧙‍♂️

In my experience, letting them know that you're in the final round with another company and expecting an offer can put a fire under their ass. I've done this twice, and both times the company that gave me the original offer came back with a higher base without me having to explicitly ask for one.

Pachacuti

Politicker

They call me Daddy, Sales Daddy

Congrats on the offer, first off. That's always nice to have in your back pocket.

If you just need a couple weeks, go ahead and accept the offer but tell them you need a start date a couple weeks out due to vacation, family event, personal event, etc... It doesn't matter.

If you need longer but need a job now - accept it. While it will definitely burn a bridge, you can quit in the first 1-2 months. Happens.

champchamp

Arsonist

Certified Savage

Thank you! Though about the 1st option too, just thought that that would burn the bridge as well.

I only need one week though as it seems like ill get another offer tomorrow and then just gotta get through another final round next week.

About the second option, don't wanna do that one as i got in as a referral and don't want to make my friend look bad.

Thanks for the feedback, man.

CatMom

Politicker

Account Executive

Start the negotiations for the higher base. That will buy time. They will have to take it back and think abt it/ get approvals, etc. might at least buy you an extra day or two and then from there be like ok, I need to review all the fine print and whatnot, I’ll get back to you by x date.

champchamp

Arsonist

Certified Savage

Great one, ill do this. Thank you.

CatMom

Politicker

Account Executive

Yeah let us know how it goes!! Can’t wait to see you get out of that wild ass place!

champchamp

Arsonist

Certified Savage

Haha, thank you! Me neither, just waiting on one last offer to make a decision. (:

saaskicker

Celebrated Contributor

Enterprise AE

Can also mention this to the other companies you’re awaiting an offer from / going through the process with to speed it up

champchamp

Arsonist

Certified Savage

Thanks! i just sent an email to the other company to see if we can speed things up as I have two offers now.

saaskicker

Celebrated Contributor

Enterprise AE

congrats, love to see it. best of luck.

champchamp

Arsonist

Certified Savage

Thank you! I emailed them and they replied to me the next morning like "We got a spot on 1 hour, do you want it?" I went through it and I think it went pretty good!

They said they'd give me an answer in the following 24-48 hours.

Just waiting on that one to make a decision!

NotCreativeEnough

Big Shot

Professional Day Ruiner

tell them you need time to consider it and weigh your options. If they rescind the offer because of that, then, well, you don't want to work for them anyway

champchamp

Arsonist

Certified Savage

Thought the same but they gave me the offer on Tuesday and will need at least until next Friday.

I reached out to the other company to see if we can seep up the process.

NotCreativeEnough

Big Shot

Professional Day Ruiner

fair enough. that is a very long time to go without giving them an answer.

Sunbunny31

Politicker

Sr Sales Executive 🐰

Do you have any way to negotiate that base?

champchamp

Arsonist

Certified Savage

Yeah! What they offered me was almost an insult though so I think I can get it higher but it would only turn it from shitty to decent haha

UrAssIsSaaS

Arsonist

SaaS Eater

Just say you need more time.. these things arent complex

champchamp

Arsonist

Certified Savage

yeah but how much time is reasonable?

TomRice

Head Of Sales

Is this an SDR role? If so, I'd have to ask what your real objectives are because while the delta in pay across SDR roles, when your an SDR, may seem really material - and indeed might be, relative to one's personal / financial situation (coupled with the current economic backdrop)...it perils in comparison when juxtaposed across a 1-3 year timeline to the start date of your promotion to an AE...if that is your objective....e.g. a $20k lift to base salary in an SDR role for a company that isn't growing enough to provide a predictable path to closing, and / or working for a boss that cannot develop you into that role, and ultimately requiring you to seek out another lateral move to one that does...are two critical criteria's that I would recommend focussing on above all....especially the second....you need a great sales leader....a bad one will ruin your career before it gets off the ground. Net net, if two SDR's take two roles, and one of them made 50K less but got promoted to AE in year one, while the other stayed an SDR for two more years....SDR 1 would likely earn 3-5x what SDR 2 does over the next 10 years...maybe the whole damn career.

champchamp

Arsonist

Certified Savage

This is great, thank you so much. This was a full sales cycle role, however, it was barely SaaS and the compensation wasn’t up to SaaS standards.
.
I actually spoke with a great sales leader and he helped me evaluate the offers I had.
.
He pointed out the same thing you did, that 1-2 years might seem very significant at this time but in reality they represent a very small percentage of my career overall.
.
At this company, it would’ve been a closing role, my base would’ve been lower than the role I took and the earning potential in the upcoming years wasn’t too big.
.
I took an SDR role at a growing company (We looked at growth, investors, funding, etc.) in which I’m making around the same as I would’ve in the closing role but with a higher base.
.
Also the opportunity to move to AE or AM is available, which means much higher earning potential in the upcoming years.
.
Thank you very much again for this feedback, it was great.

SADNESSLieutenant

Politicker

Officer of ♥️

Unpopular opinion. Fuck em. Accept the next offer if it comes

moonlightgraham

Account Executive

Agreeing with most of what's said here. You can use language such as "Because this is an important decision for myself and for the organization, out of respect for both parties, it would be helpful to have a few more days to consider the offer. Would you all be okay with me giving you a final decision by "insert date"." Position it as if you're being thoughtful and doing what's best for the company and make them answer that question. Make them tell you "No" and if they do, then it may be best to steer clear of that company. Good companies rescind an offer to a candidate they truly want unless you begin to disrespect the process.

rharris415

Contributor

Founder

Guaranteed Controversy with #4 Option

1. Your personal situation may dictate a decision. Meaning you need a paycheck, insurance, etc. If so, I can respect any decision you make.

2. I would not mention the other offer unless you really want this job. Even then, it's not my style. Someone else gave good advice on how to do that, so it could be the right play for you.

3. Tell them you need a few more days because you have to check with your mentor who's on vacation. (Essentially all of us here, and hopefully a mentor too.)

Here's the controversy, and I tell people to do this all the time.

Option 4

1. You are always a free agent. ALWAYS.

2. All work is "At-Will," meaning they can fire you any time they want, and you can walk anytime you want. Just because you take an offer does not mean you have to stay there for any period of time.

3. Just because you start somewhere means you have to stop interviewing.

4. KEEP INTERVIEWING for 30 days after you start.

5. If a better offer comes along, and you feel its right for ou, take it.

6. You are NOT burning a bridge because:

a. When you resign, you say, "I know you're not happy, but here are the reasons I have to take this job ___________."

If they get angry, simply say, "So I am confused, if someone came along today and offered you _____ which is better than you are doing now, and everything is equal, company, culture, options, etc. Are you saying you wouldn't take it?"

b. Why is it your fault you take something that's better for your life?

c. Why is it your fault they are not paying attention to the marketplace?

d. It's not going on your LinkedIn profile. Disconnect all connections from people at that company on LinkedIn.

e. If they say, "Well, don't ever ask for a recommendation", simply state, "Yeah, you better keep your mouth shut too on any backdoor reference checks because that actually violates the law." And... "You keep your mouth shut, and I will keep my review of you and the organization off Glassdoor."

e. The community is not as small as everyone thinks it is.

Always happy to coach someone through this conversation.

And by all means, folks are welcome to comment and disagree.

It will typically be Loyalty, Your Word, Respect, etc. Which are fine,

Kosta_Konfucius

Politicker

Sales Rep

Just say you are excited but need more time

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champchamp

Buying more time after receiving an offer....

31 comment

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