Negotiating offers
When SME wants to adjust your terms, they send a counter. This article explains how to read a counter and respond.
After you submit your offers, our team may accept them as they are or send a counter with adjusted terms. You respond to counters from the same request detail page where you sent your offers.
Offer statuses
Each offer you sent carries a status:
| Status | What it means |
|---|---|
| Submitted | Sent to SME, awaiting a response |
| Counter offer | SME proposed different terms for you to respond to |
| Invited to project | SME accepted this offer and you've won the work |
| Rejected | Not taken forward; the reason is shown (for example, Rate too high) |
Reading a counter
When SME counters an offer, a highlighted block shows SME sent a counter with the proposed rate and headcount, when it was sent, and a note explaining the change.
You can see the full back-and-forth under Previous offers, a timeline of every revision showing who proposed it (SME or you), the rate and headcount, and any note. This keeps the whole negotiation in one place.
Responding to a counter
You have three choices:
- Accept counter. You agree to SME's terms. Our team can then finalise on those terms.
- Counter. Propose your own terms. Enter Your rate, Headcount (up to the number your offer projects), and an optional Note, then Send counter. SME can respond again.
- Decline. Turn down the counter. Your original offer still stands for SME to consider.
Once you accept or decline, the block updates to reflect your choice. If SME withdraws the request while a counter is open, the negotiation ends and the request shows Closed by SME.
What happens next
If SME accepts one of your offers, the request moves to your Accepted tab and a project invitation is created for you to sign. Select Open project invitation on the request to go straight to it. See Winning and staffing a project.
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Updated about 3 hours ago