A day rate on one side, a salary on the other
Say a candidate is choosing between two real conversations, one with an agency offering a freelance day rate for a rotating slate of client accounts, the other with an in-house team offering an annual salary with equity and benefits attached. The agency conversation is about a number per day and how many days a month are guaranteed, plus what happens between projects when work slows down.
The in-house conversation is about an annual figure, a review cycle, and how much a strong portfolio of past campaigns can move a base number before an offer is finalized. New-offer mode follows whichever conversation the candidate opens with, a day-rate ask for the agency offer or an annual-salary ask for the in-house one.
Internal-raise mode runs a third scenario entirely, asking an existing employer for more once a body of work inside that job already exists to point to.
What the session actually asks
In new-offer mode, expect the AI on the other side of the call to open with a number and then push back once the candidate counters, holding a position through at least one round of resistance before landing on a next step.
A day-rate negotiation tends to raise questions about guaranteed days and gaps between projects that a straight salary conversation never touches, while a salary negotiation leans more on annual figures, review timing, and how a portfolio of finished work justifies asking above a posted range.
In internal-raise mode, the conversation opens differently, asking what's changed since the current number was set, and a candidate who can point to specific campaigns delivered since the last review tends to hold a stronger position than one who argues from tenure alone.
Scoring
How the five dimensions apply to a negotiation, not an interview
This isn't scored on whether the candidate would get hired. Communication carries the most weight, since holding a clear position through pushback, whether over a day rate or an annual figure, is largely a communication problem.
Behavioral picks up any story used to justify the ask, a specific campaign cited to back up the ask reads stronger than a vague claim of experience, and the penalty for an abruptly ended session applies directly here. A negotiation that trails off without landing on a next step, a number restated, a follow-up date agreed, scores worse than one that closes deliberately, whether the number itself moved or not.
Calibration keeps a confident tone alone from outscoring an ask that's actually backed by specific, named work.
Frequently asked questions
Does salary negotiation practice know whether I'm negotiating a day rate or a salary?
It follows whichever real conversation the candidate sets up in new-offer mode, a freelance day-rate negotiation for agency-style work or an annual salary negotiation for an in-house offer, since those two conversations pull on different terms.
Can I practice asking for a raise instead of negotiating a new offer?
Yes. Internal-raise mode runs a separate scenario for that conversation, asking what's changed since a current number was set, rather than negotiating a brand new offer.
Does having a strong portfolio actually matter in this practice session?
It can shift the conversation. A candidate who cites specific campaigns as the reason for an ask tends to hold a stronger position in the session than one who argues from vague experience alone, which mirrors how portfolio work strengthens a candidate's hand in real creative-field negotiations.
Is this scored the same way as a regular interview?
It ends with a scored report and written reasoning, the same reporting format Intervieux uses elsewhere, though the conversation itself is a negotiation rather than a hiring evaluation.
Related pages
Rehearse the money conversation before you have it for real
Practice negotiating an agency day rate, an in-house salary, or an internal raise with an AI that pushes back, then review a scored report on how the conversation actually went.