You did it. You interviewed like a champ, you followed up, and you got the job offer. Congratulations!

But wait. Your work isn’t done yet. Now you must negotiate your compensation, your perks and your start date.

Where do you go from here? Will you blow it, come across as greedy, if you ask for too much? Will you sell yourself short if you ask for too little? Many applicants simply accept the first offer for fear of jeopardizing it. Often, they leave money and perks on the table.

Now you finally have some real power. They want you. They selected you over all of the other candidates. You have some leverage to ask for what you want.

The first rule is that you don’t play the numbers game until the time is right. Do whatever you can to avoid being the first person to name a number.

Early in the interviewing process, both you and the employer will likely try to determine if there’s a match in terms of compensation. If you speak first with a recruiter, she may provide a salary range and will likely ask you how much you’re making and how much you want to make in your next position.

When asked to name your price early in the process, your first response should be deflection. You don’t want to price yourself too low or too high before you know the company’s position. The best answer is, “For the right opportunity, I would be open to considering any competitive offer.”

Do what you can to find out the company’s salary range for this position and the going market rate for similar positions. If the recruiter won’t give up the information, conduct some research through your network.

Sites like Payscale.com, Salary.com and Glassdoor.com also provide information on average compensation and even salaries for specific jobs at specific companies. This will help you set some parameters around what you’re worth.

For some companies, there is little or no negotiating room beyond the set salary range and benefit package.