Why That Recruiter Ghosted You After Asking for Your Expected Salary

You gave a number. Then silence.

You're sitting in your Mong Kok apartment, staring at your phone. The recruiter from that headhunt firm in Central was all smiles on the phone. "We love your profile! The client is really interested." Then came the question: "What's your expected salary?" You gave a reasonable number — maybe $28,000 for that marketing executive role, or $45,000 for that IT project manager position at a bank. And then... nothing. No reply to your follow-up email. The WhatsApp message shows a single blue tick. You check JobsDB again and see the ad is still live. What happened?

This scenario is so common in Hong Kong that it's practically a rite of passage for job seekers. Whether you're a fresh graduate from HKU applying through CTgoodjobs, or a mid-career professional being headhunted on LinkedIn, the "salary question ghost" has probably visited you at least once. It feels personal. It feels unfair. And honestly, it often is both. But here's the thing: the silence usually isn't about you. It's about a broken system that recruiters themselves are trapped in.

The hidden mechanics behind the ghosting

Let's pull back the curtain on how recruitment actually works in Hong Kong, especially through agencies. When a recruiter asks for your expected salary, they're not just being nosy. They're operating under a set of constraints that most job seekers never see.

First, there's the client's budget range. Every job opening has a salary band set by the hiring company. For a role listed on JobsDB as "$25,000 - $35,000," the actual budget might be tighter — say, $28,000 to $32,000. The recruiter knows this. You don't. When you say $33,000, you might be right at the top of the range, which means the client can afford you but might prefer someone cheaper. If you say $36,000, you're out of range entirely. The recruiter now has to decide: fight for you, or move on to the next candidate?

Second, recruiters are graded on submission-to-interview ratios. Most agencies in Hong Kong track how many CVs they send to a client versus how many candidates actually get interviewed. If a recruiter submits a candidate whose salary expectation is above budget, and the client rejects that candidate immediately, it hurts the recruiter's metrics. So many recruiters simply drop candidates who are "too expensive" rather than negotiating on their behalf. It's faster to find someone who fits the budget perfectly.

Third, there's the "benchmarking" game. Sometimes recruiters ask for your salary expectation not because they have a specific role, but because they're building a database. They're collecting market data to present to clients. "We surveyed 50 candidates and the average expected salary for this role is $30,000." Your number becomes a data point. Once they have it, they don't need you anymore. This is particularly common with junior to mid-level roles in industries like banking, consulting, and tech.

Fourth, and most frustratingly, the role itself might be on hold or cancelled. The hiring manager might have paused the search due to budget freezes — something that happens frequently in Hong Kong's volatile economy. The recruiter knows this but can't tell you, because admitting the role is frozen makes the agency look incompetent. So they just... disappear.

How to protect yourself and actually get a response

Now that you know the game, here's how to stop being a pawn and start being a player. These strategies work on any platform — JobsDB, CTgoodjobs, LinkedIn Hong Kong, or Indeed — and they don't require any special tools.

Step 1: Never give a single number. Give a range.

When a recruiter asks for your expected salary, your instinct might be to give a firm number. Don't. Instead, say: "Based on my experience and the market rate for this role, I'm looking at a range of $30,000 to $38,000." This does two things. First, it keeps you in consideration even if their budget is at the lower end. Second, it signals flexibility, which recruiters love. If the budget is $32,000, you're still in the game. If you'd said $36,000 flat, they might have ghosted you.

Pro tip for Hong Kong: When applying through CTgoodjobs or JobsDB, many application forms have a compulsory "Expected Salary" field with no room for a range. In that case, enter the midpoint of your range. If your range is $30,000 to $38,000, put $34,000. This signals you're flexible without pricing yourself out.

Step 2: Delay the salary conversation until you have leverage.

Recruiters often ask about salary in the very first call or message. You have the right to delay. Say something like: "I'd like to learn more about the role and responsibilities first before discussing compensation. Can we schedule a quick chat to go through the details?" Most recruiters will agree. Why? Because once you've had a conversation and they've invested time in you, they're less likely to ghost you over a number. They've built a human connection.

Real example: A friend of mine — let's call him Jason — was a project manager at MTR. A recruiter reached out on LinkedIn about a role at a construction firm. The first message asked for his expected salary. Jason replied: "I'd love to discuss this role further. Are you free for a 15-minute call tomorrow?" They had the call. The recruiter loved him. When salary came up, Jason said $65,000. The budget was $60,000. But instead of ghosting, the recruiter went back to the client and negotiated. Jason got $63,000. If he'd just replied with a number, he might never have gotten that call.

Step 3: Research market rates obsessively.

You can't win a negotiation if you don't know what you're worth. In Hong Kong, this means checking multiple sources:

• JobsDB Salary Report: Published annually, gives median salaries by industry and experience level.
• CTgoodjobs Salary Survey: Similar but with more granular data for specific roles.
• LinkedIn Salary: For roles at multinational companies like HSBC, Morgan Stanley, or Accenture.
• Glassdoor: Good for company-specific reviews and salary data.
• Your network: Ask friends in similar roles at similar companies. Hong Kong's job market is small — people talk.

Target number: Know the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentile for your role. If the median is $32,000, your range should be $30,000 to $36,000. If you're underqualified, aim for the 25th percentile. If you're overqualified, aim for the 75th.

Step 4: Follow up strategically, not desperately.

If you've given your expected salary and the recruiter goes silent, don't send a desperate message. Instead, wait 3-5 business days. Then send a professional follow-up that adds value:

"Hi [Name], I hope you're well. I wanted to follow up on the [Role Name] position. Since we last spoke, I've been thinking about how my experience with [specific skill or achievement] could directly contribute to [Company Name]'s goals in [specific area]. I'm very interested in the role and would welcome the chance to discuss further. Please let me know if there's any additional information I can provide."

This does two things: it reminds them you exist, and it demonstrates continued interest and proactivity. If they still don't respond after another week, assume it's a no and move on. Don't burn bridges — you might apply to the same company through a different recruiter later.

Step 5: Use multiple channels, but don't stalk.

If a recruiter on LinkedIn isn't responding, it's okay to send a polite follow-up on WhatsApp or email — but only if they've given you those channels. Never hunt down someone's personal contact information. That's creepy and illegal under Hong Kong's Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance. Stick to professional platforms.

How Amploy helps you skip the salary trap

Here's where Amploy comes in. Instead of manually typing your expected salary into every application form on JobsDB, CTgoodjobs, or Indeed — and hoping you don't accidentally price yourself out — Amploy lets you set your salary range once in your profile. Then, when you're applying to a role, the Autofill feature reads the form and fills in the expected salary field with a number that's within your range and appropriate for the role. You press Tab to accept, or type a different number if you want to adjust. You stay in control.

But Amploy does more than that. It also generates tailored cover letters that reference the specific job description — so when a recruiter reads your application, they see a human being who understands the role, not a generic template. And the job pipeline tracker keeps all your applications organised: you can see which roles you've applied to, which ones have responded, and which ones have gone silent. No more spreadsheets. No more wondering if that recruiter ever saw your CV.

Amploy was built for Hong Kong. It works with JobsDB, CTgoodjobs, LinkedIn Hong Kong, and Indeed. It's used by fresh graduates from HKU, CUHK, HKUST, PolyU, and CityU, as well as experienced professionals at companies like Deloitte, KPMG, HSBC, and MTR. And yes, there's a free plan — because we know job hunting is expensive enough without paying for another tool.

The bottom line

Recruiters ghost for many reasons, most of which have nothing to do with you. But you can control how you play the game. Give a range, delay the salary conversation until you have leverage, research your market value, and follow up strategically. And if you want to save hours of manual form-filling while keeping your salary strategy consistent, give Amploy a try. It's free to start, and it might just help you get a response instead of silence.

---

Ready to stop getting ghosted? Try Amploy for free. Set your salary range once, autofill applications in seconds, and track every application in one place. Because the best job search tool is the one you eventually uninstall.