Who the eff thinks a counter offer is separate from a negotiation?
obviously the definition of a counteroffer includes that part of a negotiation, but in the context of a job offer, common parlance is that a counteroffer is something that comes from your current employer.
Yeah, I got a great job offer, but I decided to accept a counteroffer instead.
Now, based on the above, if someone said that would you believe a) that they played hardball with a potential employer and got them to up their offer or b) they decided to stay with their current employer in exchange for a raise.