BEP 158 – Dealing with an Angry Caller (Part 2)

This is the second of a two-part Business English Pod series on dealing with angry callers on the phone.

We hope that all of our customers are satisfied ones. Indeed, a basic goal in business is to keep customers happy and coming back. But we can’t please all of the people all of the time. Angry callers are often upset because they don’t understand why something happened or disagree with a policy. They might believe that a company has made a mistake. And to get the results they want, they might be rude, yell, or want to speak to someone in authority.

Handling these types of calls is easier when you can respond calmly and clearly. So today we’ll look at how to explain a problem and suggest a solution. We’ll cover ways to handle customers who yell, use crude language, or want to talk to a manager. Finally, we’ll discuss how handle things when your company has made a mistake.

In today’s lesson, we’ll hear more of a conversation between Diana, a Customer Care agent for a credit card company, and Jay Rothschild, an angry customer whose credit card was locked after he made a large purchase. Diana has already gotten Jay’s account information and is ready to start solving the problem.

Listening Questions

1. Why was Jay’s credit card locked?
2. Why does Jay want to speak to a manager?
3. How does Diana resolve the problem?

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BEP 157 – Dealing with an Angry Caller (Part 1)

This is the first of a two-part Business English Pod series on dealing with an angry caller on the phone.

We’ve all dealt with angry people before. But dealing with an angry person on the phone, in a business setting, can be tricky. Sometimes you don’t know the person, so his or her situation may be completely new to you. You can’t see the person, so you can’t read facial expressions or body language. Sometimes the person yells or talks so quickly that you can’t understand exactly what they mean. And sometimes they might be rude, which can make you angry yourself.

Successfully handling an angry caller is an important skill. Often, these callers are customers and you don’t want to lose their business. Satisfied customers will return and recommend your company to others. Angry customers will do the opposite.

So in today’s lesson, we’ll cover ways to calm down angry callers, using a calm tone of voice, and let them know you’re listening. We’ll also look at language for acknowledging an angry customer’s feelings and frustrations by showing empathy. Finally, we’ll talk about ways to clarify problems so you can solve them quickly.

Let’s hear how Diana, a Customer Care agent for a credit card company, handles Jay, an angry customer whose credit card has been locked, or disabled.

Listening Questions

1. What city is Jay visiting?
2. What did Jay buy his wife for her birthday?
3. When was Jay’s credit card locked?

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VV 19 – Marketing English Vocabulary: Branding (Part 2)

YouTube video

In today’s Video Vocab lesson is the second of a two-part series on business English vocabulary related to marketing and branding. In the last episode, we focused on developing a brand. Today, we’ll look at ways to make a brand successful.

This lesson is also available on our new website: www.VideoVocab.TV.

Subscribe to Video Vocab TV in iTunes and receive a free copy of the study notes for VV 18 & 19:
http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/video-vocab/id363384247

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Download: Podcast Video

New Website for Video Vocab

Video Vocab is now available on a new website: VideoVocab.TV

Video Vocab is a video podcast (vodcast) published by Business English Pod for English as a second language (ESL) learners who want to expand and improve their English vocabulary for business.

Each ESL video lesson looks at a group of key English vocabulary words and terms related to a particular business topic. The meaning of the vocabulary is explained with simple definitions and pictures, and an example of how the vocabulary can be used.

Current lessons feature vocabulary on the economy, law, project management, accounting and finance, the credit crisis and Web 2.0 internet technologies.

Now available in iTunes (click to subscribe)
Subscribe with iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/video-vocab/id363384247

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