Business English Pod / Articles by: BEP / Page 119

BEP 129 – Presentations: Pitching an Idea (1)

Advanced, Business English, English for Meetings, ESL Podcast, Presentations in English /

This is the first in a three-part Business English Podcast series on pitching, or presenting, your ideas persuasively and convincingly.

Business people often come up with ideas about how to do things better, or how something can be changed to provide greater cost benefits to the company. Being able to present an idea to your peers and persuade them to support your proposal is a crucial skill for all business managers.

So in today’s lesson, we’ll introduce phrases for organizing and structuring your ideas, supporting your points and using other people’s comments to lead into the next part of your presentation. We will show you how to make coherent, persuasive arguments, and use language effectively to support your arguments. It is your colleagues’ task to find the weak points in your argument and you will have to predict their objections and deal with them before or when they come up.
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BEP 128 – Telephoning: Handling Sales Calls

Business English, ESL Podcast, Intermediate English, Sales English, Telephone English /

We’ve looked before at how to set up an appointment on the phone with someone you already know (BEP 119), but what about if you haven’t met the person or established a relationship with them yet? In today’s Business English Podcast, we’ll be looking at how to make contact with a prospective client and, on the opposite end of the line, we’ll examine language you can use to politely decline a request for information or a meeting.

We’ve already met Mario from Viva Fashions in previous episodes. Now Mario wants to meet with the head buyer for a chain of American stores owned by DeBourg Brands but, at this point, he doesn’t even know the buyer’s name. Mario is going to “cold call” the company and see if he can reach the buyer. First, he needs a name, and then he needs to try to speak to the buyer to make an appointment.

Listening Questions – First Call:
1) What techniques does Mario use to get information from Joan?
2) Why do you think Joan agrees to help Mario?

Listening Questions – Second Call:
1) Why does Mario keep saying “thank you” instead of “please” after making a request?
2) What language does Mario use when stating the reason for his call, and why?
3) Throughout the conversation, Mario uses informal language to minimize his request. Can you spot a few examples?

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Revised e-Book for Business Meetings in English

Announcements, Business English e-Books, English for Meetings /

Business English for Meetings eBookThis is a preview of our revised e-Book for business meetings: Meeting Essentials for Business English.

Business English Pod e-Books enable you to learn on the go with MP3 audio lessons and the detailed PDF study guides, including a full transcript of each lesson. The revised editions include over 100 online Flash quizzes, exercises and flashcards designed to help you practice and use all the language covered in the course.

Click the launch button below to start the online quizzes for Unit 210 – Managing the Discussion:

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