Business English A2 (CEFR) | Business English Pod

BEP 21 B – Telephone English: Taking and Leaving a Message

A2, Business English, Customer Service, Telephone English / January 17, 2016

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on how to take or leave a message on the telephone in English.

You’ve probably experienced this situation before: someone calls your office and wants to talk to someone who isn’t there. So what do you do? You take a message, of course. But how do you take a message?

Well, it starts with asking the caller if they would actually like to leave a message. Then you’ll get some information, like who the person wants to talk to and what they want to talk about. Also, don’t forget to get the caller’s number so the person can call them back. And it’s a good idea to check back with the caller that you’ve got the information correct, because incorrect messages can cause big problems.

But what if you are the caller and you want to leave a message? Well, you can simply ask if you can do just that. And then you’ll give all the important details, like who you want to talk to, what you want to talk to them about, and your phone number. It’s these techniques and language for taking and leaving messages that we’ll learn today.

In the dialog, we’re going to rejoin a conversation between Claire and Nathan. In our last lesson, we heard Claire answer the phone at a company called Airtronics. Nathan is the caller. He works for Cyclops Aircraft and he’s calling to talk to someone named George Kline. But George isn’t there, so Claire is going to have to take a message for him.

Listening Questions

1. Why is Nathan trying to get in touch with George Kline?
2. What part of the message does Claire repeat back to Nathan?
3. Near the end of the call, what does Claire say she will try to do immediately?

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BEP 21 A – Answering a Telephone Call in English

A2, Business English, Customer Service, Telephone English / January 10, 2016

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on how to start a telephone call in English.

On the telephone, you can’t use your smile or body language to communicate feelings or ideas. You’ve only got your voice! So it’s really important that you know what to say and how to say it at each step of the call. This is especially true of the start of the call. Whether you’re the caller or the receiver, you need to cover the basic information right away so you can move on and deal with the matter at hand.

So, what are those basic things you need to cover at the start of a call? Well, that’s what we’ll learn about in this lesson. If you’re the receiver, you’re going to have to answer the call with a greeting and something to identify yourself and company. On a very simple level, that might sound like “Good morning. This is Jane at City Contractors.” If you’re the caller, you’re also going to have to identify yourself before you ask to speak to someone. Once you’ve identified yourself, what happens next? Well, as the receiver, next you will want to connect the caller with the right person. But before you do that, or before you take a message if the person is not available, you want to find out why the person is calling. So you’ll ask about the purpose of the call.

In today’s dialog, we will learn how the call works from both sides. We’ll hear Claire, who works at a company called Airtronics. She’s answering the call. We’ll also hear Nathan, the caller, who works for Cyclops aircraft. Nathan is calling to talk to someone named George Kline in the contracts department.

Listening Questions

1. What are the different parts of Claire’s first statement when she answers the phone?
2. How does Nathan ask to speak to George Kline?
3. How does Claire ask about the purpose of the call?

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925English – Lesson 1: How to Say Hello in English

925 English, A2, Business English, English Video, ESL Podcast, Functions, Socializing / November 1, 2015

This is a preview lesson from 925 English, a new series we’ll launch next year. Appropriately enough, we’re kicking off with a 925 English lesson on how to greet and say hello to colleagues and customers in English.

925English a new business English series for beginners (CEFR A1-A2) and lower intermediate (B1) English learners. 925 English lessons focus on chunks of language and English expressions that you can use in work and business. We get straight to the point with lots of examples. We give you phrases you can say in different situations and advice on why and how to use them.

So, it’s pretty easy to greet someone in English, isn’t it? We can say “good morning” or “hello” or just “hi.” And we might add something like “my name is Tim Smith,” or a question like “how’s it going?” But what’s the difference? How do we choose which greeting to use? Well, in business, like in life, it depends on the situation. That includes who we’re talking to and where we’re having the conversation. So let’s go through three situations and practice some appropriate ways of saying hello.

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BEP 15c – Telephoning: Asking for Help

A2, Business English, Telephone English / July 26, 2015

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on how to ask for help on the telephone in English.

Asking someone for help with a problem is hard enough to begin with. But on the telephone it can be even more difficult! You can’t see the other person and how they are reacting, and they can’t see you. You can’t rely on a smile and friendly body language. So how can you get the help you need?

Well, don’t worry. In this lesson we’ll look at some simple steps to making an effective call. If we’re talking to someone we know, it might start with a bit of friendly small talk about things like sports or the weather. That helps makes people feel relaxed and positive, which is important if you want to talk about a problem. After you’ve created a relaxed atmosphere, you can introduce the problem. You don’t want to just blurt out “I have a problem, please help me.” You need to do it gently, or carefully. At this point, the other person may ask some questions to clarify the situation. If they’re going to help you, they’ll need a clear idea of what you need.

Next, you can suggest a solution or explain how the other person can help. Again, you don’t want to just tell the person directly what they should do. You need to be friendly and polite so that the other person actually wants to help you. And hopefully the result of all this is that you have some agreement about what will happen next and who will do what. It’s a great idea to summarize this agreement near the end of the call just so both of you are perfectly clear. So, that sounds like a pretty good way to ask for help, doesn’t it?

We’ll hear all of these steps in today’s dialog between Eric and Brenda. Brenda works for a manufacturing company that buys parts from Eric’s company. She is calling because there is an important part that hasn’t been delivered. But Brenda doesn’t just want to complain about her problem. She needs to get Eric to agree to help her.

Listening Questions

1. After introducing themselves, what do Eric and Brenda talk about first?
2. What solution does Brenda suggest for her problem?
3. What does Eric say he will do for Brenda to help solve her problem?

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BEP 26c – Travel English: Dealing with Problems

A2, Business English, Travel / January 25, 2015

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on how to deal with problems you might experience when traveling by air.

This Business English lesson is part of our new series of fresh takes on some of our older lessons. We’ve kept the same dialog but have new explanations and practice for our lower level learners.

When you are traveling for business, have you ever had problems that seem beyond your control? Like when you show up at the airport and your flight is cancelled. Or when your flight is late and you can’t get to your destination on time? These situations can be frustrating and difficult to deal with. But there are some language techniques that you can learn to help you solve your problems.

In this lesson, we’ll look at some of these techniques, such as getting someone’s attention, using negative questions for requests, and agreeing reluctantly. We’ll also cover making polite refusals, correcting yourself, and asking about payment. These are all things you might have to do or understand as you solve a travel problem.

In the dialog you’re going to hear a traveler called Robert. If you heard our last lesson, you might remember that Robert was traveling to Nice but stopping in Paris first. In this lesson, you’ll hear Robert in the Paris airport. He has missed his connecting flight to Nice and now he’s trying to find a way to get to his destination in time for a meeting the next day.

Listening Questions

1. When is the next available flight to Nice?
2. Why is the next available flight not acceptable to Robert?
3. What does Robert want instead of the next available flight to Nice?
4. What type of seat does the agent say is the only type available?

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