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BEP 131 – Presentations: Pitching an Idea (3)

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

This is the final episode in our three-part Business English Podcast series on pitching an idea to your colleagues.

In the last episode, we saw how a manager presented an idea to her colleagues and persuaded them to take it seriously. She then defended and supported her argument in front of her peers, who were not sure of the feasibility of the proposal at the start of the meeting.

In today’s lesson, we’ll introduce language for connecting your ideas to company strategy, emphasizing points, setting an action plan, and assigning tasks at the end of your presentation. Once you have convinced your colleagues, you need to provide a plan for getting the work done. We will show you how to use language effectively to follow through on your outstanding idea.
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BEP 130 – Presentations: Pitching an Idea (2)

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

In the last Business English Podcast lesson, we saw how a manager pitched an idea during a meeting. She explained how the company website could be revamped so that customers could order off-the-shelf products directly, instead of having to contacting a sales representative.

In today’s lesson, we’ll introduce language for dealing with unexpected objections, signposting your presentation, supporting your points and persuading other people. Once you’ve pitched an idea, your colleagues will try to find weak points in your argument and you will have to give evidence that your idea is worth supporting. We will show you how to make coherent, persuasive arguments, and use language effectively to support your points.
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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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BEP 127 – English Meetings: Discussing a Problem (2)

Business English, English for Meetings, ESL Podcast, Intermediate English /

This second part of a two-part Business English Podcast series on running and participating in a problem-solving meeting.

In the first part of this meeting (see BEP 126), the team spent time answering the question: “What is the problem?” In today’s episode, we’re going to focus on how to brainstorm solutions to a problem through discussion, how to evaluate and eliminate suggestions and then agree a plan of action.

Kathryn, the head of Human Resources at a medium-sized company, is meeting with department heads to discuss a problem they are having with low staff morale. The team has identified the root cause of the problem as the separation of staff across 3 different office locations.

Kathryn wants everyone to critique the ideas that the group has brought forward, in order to eliminate impractical suggestions. We’ll see how she confirms the best solution and how her team suggests points for action. As the dialog starts, Kathryn closes the brainstorming session and sums up the input that has been received.

Listening Questions

1) How many ideas does the group come up with for solving the staff morale problem?
2) Which idea does the group agree is the best one to try?
3) Name one of the action points suggested near the end of the meeting.

*** This lesson is part of our Business English eBook for meetings: Meeting Essentials. Premium members click here to download the complete eBook.

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Download: Podcast MP3