In this Business English Podcast episode, we’ll study the skills and language of bargaining. This podcast is part of an ongoing series on negotiation skills.
Bargaining is the process of swapping or trading concessions – in other words, “You give me something, and I’ll give you something in return.” This is also called making offers and counter-offers. The goal is to reach a compromise – a result in which both sides benefit.
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In this episode we’re going to look at ways to check on the progress of an order over the telephone. In particular we’ll examine the language you can use to identify yourself quickly on a direct call, asking to check on an order, letting a caller know you’re checking, explaining the status of an order, reassuring a customer by offering to check and offering to call a customer back.
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In this Business English Podcast, we’ll be looking at the language used to make appointments on the telephone.
The language topics we’ll cover include stating the relationship, requesting a meeting and talking about the purpose of meeting, and discussing your schedule. We’ll also examine suggesting a meeting time, politely agreeing and disagreeing, and creating goodwill.
Negotiations don’t always go according to plan. Disagreement is part of life. But to build lasting relationships, coping with failure is even more important than celebrating success. So in this show, we’ll examine a deal that does not get completed. We’ll look at making a final offer as well as expressing dissatisfaction and regret. In particular, we’ll focus on maintaining goodwill even when talks break down.
As you listen, pay attention to how Peter makes a final offer, how Maxine declines it, and how they both work to maintain goodwill.
In this Business English Podcast lesson we’re going to look at the language you can use to clarify and evaluate positions during a business negotiation in English.
An important part of any discussion is making our position clear; at the same time, we must make sure we understand the other side’s point of view. Achieving mutual understanding can help us save money by avoiding missed opportunities. In addition, the ultimate goal of any negotiation is to create value. Therefore, evaluation – determining whether an offer or position is good or bad – plays an important role. So in this show we’ll study stating, clarifying, and evaluating positions.