Category Archives: Telephoning

BEP 47 (Transcript & Exercises) – Cold Calling: Clarifying Benefits and Making a Pitch

Download the podcast for BEP 47 ADV – Cold Calling: Clarifying Benefits and Making a Pitch

BEP 47 ADV – Cold Calling: Clarifying Benefits and Making a Pitch

Today is the second in our three-part Business English Podcast series on a useful telephone and sales skill: cold calling.

You can always make yourself more persuasive by asking well-considered questions and really listening to the answers. This principle is true whether you are selling a product or an idea. So in part two we are going to look at some key selling skills: strategically clarifying and summarizing your prospect’s concerns and incorporating them into your pitch to make it more persuasive.

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Study Notes
Phrases & Practice		 BEP 47: Clarifying Benefits and Making a Pitch – Quiz

BEP 47: Clarifying Benefits and Making a Pitch – Gap-fill


Listening Quiz: (Click a question to see the answer)

1) What’s the main issue or problem that Linda sees with her current system?

2) What does Steve mean by a “one-stop” service?

3) What does Linda suggest instead of meeting with Steve?

BEP 46 (Transcript & Exercises) – Cold Calling: Getting off to a Good Start

Download BEP 46 ADV – Cold Calling: Getting off to a Good Start

Today’s episode is the first in a three-part Business English Pod series on cold calling, the skill of making unsolicited telephone sales calls. Unsolicited means “not asked for”. So cold calling is the skill of making a sales call to someone who is not expecting you.

Cold calling skills are very useful in many parts of business life. To cold call successfully, you need to be persuasive. And persuasion is fundamental to business success, whether you are trying to convince a customer to buy something or your boss or colleagues to accept your point of view.

In today’s listening you’ll here two examples, one bad one good. We.ll listen to the bad one first. Josh Knight of Nexus Communications International is cold calling Linda Darling, who works for the law firm Drucker and Smythe. So Linda is Josh’s prospect, or potential customer.

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Study Notes
Phrases & Practice		 BEP 46: Getting off to a Good Start – Quiz

BEP 46: Getting off to a Good Start – Gap-fill


Listening Quiz: (Click a question to see the answer)

BEP 46 ADV – Cold Calling: Getting off to a Good Start

1) Does Linda’s company use audio and video conferencing?

2) What is the benefit of the service that Steve is selling?

3) How does Linda describe the current system?

BEP 23 (Transcript) – Telephoning: Handling a Difficult Customer

In this Business English Podcast we’re going to talk how to deal with problems with the caller in a business-to-business situation. With the proper language and phrases, you can show the caller that you want to help, and reassure them that you can help solve the problem.

Related Podcasts: BEP 21 and BEP 22
Key Language: handling enquiries and clarifcation techniques.

Transcript & Study Notes.

BEP 22 (Transcript) – Telephoning: Handling Enquiries and Technical Problems

Today we continue our Business English Podcast series on making telephone calls in English by looking at how to deal with technical problems and clarify information using alternative choice questions. This questioning technique is useful when you need to clarify important information or reach a decision.

Related Podcasts: BEP 21 and BEP 23
Key Language: handling enquiries and clarifcation techniques.

Transcript & Study Notes.

BEP 21 (Transcript) – Telephoning: Opening Calls and Taking Messages

This is an intermediate level Business English Podcast on making telephone calls in English. Some of the key language phrases we cover in this episode are: identifying yourself and the caller, stating the purpose of your call and leaving a message.

These telephone calls are about a contract between a large aircraft company and one of its suppliers, also known as a subcontractor. The contracts department from the client is calling to ask about a proposal it is expecting from the supplier for a new contract. Time is very short for all the proposals to be received, and so far, the aircraft company hasn’t received anything from this supplier.

Related Podcasts: BEP 22 and BEP 23
Key Language: handling enquiries and clarifcation techniques.

Follow this link for the complete telephone alphabet:
http://www.dynamoo.com/technical/nato-phonetic-alphabet.pdf

Transcript & Study Notes.