You're listening to Business English Pop, the business English podcast for professionals on the move.
Today, we're going to take another look at making presentations in English, with the first in a two-part series focused on question and answer, popularly referred to as QA.
This listening takes place during a meeting of senior sales and marketing staff at Harper Tolland, a global producer of special purpose steel.
As we begin, Nick Fisher, the European sales director, is just finishing his presentation.
Let's listen.
Pay attention to how Nick and Nick's boss Max, handle questions from Brian, the European marketing director, and Cindy, the regional sales manager for Germany.
Many thanks for your attention.
So now, I'm very interested in hearing your comments.
Well, thank you very much.
I'm sure we all agree that it's an interesting proposal.
Thank you.
Now, going back to what you were saying about our product lacking a clear value proposition.
You're saying that our salespeople are not successfully differentiating our product from the competitors.
Yes, that's right.
They're not communicating to the customer the experience of using ColorMax.
Not just facts and figures, but what makes ColorMax different in terms the customer can relate to.
Then why would you say that our market surveys are ranking us 30 ahead of the competition in the key values that we are promoting?
That's a fair question, Brian.
I know your team has worked very hard on the launch and I've studied the latest survey results.
But the proof is in the pudding.
We have to ask ourselves, why aren't we selling more steel?
So you just don't lend any credence to the survey?
That's not what I'm saying.
With such positive results, has it occurred to you that it might be just a little bit too early to make such a sweeping indictment of our training?
Look, Brian, I didn't say the survey's not important.
But all of us can read the numbers differently.
It's a little like painting with figures sometimes.
But the facts on the ground tell a different story.
Why isn't our order volume going up?
Nonsense.
I think you have to take into consideration the fact that we have a lag time.
Nick, Brian, hold your horses.
I can see we're butting heads a little bit, and it's not productive.
Let's use the time we have left to sound out Nick's proposal.
Can I come in here?
Go ahead, Cindy.
If we retrain all the salespeople... Sorry, hold on a sec, Cindy.
Perhaps that wasn't totally clear.
Oh?
In the first phase, I'm just proposing we retrain the project engineers and key account managers.
Not the whole sales force.
Just the people with the greatest customer contact.
Alright, but it's still a lot of people.
Right.
I can see what you're getting at.
However, I expect that with proper implementation, we can get the job done in a month.
But how do we measure success?
You mean, how can we tell if it's working?
Yes, that's right.
That's a good question.
I would expect to see a 5 increase in order volume.
Let's go through the dialogue piece by piece to analyze how Nick and Nick's boss Max deal with questions.
Of course, often the presenter is also the chairperson of the Q&A session.
In this case, Nick and Max are sharing this duty, so we can learn from both of them.
First of all, how does Nick open the Q&A session?
Many thanks for your attention.
So now, I'm very interested in hearing your comments.
Of course, there are other phrases to open a QA session and you can check BEP 33 for more examples.
But let's get back to the Q&A.
What's the first question Nick's asked?
Brian, the European Marketing Director, is skeptical about Nick's proposal, but he's careful to start out gently by offering some polite praise.
This is always a good idea, as it shows respect for the presenter.
Well, thank you very much.
I'm sure we all agree that it's an interesting proposal.
Thank you.
Going back to what you were saying about our product lacking a clear value proposition.
What does Brian mean by value proposition?
In marketing, a value proposition is how one intends to differentiate one's product from the offerings of competitors.
Do you remember how Brian begins his question?
He says, now, going back to what you were saying, This is a useful way to refer to an earlier point.
Nick himself could use this way to bring up something he'd mentioned earlier, simply by changing you to I, For example, going back to what I was saying about establishing a clear value proposition, there are more ways to refer to earlier points.
Listen.
What exactly did you mean when you were talking about market forces?
I was interested in your comments about timing.
Could you say a little more about that?
Could I just go back to the point you made about branding?
Well in my experience.
So Brian has just referred back to the earlier point about establishing a clear value proposition.
What happens next?
You're saying that our salespeople are not successfully differentiating our product from the competitors.
Brian clarifies Nick's earlier point to make sure he understood correctly and perhaps to state the situation to his advantage.
He uses you're saying to paraphrase Nick.
To paraphrase means to restate something using different words.
This is a useful skill in clarifying.
We often paraphrase what we understood to check that it's correct.
Then notice how Nick paraphrases himself partially to further clarify the point and perhaps to further restate the situation in a way that's advantageous to him.
Yes, that's right.
They're not communicating to the customer the experience of using ColorMax.
Not just facts and figures, but what makes ColorMax different in terms the customer can relate to.
It's interesting to note that in clarifying, we're not always just checking understanding, but also strategically restating the situation to our advantage.
Later on in the dialogue, there is another example of clarifying.
But how do we measure success?
You mean, how can we tell if it's working?
Yes, that's right.
Cindy asked Nick, how do we measure success?
Then, Nick, to make sure he understands, says, you mean, how can we tell it's working?
You're saying and you mean are both ways to introduce a paraphrase for the purpose of clarification.
Let's listen to some other ways to clarify.
Let me check I understand.
Are you asking why our market share has increased?
Well, it all depends on what you mean by in the near future.
Are you talking about next week?
Or are we talking about the next two to four months?
Could you be a little more specific?
Let's go back again to the earlier part of the dialogue to examine how to deal with another kind of QA situation.
What to do when you receive a hostile or aggressive question.
Nick has just restated his belief that the poor sales are due to unclear communication to customers of value proposition.
How does Brian respond?
Then why would you say that our market surveys are ranking us 30 ahead of the competition in the key values that we are promoting?
That's a fair question, Brian.
I know your team has worked very hard on the launch, and I've studied the latest survey results.
Brian is on the attack here.
He cites a market survey that seems to contradict Nick's belief that the value proposition is not being communicated to customers.
Nick responds by saying, that's a good question, Brian.
I know your team has worked very hard.
This is a kind of buffer, sometimes also called a softener or cushion.
He uses this language to soften the disagreement that he expresses next.
Using a buffer is one effective strategy for dealing with hostile questions.
As a buffer, Nick could also say, Thank you for your question.
That's a very interesting question.
I'm glad you asked that.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to comment on that.
Thank you for raising this point.
You know, I really appreciate all your hard work.
Very good question.
Now that he's softened it with a buffer, how does Nick express his disagreement with Brian?
He uses an idiom to describe his attitude to the marketing survey.
But the proof is in the pudding.
We have to ask ourselves, why aren't we selling more steel?
The proof is in the pudding is a shortened version of the proof of the pudding is in the eating.
Nowadays, people usually just say the proof is in the pudding.
It means that the true quality or value of something can only be judged when it's tried and tested.
The meaning can be summed up as results are what counts.
So Nick is saying that good market survey results are useless unless they translate into something real profits.
Understandably Brian, as the marketing director, is not so happy about Nick's attacking the value of his market survey.
Nonsense.
I think you have to take into consideration the fact that we have a lag time.
Nick, Brian, hold your horses.
I can see we're butting heads a little bit and it's not productive.
Let's use the time we have left to sound out Nick's proposal.
Max, who is the boss, gives us another good example of dealing with a hostile situation.
He uses a couple of idiomatic expressions to calm everyone down.
The informality of these idioms probably helps relax the situation.
Hold your horses is used to ask someone to slow down.
It usually implies that someone is moving too fast or assuming too much.
Butting heads literally refers to two or more people or animals hitting each other with their heads like deer.
Max employs the softener a little to make the situation seem less serious, and He uses the inclusive we to remind everyone that we're a team.
I can see that we're butting heads here a little.
The image is humorous, which probably also works to smooth the situation.
Now, Cindy has a question.
But it seems as though she might not have been paying attention.
What does she ask?
Can I come in here?
Go ahead, Cindy.
If we retrain all the salespeople... Sorry, hold on a sec, Cindy.
Perhaps that wasn't totally clear.
Oh?
In the first phase.
I'm just proposing we retrain the project engineers and key account managers, not the whole sales force.
Nick says, Sorry, hold on a sec, Cindy.
Perhaps that wasn't totally clear.
To clear up a misunderstanding.
A sec... is an informal abbreviation for a second.
It signals a relaxed tone.
Also earlier, when Brian says Nick doesn't believe the market survey.
Do you remember how Nick replies?
So you just don't lend any credence to the survey.
That's not what I'm saying.
That's not what I'm saying is another way to clear up a misunderstanding.
Here's some other language you could use.
Actually, let's go back to that point for a second.
From what you're saying, I'm not sure that I made myself totally clear.
Oops, hold on a moment.
I think there might be a slight misunderstanding about the scope of this project.
Sorry, but that's not quite right.
Instead of 70, 720, zero, I meant 17, one, seven.
Since clearing up misunderstandings is such an important part in dealing with questions, let's practice that.
First, you'll hear a cue or hint telling you where the misunderstanding is.
For example, 40, not 30.
Then you'll hear someone making a comment.
For example, so what you're saying is our revenue has gone up 30%.
Next, after the beep, correct the misunderstanding using the language we have just learned.
In this example, you could say, oops, hold on a bit.
I think there might be a little misunderstanding.
Instead of 30%, it should be 40%.
Note that it's often a good idea to put the correct information last, because that's what will stay in the listener's mind.
Alright, let's give it a try.
When you're talking about adding sales staff, don't you think 50 is an awful lot?
New orders, not market share.
Frankly, I just don't see how we're going to be able to increase market share by 5 over six months.
Retrain existing staff, not hire new staff.
From what you're proposing, I see a major problem being finding enough heads.
How are you going to get 300 new staff?
And how did you do?
Let's listen to some example answers.
But remember, there are many possible correct ways to answer each question.
When you're talking about adding sales staff, don't you think 50 is an awful lot?
Oops.
Hold on a little bit.
I think there might be a slight misunderstanding about the number I'm proposing.
Instead of 50, I said 15.
One five.
Frankly, I just don't see how we're going to be able to increase market share by 5% over six months.
Sorry, I'm not sure I made myself totally clear.
I meant increase new orders by 5%, not market share.
From what you're proposing, I see a major problem being finding enough heads.
How are you going to get 300 new staff?
Actually, let's go back to that point for a second.
From what you're saying, I'm not sure that I made myself totally clear.
Instead of hiring new staff, I'm proposing retraining existing staff.
After you've listened to the example exercises, it's always a good idea to go back and practice again for fluency.
Try substituting new language for each example.
Before we finish today's show, let's go back to the dialogue to examine one last point.
Listen to Cindy and Nick continue their discussion.
Nick has just said that he only wants to retrain project engineers and key account managers, not the whole sales force.
All right, but it's still a lot of people.
Right.
I can see what you're getting at.
However, I expect that with proper implementation, we can get the job done in a month.
Right, I can see what you're getting at is a way to concede a point, that is, to admit that someone may be right.
It's a kind of agreement, and can also be used as a buffer or softener before you disagree.
There are many more ways to concede a point.
Let's look at a few.
Right.
I can see what you're saying.
Hmm.
You may have a point there.
Yes, there's something to that.
Uh-huh.
That makes sense.
All right.
That's all for today's episode.
Today, we've looked at a lot of effective skills and language for dealing with and asking questions.
We've looked at opening a QA session clarifying, referring back, dealing with hostility and conceding a point.
You've also studied some great business idioms.
Thanks for listening.
Oh, and hold your horses.
We'll be back soon with the second in this two-part series on dealing with questions.
See you then.
