You're listening to Business English Pod, the Business English podcast for professionals on the move.
Welcome back to Business English Pod.
My name's Edwin and I'll be your host for the second in a three-part series on pitching an idea to your colleagues.
In the last episode, we saw how a manager pitched an idea during a meeting.
She explained how the company website could be revamped so that customers would order off-the-shelf products directly instead of having to contact 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.
We'll be listening to Jill, a manager at an industrial supply company, who introduced her idea in the last episode.
She now has to defend and support her argument in front of her peers who are not sure that her idea is feasible.
As the dialogue starts, Jill has just made some convincing arguments about the low cost of updating the company website.
While you listen, try to answer the following questions.
1.
When was Pylon's website created?
Two, what does Jill say the website can become after the redesign?
Three, what did Jill's assistant find that will help them with the website?
As you can see, it really is possible to revamp a website for under 5,000.
Amazing.
Now I'm sure you're all thinking that we don't have any IT staff available to work on this.
And nobody's touched our website since it was built six years ago, right?
You can say that again.
Well, I can show you how we can do it ourselves.
Come on, I don't buy that.
We should just scrap the website and start from scratch and get experts to do it.
Yeah, website is a disaster.
In a perfect world we might do that, but our backs are to the wall here.
While I understand what you're saying, I believe it is possible to make do with what we've got.
Well, I for one will believe that when I see it.
I'm telling you, with only 5000 and a bit of input from a few key people, we can turn our website into a sales engine.
Moving on, I'd like to talk about implementation.
Is everybody with me?
Sure.
Let's have a show of hands.
How many people here share photos or chat on the internet?
Facebook.
How many of you read or even write a blog?
Yeah, sometimes I do.
There you go.
You're already dealing with technical issues that were unimaginable three years ago.
I'm starting to see what you mean.
And you really believe our staff are capable of pulling this off?
Definitely.
Let me explain.
My assistant has tracked down several programs and content management systems that we can use to update the site ourselves.
They're user-friendly and virtually free.
Yeah, I've heard about this open source thing.
It's going to be easier than you think.
Really.
I can't stress this enough.
Nowadays, it's entirely possible to build a complete website from scratch.
And it's really very, very simple.
So you can see that it's not always easy to convince people that your great idea really is great.
Jill is very well prepared, just as you will have to be if you present your idea to a group of your peers.
To start with, notice how Jill herself mentions a possible objection to her idea.
She believes that someone else will bring up this objection anyway.
This shows how carefully she has prepared for this opportunity to pitch her idea.
Now I'm sure you're all thinking that we don't have any IT staff available to work on this.
And nobody's touched our website since it was built six years ago, right?
Here are some other examples of ways to introduce an objection that you believe your audience is thinking of or about to mention.
So I'll bet you're about to say that the union will never agree to this.
I believe that's what's running through your head right now is that we can't possibly pull this off.
Surely this would have been done before if it's such a great idea, right?
I can see from your faces that you're skeptical about doing this, because we've tried it before, right?
Like any good salesperson, Jill uses positive, confident language to talk about her idea.
As with the persuasive language we'll see in a few minutes, she encourages her audience to see possibilities and not drawbacks.
Well, I can show you how we can do it ourselves.
Here Jill is trying to turn the objection around and get everyone to view her proposal more positively.
Handling objections successfully is crucial to gaining support for your ideas.
So let's practice a few more examples.
Let me explain to you why I know this will work.
I know you'll be convinced by the examples I brought with me today.
You'll be surprised by how easy it is.
I think you'll be blown away by the benefits that can be derived from this.
Jill has prepared herself by thinking about possible objections to her idea.
But Roland is very sceptical and brings up an issue that Jill has not expected.
Jill responds by acknowledging the contribution, while maintaining her conviction that her idea will work.
While I understand what you're saying, I believe it is possible to make do with what we've got.
When dealing with an unexpected objection, the language is very similar to dealing with an objection that you had predicted.
But it's important to acknowledge the person who is making the objection.
This is a really useful structure for buying some time so you can consider how to respond to the objection.
I see where you're coming from, but I don't think it's as difficult as that.
While there is some truth in that, I think it's clear that doing nothing is not really an option.
While I sympathise with your point of view, I don't believe this is an impossible target.
Clearly that should be taken into consideration, but I don't believe it's a serious drawback.
I understand why you might be concerned about that, but I can prove that this is the best course of action.
Good salespeople focus on the positive aspects of what they sell and highlight the benefits.
Jill's audience is skeptical and not easy to convince, but she is persistent and works hard to persuade them.
I'm telling you, with only 5000 and a bit of input from a few key people, we can turn our website into a sales engine.
Listen to some more examples of being persuasive.
Notice how we first state the desired action and then immediately follow up with a positive result of the action.
Let me tell you, with a few key pieces of furniture, we can completely change the look of the front office.
I assure you that with a minimal investment we can grab more market share.
I'm convinced by changing the way we do this we can completely eliminate the turnover problem.
Let me say that by adopting this new software, we can make a huge difference to the bottom line.
Jill has to keep the meeting moving along, as she doesn't want to get bogged down in details.
She uses signposting to indicate that she's going on to a new point.
Moving on, I'd like to talk about implementation.
Is everybody with me?
When you make a presentation, you are like a guide for your audience, and signposting is a way to ensure that your audience is with you and knows where you are.
Listen to other ways to signpost your presentation.
Turning to implementation, I'd like to address the issue of deadlines.
Can I go on to the next point?
Regarding personnel, we'll have to make up some kind of timetable.
With regard to logistics, I've figured out a way to integrate the two systems.
Finally, I'd like to say a few things about cost.
Just as with signposting, asking for input helps ensure that your audience is on your side.
As you go through your presentation, you want to ensure that, however skeptical they may have been at the start, the audience is slowly beginning to see your point of view.
Let's have a show of hands.
How many people here share photos or chat on the internet?
How many of you read or even write a blog?
Why does Jill ask her audience to put up their hands?
She already knows that most of them can respond positively to her questions.
The important thing is that this action gives them a stronger sense of participation in the process, so they feel less like adversaries and more like they are on her side.
This is an effective technique for persuasion in a meeting.
Here are more ways to ask for supportive input.
Can you put your hand up if this affects you?
How many of you have had to deal with an angry supplier who hasn't been paid?
How many of you have had to work overtime because the database crashed?
How many people here have given up on follow-up calls?
Jill's audience is starting to feel more positive and less skeptical about her idea.
But she proves that she's really done her job when she gives solid evidence that her idea is feasible and can be carried out at a reasonable cost.
My assistant has tracked down several programs and content management systems that we can use to update the site ourselves.
They're user-friendly and virtually free.
Here are some more examples of people giving evidence to support their point.
I've done an informal survey of the back office staff and they believe six months is the maximum.
I checked the defect rate and it has decreased in the two plants that switch suppliers.
An analysis of customer satisfaction data shows this to be true.
Now, it's your turn to practice some of the techniques we've looked at today.
First, let's review the language of dealing with an unexpected objection.
Imagine you are pitching an idea in a meeting.
You will hear an objection to your idea.
You should be polite and deflect the objection being made by using while to start your sentence and a phrase with the language given.
For example, if you hear... What about the new standards?
Aren't they a serious threat? while consideration not a serious threat.
You can say, While the new standards should be taken into consideration, I believe they're not a serious threat.
Are you ready?
Let's give it a try.
We'll play some example answers after the practice.
That's impossible.
It can't be done.
While your concern can be done.
Renovating the facility is a huge task and probably not feasible prompt, while some truth renovating the facility is reasonable.
There are a million reasons the work can't be completed on time.
Prompt while point of view work completed on time, you can't possibly assure us that shipping costs will decrease if we adopt this plan prompt.
While coming from, Shipping cost will decrease.
How did you do?
Compare your answers with these examples.
That's impossible.
It can't be done.
Example answer While I understand your concern, I'm sure it can be done.
Renovating the facility is a huge task and probably not feasible.
Example answer.
There are a million reasons the work can't be completed on time.
Example answer.
While I sympathize with your point of view, I'm certain the work can be completed on time.
You can't possibly assure us that shipping costs will decrease if we adopt this plan.
Example answer.
While I see where you're coming from, I can definitely state that shipping costs will decrease if we adopt this plan.
Next, we'll review some of the vocabulary and idioms that we've studied in this episode.
You'll hear a series of sentences with a word replaced with a beep.
Repeat the whole sentence, saying the missing word.
For example, if you hear... You can say...
We can't scrap the old system until the new one is up and running.
After each response, we'll play the correct answer.
Let's begin.
If the team has to start from... The project will take at least six months to complete.
Answer.
If the team has to start from scratch, the project will take at least six months to complete.
Unfortunately, my... is to the wall and I can't do anything to change the situation.
Answer.
Unfortunately, my back is to the wall and I can't do anything to change the situation.
Answer He asked for a show of hands to see how many people agreed to the proposal.
I don't think we can this off unless we have more time.
Answer.
I don't think we can pull this off unless we have more time.
I tried to down the manufacturer, but I can't find any information.
I tried to track down the manufacturer, but I can't find any information.
That's all for this second episode on pitching an idea.
We've studied language and expressions for supplying an objection to an idea, putting a positive spin on an idea, dealing with an unexpected objection signposting, asking for input and giving evidence to support your argument.
See you next time and thanks for listening.
