You're listening to Business English Pod, the Business English podcast for professionals on the move.
Hello, and welcome back to Business English Pod.
My name's Edwin, and today we're going to look at how to get action over the telephone.
Being productive at work means getting stuff done.
And sometimes to get our own work done, we need other people to get things done.
So when you need action from someone, what's the best or quickest way to get it?
Well, often we just pick up the phone and call the person.
And what do you say?
Is it OK to just come out and say, hey, do this, or hi, do that?
Not really.
You need to be firm and direct, but not that firm and direct.
You might need to emphasize how important the issue is.
Next, you might lead into the main issue before you actually talk about what you want or need done.
But that's not all.
If you want action, you want to make absolutely sure you're going to get it.
That's why you might ask for a guarantee, which is like a promise from the other person.
And finally, just to be 100% sure, you should finish off by confirming the action.
In this way, you're not being too direct or bossy, but you're still firmly doing more than just making a polite request.
In today's dialogue, we'll hear Nathan, who works for an aircraft company called Cyclops.
Nathan is calling George at a company called Airtronics.
Nathan is calling because he wants to get action on a proposal from George.
More specifically, he wants to make sure George is going to submit the proposal to Cyclops today.
As you listen, try to answer the following questions.
One, why does Nathan think it's important for George to submit a proposal today?
Two what important question does Nathan ask that relates to whether George can complete his proposal.
3.
Near the end of the conversation, Nathan asks George to do something just to confirm that the proposal is being sent.
What does he ask George to do?
Hello, this is George Klein.
Yes, this is Nathan Beale from Cyclops.
I haven't heard from you and I'm trying to find out if you are still interested in this contract.
Yes, we certainly are.
I do apologize for not contacting you directly, but I did try to call you this week about the contract, but you were out of the office.
But we're working very hard on this contract, and we'll be sending it to you today.
Well, I'm glad to hear it, but I wish you had let me know you were sending it to us today.
Today's the deadline for proposals, you know.
Yes, and we've been working night and day to meet that deadline.
I called earlier this week and spoke with Simon Price to tell him that we were going to send you this proposal by today.
Did he pass that on to you?
Huh.
No, he didn't.
I guess he was pretty busy.
But, more importantly, do you have all the right information to make your proposal?
I believe we do.
One shipment at the end, no backup batteries in the radios.
And all 20 radios built according to the new XV9582 specifications.
Did we get that correctly?
Yes, that's all correct.
I just wanted to make sure.
It would be a big mess if your proposal didn't have all those details in them.
So, are you absolutely sure you'll be able to send that to me today?
I have a lot of people over here who want to read it immediately.
Nathan, we guarantee this will be on your desk by 3 p.m.
All we have to do now is to get our CEO to sign it, and it will be on its way by courier.
Okay.
I just want to be sure that it's coming today.
Can you call us when you give it to the courier?
Will do.
Is there anything else?
Nope.
Just that.
Talk to you then.
Bye now.
Now let's go through the dialogue again and look at the language Nathan and George used in their conversation.
As we go through the dialogue, we'll give you some more examples to practice.
As we start the call, Nathan sounds a little upset.
Hello, this is George Klein.
Yes, this is Nathan Beal from Cyclops.
I haven't heard from you and I'm trying to find out if you are still interested in this contract.
After stating their names to identify themselves.
You can hear Nathan say very directly and seriously what he's calling about.
Sometimes when we want to get action, we don't want to spend too much time getting to the point.
I mean, you don't hear small talk questions like, how are you, and comments about the weather.
And in this case the point is that Nathan wants to know if George and his company are interested in the contract.
So are they?
Yes, we certainly are.
I do apologize for not contacting you directly, but I did try to call you this week about the contract, but you were out of the office.
But we're working very hard on this contract, and we'll be sending it to you today.
How do you respond to a direct question?
Well, you respond directly, like George does when he says, yes, we certainly are.
George can also hear that Nathan might be angry or at least serious, so he wants to reassure Nathan.
How does he do that?
First, he apologizes.
Next, he explains that he tried calling earlier.
And finally, he assures Nathan that they'll send a proposal today.
When you reassure an angry caller, you don't always need to give an explanation.
But you should apologize and give some reassurance.
Let's practice reassuring an angry caller like this.
I want you to repeat what you hear so you can practice each expression.
I'd like to apologize for this mix-up.
I'm afraid there has been a mistake, but we'll get it sorted out.
My apologies for this, and we'll clear it up very soon.
So is Nathan sure that he's got the action he needs?
Not yet.
Well, I'm glad to hear it, but I wish you had let me know you were sending it to us today.
Today's the deadline for proposals, you know.
To get action, Nathan wants to emphasize why something is important.
And in this case, it's important because today is the deadline for proposals.
A deadline is the last day you can do something.
And to emphasize this information, Nathan adds, you know, after stating the deadline.
There are many other ways of emphasizing important information.
Let's try a few more examples.
Remember to repeat what you hear.
Well, here's the thing.
I'd just like to emphasize that.
I'm sure you're aware that.
At the end of the day, what's important is that.
Now let's hear how George responds.
Yes, and we've been working night and day to meet that deadline.
I called earlier this week and spoke with Simon Price to tell him that we were going to send you this proposal by today.
Did he pass that on to you?
To meet the deadline, which means to do something before a deadline.
George says they've been working night and day.
Does that really mean they haven't slept at all?
Not really.
It's just a way of saying they've been working very hard.
And again, George mentions that he called before.
In fact, if you heard the last lesson, BEP 22, you heard George talking to Simon Price about this issue.
Now George wants to know if Simon passed on or communicated his message.
So did he?
Huh.
No, he didn't.
I guess he was pretty busy.
But, more importantly, Do you have all the right information to make your proposal?
Sometimes when you want action, it doesn't matter why you haven't gotten it yet.
And Nathan doesn't really want to talk about whether Simon relayed a message or not.
What does he want to do?
He wants to introduce a key question.
So he makes a little transition by saying but more importantly, That's a way of saying to someone this next idea is really important.
And there are other ways we can introduce an important question.
Let's try some more examples.
In each case, you'll hear a transition expression before the important question.
What I really need to know is this.
When will you be able to pay?
Now, here's the thing.
Why doesn't the packaging match our brand colors?
So, there's one thing I really need to ask.
Why wasn't this delivered yesterday?
Well, besides all that, please tell me, who is the manager for our region?
The important question Nathan asks is whether George has all the information he needs for their proposal.
Let's hear George answer.
I believe we do.
One shipment at the end, no backup batteries in the radios and all 20 radios built according to the new XV9582 specifications.
Did we get that correctly?
Yes, that's all correct.
I just wanted to make sure.
It would be a big mess if your proposal didn't have all those details in them.
George lists the basic information he's including in his proposal.
In fact, it's the information that he got in the BEP 22 dialogue when he talked to Simon.
Nathan confirms that this information is correct and emphasizes yet again how important it is explaining that it would be a big mess or a big problem if the proposal didn't have the right information.
George seems to understand what Nathan is saying, but Nathan wants to be 100% sure.
Let's listen as Nathan asks for a guarantee.
So, are you absolutely sure you'll be able to send that to me today?
I have a lot of people over here who want to read it immediately.
Earlier in the conversation, George said he would send the proposal today.
But now Nathan asks directly if George is absolutely sure that he'll send it today.
What are some other ways of asking for guarantees?
Let's practice a few more examples.
You'll notice, we usually ask someone personally, using you in the question, as Nathan did with.
Are you absolutely sure?
Now, can you assure me that we'll have this by tomorrow at noon?
Are you able to guarantee that we'll have tech support here within an hour?
What I need is a promise that this won't happen again.
Are you 100% sure that these new machines will fit?
So is George absolutely certain?
Nathan, we guarantee this will be on your desk by 3 p.m.
All we have to do now is to get our CEO to sign it, and it will be on its way by courier.
Well, Nathan has asked for guarantees, and George has given them.
And again, guarantees are personal promises, so we normally use I or we.
Rather than saying the proposal will be on your desk, George says we guarantee that this will be on your desk.
Besides the word guarantee, you can also say assure or promise.
These are all ways of providing guarantees when someone wants action.
Let's practice this with some more examples.
Yes.
I can personally guarantee that these ink cartridges will work in your printer.
I assure you, we've got a driver heading out right now, so you can expect him this afternoon.
I promise you Rob, this won't happen again.
I'm absolutely certain that Windows 10 is installed on every unit.
Now there's only one thing left for Nathan to do.
Let's listen.
Okay, I just want to be sure that it's coming today.
Can you call us when you give it to the courier?
At this point.
Nathan just wants to confirm one final time that he's going to get the action that he wants.
And, just like when we confirm information, we can simply repeat it for the other person, or we can repeat it and ask whether it's correct.
Let's try some more ways of confirming action.
So you'll let me know as soon as you hear from Graham, right?
Okay, you'll be coming by with the contract by noon.
Great.
Just to be clear, you'll cancel the order for us, right?
So, a technician will be here within an hour, correct?
Now let's hear how the conversation finishes.
Will do.
Is there anything else?
Nope, just that.
Talk to you then.
Bye now.
George confirms that he'll call when he gives the proposal to the courier and Nathan signs off, feeling quite sure that he's successfully gotten the action he wants.
He's done a lot of emphasizing and he's checked and double-checked that George will send the proposal.
Now let's practice some of the language we just learned with a short role play.
Imagine that your office ordered some new software that was installed incorrectly.
You were talking to someone at the computer company to get the problem fixed.
You will hear a statement from the other person.
Then, I will suggest how you can respond.
Use my suggestion to make an appropriate statement.
I'll guide you through each step of the practice and will provide an example answer for each response.
Ready?
Let's give it a go.
Well, I'm very sorry about this whole situation.
Start by emphasizing that your staff can't work until the software is installed correctly.
Answer.
Right, but I'd like to point out that our staff can't work until the software is installed correctly.
I understand that, and we're working on a solution here.
Now introduce the key question of when they can send a technician out to do the work.
Answer.
What I really need to know is when can you send a technician out to do the work?
We're going to try to send someone out tomorrow.
I'll call you when he leaves the office.
Now ask for a guarantee that the person will arrive in the morning.
Answer.
I see.
And can you guarantee that we'll have someone here in the morning?
Yes.
Okay.
I'll make sure that you're first on our list for tomorrow.
Finally, confirm that the person will call you when the technician leaves.
Answer.
Great.
And you'll call me when your technician leaves, right?
To finish off, let's practice some of the vocabulary and expressions we've covered in this lesson.
In a moment, you'll hear a series of sentences with a word replaced with a beep.
Repeat each sentence, including the missing word.
For example, if you hear... I can personally...
You can say, I can personally guarantee that your repairs will be finished by Friday.
After each response, we'll provide the correct answer.
Let's begin.
We will need to work overtime if we want to meet the on this project.
Answer.
We will need to work overtime if we want to meet the deadline on this project.
I'm so tired after working night and... to finish this report on time.
Answer.
I'm so tired after working night and day to finish this report on time.
I would like to... for the problem with the computers.
Answer.
I would like to apologize for the problem with the computers.
We don't have the white chairs in stock, but we should get a new... on Monday.
Answer We don't have the white chairs in stock, but we should get a new shipment on Monday.
That's all for this lesson on getting action over the telephone.
We've learned how to emphasize important information, introduce a key issue, ask for guarantees and confirm action.
And from the other side of the conversation.
We've covered how to reassure someone and make guarantees.
Thanks for listening and see you again soon.
