You're listening to Business English Pod, the Business English podcast for professionals on the move.
Doing business across borders requires precise coordination, especially in the era of just-in-time delivery, where goods need to be shipped to the customer at exact times.
When a product is made in one country, assembled in another and sold in a third, the companies involved need to be in constant communication from start to finish.
Making sure that orders are made and delivered on time is an essential part of international business, and a lot of the monitoring will be done by phone.
So in this episode we're going to look at ways to check on the progress of an order over the telephone.
A while ago, we met Bill, a buyer for Bancrofts, a chain of women's clothing stores in the US.
He's placed a large order with Viva, an Italian fashion company which is being coordinated by Catherine Traynor, Foxtrot's shipping manager.
Foxtrot is Viva's US distributor.
It's now several months later and the order is due to be delivered.
But Bill has just received a call from Bancroft's warehouse to let him know that only half the order has been delivered so far.
Now he's calling Catherine to check on the rest of the delivery.
As you listen, try to answer the following questions.
2.
Where is the second part of the shipment?
3.
What does Catherine offer to do to avoid separate deliveries in future?
Catherine Trainor.
Hi, Catherine.
It's Bill Yardley at Bancrofts here.
Hey, Bill.
How's it going over there?
Not too bad.
But listen...
Catherine, we seem to have run into a glitch on the initial shipment from Viva.
You mean the sports groupings?
Uh-huh.
I checked with our distribution hub in Phoenix and they signed for a delivery this morning, but it was just a partial shipment, only 1000 sets.
Do you think you could check on the rest of the order?
Sure, Bill.
Just bear with me a sec while I pull that up on my screen.
Okay, here it is.
It looks like the order was divided into two shipments.
I'm not exactly sure why, but that's what it's telling me, and they were shipped two days apart.
The second shipment is still in transit, but should be arriving by close of business today.
I see.
That's cutting it pretty close.
It is a bit.
But Bill, I know how important it is for you to get this order to the stores before the weekend.
So let me do this.
I'll call Mario at Viva to double check that the rest of the shipment's arriving today.
Great.
And I'll see what we might be able to do about future orders.
It may save time to consolidate everything at our Oklahoma warehouse before we ship to you.
Terrific.
I really appreciate your going the extra mile on this.
No problem, Bill.
I'll get back to you as soon as I've spoken to Mario.
Sounds like a plan.
I'll be around till 5.
Okay.
Speak to you soon.
Bill and Catherine need to work together to solve what might be a problem with Aviva Delivery.
And in this short call, they've already made a lot of progress.
Let's look at some of the expressions they use to move the conversation along politely and professionally.
First, Bill needs to introduce himself to Catherine after calling her.
They've worked together before, so he knows that she's going to remember him and that he can use a less formal approach.
Catherine Trainor.
Hi, Catherine.
It's Bill Yardley at Bancroft's here.
Here, Bill's approach is direct and brief, but he makes sure to give his name to avoid any confusion.
It can also be useful to identify your company or provide some other information about your relationship to the person you're calling.
Let's practice a few other ways to quickly identify yourself.
Tony, hi!
Sandra from Bancroft's here.
Hello, Marcus.
This is Frank returning your call.
Bill, hey, this is Peter calling from Lantos.
Richard here.
Are you free to talk, Jenny?
Catherine recognises Bill immediately and offers to make some small talk before getting down to business.
But Bill wants the conversation to get straight to the point.
Hey Bill, how's it going over there?
Not too bad.
But listen Catherine, we seem to have run into a glitch on the initial shipment from Viva.
A glitch is an informal term for a minor problem, usually one that should be fairly easy to solve.
By using this term, Bill is indicating that he's not overly concerned about the shipment, but he wants to confirm with Catherine that there isn't any problem that might affect the delivery of the rest of the order.
Listen to how Bill makes a request for Catherine's help.
I checked with our distribution hub in Phoenix and they signed for a delivery this morning, but it was just a partial shipment, only 1000 sets.
Do you think you could check on the rest of the order?
The distribution hub for Bill's company is a warehouse where shipments are received and then sent out to different stores.
According to Bill, the warehouse signed for a shipment, that is, they accepted delivery from the shipping company, but they've only received part of the order.
By asking, do you think you could check on the rest of the shipment?
Bill uses modal verbs and an indirect style to request action from Catherine.
Here are a few other polite ways to ask for information on an order.
Would you mind confirming that the order has been shipped?
Can you please check and find out what happened to the order?
I'm a little concerned about the schedule, so please let me know the status of the shipment.
Could you give me an update on the expected delivery time?
It's going to take a little while for Catherine to check her computer system to get the information she needs.
And while he waits, she wants Bill to know that she's working on the problem.
Listen to how she signals to Bill to make sure he understands that she's making progress.
Sure, Bill.
Just bear with me a sec while I pull that up on my screen.
Expressions like bear with me, which means please be patient, are useful ways to fill waiting time in a phone conversation.
For example, while waiting for a response from a computer search or from another person.
To let people know that you are searching for more information, you can use phrases such as these.
Let me just check that record in our system.
Hold on a sec while I pull that up on my screen.
In the final example we've used the verb collocation to pull up, which means to retrieve a file or other data on a computer system.
Once the data on Catherine's computer comes up, she explains what she's discovered to Bill.
Okay, here it is.
It looks like the order was divided into two shipments.
I'm not exactly sure why, but that's what it's telling me, and they were shipped two days apart.
Catherine's computer system only has part of the answer Bill is looking for.
She knows that the missing part of the shipment is on its way to the warehouse, but she can't tell him why the shipment was split up, because the computer doesn't have that information.
By saying that's what it's telling me or that's what the system says, she lets Bill know that she's giving as much information as she can see herself.
Catherine and Bill also use some specific vocabulary to discuss the status of the order.
The second shipment is still in transit, but should be arriving by close of business today.
I see.
That's cutting it pretty close.
In transit means the shipment has left the manufacturer's location and is on the way to the customer, but hasn't actually arrived yet.
Close of business means the time each day when the company usually stops working, normally around 5 or 6pm.
And when Bill says the late shipment is cutting it close, he means that there's barely going to be enough time to send the items back out to his stores before the weekend.
Here are some other phrases Catherine could have used to tell Bill what her records are showing.
Here's what I'm seeing on my end.
According to our system, it looks like everything's on track.
Our records indicate that someone at your office signed for the package this morning.
I'm seeing two different orders on that PO.
One's due this week, but the second is due at the end of the month.
PO is short for purchase order, a request to purchase a product or a set of products.
Now that Catherine has some information about the shipment, she can tell Bill what she plans to do to learn more.
It is a bit but Bill, I know how important it is for you to get this order to the stores before the weekend, so let me do this.
I'll call Mario at Viva to double-check that the rest of the shipment's arriving today.
Catherine promises to double-check, which means to check something very thoroughly to make absolutely sure the information is correct.
In this case, she's going to contact Viva to confirm that the rest of the order is scheduled to arrive later the same day.
By offering to do this, she indicates to Bill that she's taking the problem seriously.
Let's practice some more ways of offering to confirm or check on something.
I know this is important to you, so let me just double check with the factory.
I'll be happy to check directly with production if that would put your mind at ease.
Why don't I talk to the shipping department and confirm that everything's going smoothly?
I'm going to speak personally with the supervisor to see what the holdup is.
In the last example, a hold-up means a delay.
To make sure Bill is kept informed about the progress of the shipment.
Catherine also offers to call him back after she speaks with a contact at Viva.
Listen to how their conversation ends.
I really appreciate your going the extra mile on this.
No problem, Bill.
I'll get back to you as soon as I've spoken to Mario.
Bill thanks Catherine for going the extra mile, which means doing more than the minimum she needs to do.
Going the extra mile is often a good way to build goodwill with customers and other business contacts, especially when problems arise.
Here are some other ways to promise a follow-up telephone call.
I'll get right back to you after I check with the head office.
Let me speak with Sarah and then call you back.
I should be able to follow up with you by the end of the day.
Would you like me to ring back after I've searched our records?
Okay, now it's your turn to practice.
First, let's practice ways to let another person know you're checking something for them.
You can imagine that a client or business contact is calling you with a concern.
The caller will ask for information.
After the beep, you can respond using some of the language we've studied today.
For example, if you hear, Can you please check on what's happening?
It's getting quite late.
You can say, Sure Bill, just bear with me while I pull that up on my screen.
Other phrases you can use include, Hold on a sec while I check on that.
Or, Just a minute please while I do a quick search.
Or, Let me just pull that up on my screen.
Alright, let's give it a try.
We'll play some example answers after the practice.
Hi Tony, it's Fiona here.
Can you check on that delivery of new computers?
I can't seem to find any record that you paid us for that last order.
Do you have the invoice at your end?
I need to confirm that you've booked me a seat on the flight to Chicago next Monday.
Can you give me a confirmation number please?
How did you do?
Here's some examples of the language you could have used.
Hi Tony, it's Fiona here.
Can you check on that delivery of new computers?
Sure.
Hold on a sec while I pull that up on my screen.
I can't seem to find any record that you paid us for that last order.
Do you have the invoice at your end?
I'm sure we do.
Can you hold for a moment while I do a quick search?
I need to confirm that you've booked me a seat on the flight to Chicago next Monday.
Can you give me a confirmation number, please?
Certainly, sir.
Let me just check that record in our system.
Now let's practice useful vocabulary.
You'll hear a series of sentences with a word replaced with a beep.
Repeat the whole sentence, but say the missing word.
For example, if you hear Just let me have a at my calendar.
You should say Just let me have a look at my calendar.
We'll play an example answer after each exercise.
Are you ready?
Let's begin.
There seems to be a in the software.
It's been running very slow since the upgrade.
Answer.
There seems to be a glitch in the software.
It's been running very slow since the upgrade.
I'd like to get the furniture delivered a few days before we open.
I'd rather not cut it too... and then have an unexpected delay.
Answer I'd like to get the furniture delivered a few days before we open.
I'd rather not cut it too close and then have an unexpected delay.
I think all our outstanding bills have been paid, but let me just with finance to make sure.
I think all our outstanding bills have been paid, but let me just double check with finance to make sure.
Richard really went the extra... to help us finish the proposal in time.
Answer.
Richard really went the extra mile to help us finish the proposal in time.
The rest of the parts are still in... so we can't start assembling the equipment until they arrive.
Answer.
The rest of the parts are still in transit, so we can't start assembling the equipment until they arrive.
That's all for this episode on checking on the progress of an order.
We've studied making a quick identification 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 the customer back.
Thanks for listening and see you next time.
