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 is Edwin and I'll be your host for today's lesson on handling questions during a presentation.
So, you've planned your presentation carefully and you've rehearsed it in front of the mirror.
You walk into the room, you bring up your first slide, and you begin.
But you've hardly finished your introduction when someone throws out a question.
How do you deal with it?
You'd better be ready for this situation, because you know it's coming.
How often do people actually wait for you to finish before politely raising their hands and asking you questions?
It just doesn't happen. so you need to learn how to respond on the fly.
You need to read the situation and react accordingly.
Your presentation isn't ruined if you know the right things to say and do.
Today we'll look at some of the techniques we can use to handle questions and keep our presentation flowing.
These techniques include anticipating questions before they're asked, using a question to transition to another point and buying time.
We'll also learn about dismissing a question that you've already answered and redirecting a question to the entire group.
In the dialogue, we'll hear part of a meeting in a publishing company.
Amy is giving a presentation about potential overseas partnerships.
Brenda and Dennis, two senior managers, are asking Amy some tough questions along the way.
As you listen, try to answer the following questions.
1.
What does Amy anticipate that the audience might be wondering about?
2.
Which topic does Amy have to buy time for before talking about it?
Three, when Brenda asks about priorities, how does Amy deal with the question?
Okay, so getting back to the point, I'm talking about two partners here.
Songbooks is on the publishing and merchandise side of things, and Han Media is on the digital side.
Both in Korea, right?
That's right.
They're both based in Seoul.
Now, I realize you're probably wondering about the market size and our potential there.
Sure, but just the highlights, please.
I'm a bit pushed for time.
Right.
So, we're talking about a $4 billion market here.
Children's books make up almost 17% of that.
Throw in multi-volume sets and you get a whopping 30% market share.
That's certainly a higher share than we see in North America.
And it is actually growing at a pretty good rate.
Okay.
On the surface, those numbers sound great.
But I'm curious, what kind of leverage these guys have in the local market?
Right.
I'm glad you asked.
Let me zoom in on distribution.
Songbooks distributes through the Korean Publishers Cooperative.
This gives them equal access to the market, the same as other publishers.
And they also have... Sorry to cut in here, but what kind of track record does Songbooks have?
I mean, they're not some fly-by-night operation, right?
Okay, you're wondering about their track record.
Let's see here.
That's a good question, Dennis, and I've got something to show you on that.
Okay, here it is.
Let me just point out what they've done over the past few years.
They actually increased their market share by 3 last year, which was a tough one for most publishers.
That sounds wonderful.
But I'm still curious how big that market is.
If we're going to find partners overseas, we should do it where there's money to be made.
Yes.
Well, that's exactly what I talked about earlier.
It's certainly a big market.
And with Songbook's growth and their solid relationships with retailers, we'll be well positioned to make great inroads.
Hang on a sec, Amy.
Let's talk about priorities for a second.
Overseas partnership is new for us.
Are you sure we don't want to actually test this in a smaller market first?
That's a great point, Brenda.
And I'd like to put that question to the entire group.
Do we want to start small or should we be more ambitious about internationalizing our business?
Well, I think I'd rather err on the ambitious side.
I don't really think we should be messing around with small markets.
We know that our products have a lot of international appeal.
I tend to agree with you, Dennis.
And I have to say, Songbooks and Han Meteor are both really excited about the possibilities here.
Now let's listen to the dialogue again and talk about the techniques Amy uses to deal with the questions from Brenda and Dennis.
Okay, so getting back to the point, I'm talking about two partners here.
Songbooks is on the publishing and merchandise side of things, and Han Media is on the digital side.
Both in Korea, right?
That's right.
They're both based in Seoul.
Now, I realize you're probably wondering about the market size and our potential there.
Amy is explaining that there are two potential partners one on the publishing side of things and one on the digital side.
When we talk about one side of things, we're talking about one aspect or part of something.
Dennis wants to confirm that they're talking about Korean companies.
That's an easy question for Amy to answer.
More specifically, she explains that the companies are based in Seoul, which means that's where their headquarters or primary operations are.
Next, Amy uses the expression I realize you're probably wondering because she is making a guess or anticipating something she thinks the group will ask about.
So, before they have a chance, she's actually going to answer the question as part of her presentation.
What are some other expressions we can use when we're anticipating a question?
Let's practice a few more.
Now, what I've just mentioned raises an important question.
At this point you might be wondering how much these ads will cost.
You might be curious to know what the employees think of this plan.
Let me just answer a question that I'm sure many of you have.
Now, let's continue with the dialogue.
Sure, but just the highlights, please.
I'm a bit pushed for time.
Right.
So, we're talking about a $4 billion market here.
Children's books make up almost 17% of that.
Throw in multi-volume sets and you get a whopping 30% market share.
That's certainly a higher share than we see in North America, and it is actually growing at a pretty good rate.
Okay.
On the surface, those numbers sound great.
But I'm curious, what kind of leverage these guys have in the local market?
Dennis wants just the highlights about the market, which means he doesn't want too much detail.
Amy summarizes the key facts about the market, highlighting that children's books, which is what their company sells, makes up almost 17 of the 4 billion market.
In this case, make up means to be a specific part of something.
Dennis is not happy to just listen and wait for Amy to finish her presentation.
He wants to ask more questions.
Notice how he interrupts her with the word okay before asking his question.
And he frames his question by first making a statement, then saying but.
He thinks the numbers look great but wants to know what kind of leverage or power the partners have in the market.
How does Amy respond to this question?
Right.
I'm glad you asked.
Let me zoom in on distribution.
First, notice how Amy says she's glad Dennis asked.
It's a good idea to remain positive when you're being asked questions.
Next, Amy says she wants to zoom in on distribution.
In other words, she wants to have a closer look at the issue.
This is part of the presentation Amy has already planned and she has successfully taken Dennis's question and used it to transition to her next point.
What are some other ways we can transform a question into a transition?
That's a great question, and it leads me to my next idea.
Okay, to answer your question, let's zoom in on the issue of pricing.
I'm glad you asked, because next I want to talk about some possible solutions.
Excellent question, Tony, and I think I have the answer you need on the next slide here.
Now, listen as Amy explains the distribution in more detail.
Songbooks distributes through the Korean Publishers Cooperative.
This gives them equal access to the market, the same as other publishers.
And they also have... Sorry to cut in here, but what kind of track record does Songbooks have?
I mean, they're not some fly-by-night operation, right?
Obviously, Dennis is quite impatient.
He asked about the distribution, but won't let Amy finish.
Dennis interrupts Amy with the expression, sorry to cut in here.
Cut in just means to interrupt.
Then Dennis uses the word but again before his next question, which is about Songbook's history.
He is looking for confirmation that they are not a fly-by-night or unreliable company.
Amy doesn't have the information to answer the question quickly.
So, what does she do?
Okay, you're wondering about their track record.
Let's see here.
That's a good question, Dennis, and I've got something to show you on that.
Amy needs time to find the necessary information, so she gets that time in two ways.
First, she restates the idea in Dennis' question, like this.
You're wondering about their track record.
Second, Amy uses filler words, like let's see here and that's a good question.
The only purpose of these filler words is to fill the space while Amy looks for what she needs.
Let's run through some more examples of how we can buy time by restating and using filler words.
How do the margins compare with our core product line?
That's a good question, Dale.
A very good question.
Okay, you're asking about security in this cloud system.
So, is it secure?
We have to think about this carefully.
Do we have the technical capabilities for this project?
That's definitely important, and I've thought about that a lot.
Amy finally finds what she's looking for.
Let's listen as she can now answer the question about Songbook's track record.
Okay, here it is.
Let me just point out what they've done over the past few years.
They actually increased their market share by 3 last year, which was a tough one for most publishers.
That sounds wonderful. but I'm still curious how big that market is.
If we're going to find partners overseas, we should do it where there's money to be made.
Amy wants to point out or mention the accomplishments of Songbooks over the past few years.
She highlights the company's increase in market share during a time that was tough or difficult for most publishers.
Once again, Dennis uses a statement followed by but and then a question.
Actually, his question doesn't sound like a question, but it is.
He says, I'm still curious how big the market is.
Saying we're curious about something is an invitation for someone to respond.
Does the topic of market size sound familiar?
It does to Amy.
She has already talked about the market size.
So how does she respond?
Yes.
Well, that's exactly what I talked about earlier.
It's certainly a big market.
Amy doesn't think it's necessary to talk about the exact size of the market again.
But she still has to be polite.
Amy then reinforces the idea that it's a big market.
When someone asks a question that has already been answered, we need to remain polite but dismiss the question.
Listen to some more ways to do this.
Maybe I can go over that again for you afterward.
For now, let's move on.
That's a good question, but I think we've pretty much covered that issue for now.
Well, that goes right back to the slide I had up about rising costs.
So let's continue here.
Will this trend continue?
Like I said before, I do think this is here to stay.
So now I'd like to talk about our opportunity.
Let's get back to the dialogue, as Amy wants to persuade the group that the partnership is truly promising and, with Songbook's growth and their solid relationships with retailers, will be well positioned to make great inroads.
Hang on a sec, Amy.
Let's talk about priorities for a second.
Overseas Partnership is new for us.
Are you sure we don't want to actually test this in a smaller market first?
Amy is using some great positive language.
She talks about the solid or strong relationships between the partners and retailers.
And with this partnership Amy believes the company can make great inroads or really be successful in the new market.
But this time, it's Brenda who wants to ask a question.
She asks Amy to hang on a sec or to wait.
This is another common way to interrupt someone.
Brenda wants to talk about priorities.
Because the company has never partnered overseas before.
She asks Amy whether it might be better to test things out in a smaller market first.
Is this really an issue that Amy herself can decide?
She's presenting the potential partnership to a group of senior managers.
Let's hear how she deals with it.
That's a great point Brenda and I'd like to put that question to the entire group.
Do we want to start small or should we be more ambitious about internationalizing our business?
You may notice again that Amy remains positive saying that Brenda has a great point.
Then, instead of answering the question herself, Amy politely redirects it to the whole group.
And just to clarify, she summarizes the question asking whether they should start small or be more ambitious about moving into international markets.
If you feel you can't answer a particular question, it might be best to redirect it to the whole group, as you can hear in these examples.
Well, I think that's an important question for all of us.
Would anyone like to weigh in on this?
Excellent question, and I'd like to ask everyone for their opinion on that.
I may not be the best one to answer that, so I'll put it to the whole group here.
So, Ruth is asking whether Chicago is the best option.
Anyone else want to answer that for us?
Now, let's hear the rest of the dialogue.
Well, I think I'd rather err on the ambitious side.
I don't really think we should be messing around with small markets.
We know that our products have a lot of international appeal.
I tend to agree with you, Dennis.
And I have to say, Songbooks and Han Media are both really excited about the possibilities here.
Dennis doesn't want to mess around or waste time in smaller markets.
Amy agrees and emphasizes how excited the potential Korean partners are.
She is making a pretty good case for the partnership and dealing with questions very well.
Now let's practice some of the language we've learned for using a question.
To transition to a new point.
In a moment, you'll hear a series of questions, each followed by a prompt.
Use the words in the prompt to make a transition to a new point.
For example, if you hear So how do you think we can fix this problem?
Glad asked, talk about solutions.
You can say I'm glad you asked that.
Let's talk about some solutions.
We'll play an example answer after each question.
Ready?
Let's give it a go.
Exactly how many viewers can we actually reach with these new ads?
Good question.
Zoom in.
Numbers.
Answer.
That's a good question, so let me zoom in on some numbers.
This system sounds easy to use, but is it secure?
Important point.
Next.
Look at.
Security.
Answer.
That's an important point, so next I want to look at security.
Is there any way we could reduce operating costs?
Thanks asking.
Show cost-cutting ideas answer.
Thanks for asking and let me show you some cost-cutting ideas.
So are you pretty certain this is the best deal we can find?
Great question.
Move ahead.
Compare prices.
Answer.
That's a great question, so let's move ahead and compare prices.
Now, let's practice useful vocabulary and idioms.
You'll hear a series of sentences with a word replaced with a beep.
Repeat the whole sentence, including the missing word.
For example, if you hear, Do you really think there's money to be in the used car business?
You can say, Do you really think there's money to be made in the used car business?
After each response, we'll play the correct answer.
Let's begin.
Answer.
Microsoft, Starbucks, and Boeing are all based in the state of Washington.
I don't think the deal works for us, even though it looks good on the... Answer.
I don't think the deal works for us, even though it looks good on the surface.
After five years of hard work, we have finally made... into the Asian market.
Answer.
After five years of hard work, we have finally made inroads into the Asian market.
I'm sorry, Dave, but I don't really see where you're... from.
Answer.
I'm sorry, Dave, but I don't really see where you're coming from.
We've reached the end of this lesson, the first in our two-part series about answering questions during a presentation.
We've learned how to anticipate questions, use a question to transition to a new point and buy time by restating and using filler words.
We've also learned how to politely dismiss a question that's already been answered and redirect a question to the entire group.
Be sure to tune in for the next episode, when we'll hear Amy continue with her presentation about a potential partnership with two Korean companies.
She will use more great techniques for dealing with questions on the fly.
Thanks for listening, and see you again soon.
