Business English Pod / ESL Podcast / Page 9

925 English – Lesson 3: How to Keep a Conversation Going

925 English, A2, Business English, English Video, ESL Podcast, Socializing /
Youtube video

In our last 925 English lesson, we had a look at how to start a conversation in English. In this lesson, we’re going to learn how to keep a conversation going and how to end it.

There’s no point in striking up conversation with someone if you can’t keep it going. But what does that involve? I mean, it’s more than just asking and answering questions, right? So, what kinds of things can we say or do to make the conversation flow naturally? Well, one important way that we keep a conversation going is by showing interest in what someone says. Besides learning how to keep a conversation going, we’ll also look at language for showing interest, changing the topic and ending the conversation.

925 English will be a new business English podcast for beginner and intermediate learners. 925 English lessons will focus on chunks of language and English expressions that you can use in work and business. Each 925 English lesson will feature English phrases you can use in different situations and advice on why and how we use them in Business English.

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925 English – Lesson 2: Starting a Conversation

925 English, A2, Business English, English Video, ESL Podcast, Socializing /
Youtube video

In today’s 925 English lesson, we’re going to learn all about how to start a conversation in English.

Sometimes we call starting an English conversation “breaking the ice.” You can think of the “ice” as that initial silence between people. It could be between strangers on a plane or coworkers in a lunch room. And when we “break” the ice, we say something friendly to start a conversation. So how do you do that? What do you say? And what topics are best?

925 English will be a new business English podcast for beginner and intermediate learners. 925 English lessons will focus on chunks of language and English expressions that you can use in work and business. Each 925 English lesson will feature English phrases you can use in different situations and advice on why and how we use them in Business English.

Members: PDF Transcript | Lesson Module | Quiz | MP3 Audio

Download: Podcast Video

925English – Lesson 1: How to Say Hello in English

925 English, A2, Business English, English Video, ESL Podcast, Functions, Socializing /

925English Lesson 1 - How to Say Hello in English

This is a preview lesson from 925 English, a new series we’ll launch next year. Appropriately enough, we’re kicking off with a 925 English lesson on how to greet and say hello to colleagues and customers in English.

925English a new business English series for beginners (CEFR A1-A2) and lower intermediate (B1) English learners. 925 English lessons focus on chunks of language and English expressions that you can use in work and business. We get straight to the point with lots of examples. We give you phrases you can say in different situations and advice on why and how to use them.

So, it’s pretty easy to greet someone in English, isn’t it? We can say “good morning” or “hello” or just “hi.” And we might add something like “my name is Tim Smith,” or a question like “how’s it going?” But what’s the difference? How do we choose which greeting to use? Well, in business, like in life, it depends on the situation. That includes who we’re talking to and where we’re having the conversation. So let’s go through three situations and practice some appropriate ways of saying hello.

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BEP 213 – Presentation English: Presenting Visuals (2)

Business English, ESL Podcast, Presentation in English /

Presentation English Visuals PowerPoint Charts and Graphs

In this Business English Pod lesson, we continue our look at brining your visuals to life during a presentation in English.

Have you ever had to stare at a complicated chart and wished the presenter would just give you the main points? Or have you had someone try to explain a chart and tell you exactly what you can already see yourself? There are better ways to handle visual information and that’s what we’re going to look at in this lesson.

Charts and graphs are very useful for presenting information, especially numbers. But you must learn to use them carefully. If you don’t, your presentation might not have the effect you want. That might mean it’s seen as boring, but it could also mean that you fail to convince someone of your idea.

So how can we use visuals successfully? How can we bring them to life? Well, last week we looked at some ways to engage your audience using analogies and rhetorical questions. This week we’re going to introduce some more useful techniques, including using descriptive language and stating the gist of a graph. We’ll also learn how to set up a new visual, interpret a visual, and state the implications of information.

In today’s dialog, we rejoin David, a manager seeking support for his idea to consolidate logistics by building a new facility in China. In our last episode, we heard David introduce his plan to the finance department. Today, David will be presenting more information and visuals to support his plan.

Listening Questions

1. Why does David talk about the cost of warehousing and shipping?
2. What does the cost benefit analysis chart show?
3. What does Alison say about the future of the company?

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BEP 212 – Presentation English: Presenting Visuals (1)

Business English, ESL Podcast, Presentation in English /

English Presentation Visuals PowerPoint

In this Business English Pod lesson, we look at how to bring your visuals to life in a presentation in English.

We’ve all sat through some pretty boring presentations. And in those presentations, we’ve all seen complex charts and graphs that tell us either way too much or nothing at all. For the most part, visuals aren’t naturally interesting or informative. It’s what we do with them that is important.

You can’t just put a graph on a screen and then explain each point on the graph. And you can’t put up a table of figures and then read out each column and row. What you really need to do is tell the story of the data and to bring the visuals to life. What should people focus on? What is the important number on the screen? What does the graph actually tell us?

Bringing visuals to life is necessary if you want to give effective presentations. We’ll look at how to do this today. In this lesson, we’ll cover several important functions, including using analogy, defining terms, using rhetorical questions, and highlighting key numbers.

You will hear David, an engineer in a manufacturing company. He’s giving a presentation to members of the finance department. His purpose is to explain a new plan that he hopes to get financed.

Listening Questions

1. Why does David ask the listeners about traveling to work?
2. Which important term does David define for the listeners?
3. What is David’s idea for shipping?

Premium Members: PDF Transcript | Quizzes | PhraseCast | Lesson Module

Download: Podcast MP3