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BEP 315 – English for Discussing Marketing Activities (Part 1)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, English Collocations, Marketing English /

Business English Pod 315 - English for Discussing Marketing Plans & Activities 1

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on English collocations for discussing marketing activities.

Great marketing is at the heart of business success. This was just as true 100 years ago as it is today. Of course, the digital age has brought new methods of marketing, but the basic goals of marketing haven’t really changed. I mean, first of all, you want customers to know about your products and services. In the world of marketing, that’s what we call “brand recognition.” But it’s not just about recognition, it’s about making sales, and “capturing market share.”

As you heard, in describing the goals of marketing, I used two expressions that you might be familiar with: “brand recognition” and “to capture market share.” We call these kind of expressions collocations. A collocation is a natural combination of two or more words to talk about a single idea. You might think of collocations as chunks of language. And it’s usually easier, and more natural, to remember these chunks rather than learning individual words.

Every area of business has its own special expressions, or collocations. And learning these collocations will help you not only understand what others are saying, but communicate your own ideas more clearly. In this lesson we’re going to focus on collocations you can use to talk about marketing activities.

In today’s dialog, we’ll listen to a discussion by a marketing team at a home furnishings company. You’ll hear Nathan, who is leading the meeting, as well as Theo and Camille. They are discussing the company’s market research, their goals, and how to measure progress toward those goals. Try to pick out the collocations they use, and we’ll talk about them later in the debrief.

Listening Questions

1. What does Theo say the process of market research has helped them do?
2. What does Camille say the data from research has helped them do?
3. Near the end of the dialog, what does Nathan say they’ve talked about doing?

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BEP 305 – Business English Collocations for Emphasizing (2)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, English Collocations, Presentation in English /

Business English Pod 305 - English Collocations for Emphasizing 2

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on business English collocations for emphasizing a point.

Speaking English well isn’t just about speaking correctly. It’s about choosing words that make an impact, and about influencing people’s thoughts and feelings. And if you study the habits of great speakers, you’ll hear them use emphasis effectively. A great speaker won’t just say he “recommends” something. Instead, he might say he “strongly recommends” something. That word “strongly” triples the impact.

But how would you know that we say “strongly recommend” and not “heavily recommend” or “deeply recommend?” Well, “strongly recommend” is the natural combination of words that native speakers use. These natural combinations of words are called collocations. A collocation is just two or more words that native speakers commonly use together. And you can learn collocations of emphasis to sound more natural and increase the impact of what you say.

In this lesson, we’ll listen to the end of a presentation on the topic of leadership. Maria is summarizing her main points. During her presentation she uses several collocations to emphasize her ideas. Try to pick out these collocations, and we’ll talk about them later in the debrief.

Listening Questions

1. Maria asks her listeners to think of a person. What type of person does she ask them to think about?
2. What does Maria say about a great speech that isn’t supported by action?
3. What does Maria think about people’s search for meaning in work?

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BEP 304 – Business English Collocations for Emphasizing (1)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, English Collocations, Presentation in English /

BEP 304 - Business English Collocations for Emphasizing 1

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on business English collocations used to emphasize a point.

If you want to make an impact when you speak, you need to learn the importance of emphasis. I mean, if sales increased, that’s great. But what if they increased a lot? Or you might be concerned about something, but what if you’re very concerned? “A lot” and “very” are used for emphasis. But you don’t want to only use “a lot” and “very.” If you use any word or expression too much, it will lose its impact.

In this lesson, we’ll listen to the end of a presentation about the financial performance of an airline. The speaker is talking about what the company can expect to see in the coming year. And during the presentation, as well as during the question and answer session, the speakers give emphasis to their ideas using “collocations.”

A collocation is just a pair or group of words that go together naturally. For example, instead of saying something “increased a lot,” you can say it “increased sharply.” The words “increase” and “sharply” often go together. And if you want to say you are “very concerned,” you can say “deeply concerned.” That’s a natural way of emphasizing the idea of being “concerned.”

Native speakers use these word combinations naturally. And if you want to sound natural, it’s a good idea to learn these collocations. As you listen to the dialog, try to pick out some of these collocations, and we’ll talk about them later in the debrief.

In the dialog, we’ll hear Leo, the presenter, talking about some of the key financial indicators the airline uses to track its performance. We’ll also hear two managers, Rita and Mike, ask questions at the end of the presentation.

Listening Questions

1. What does Leo say the company has achieved in terms of costs?
2. How does Rita feel about the positive attitude concerning profits?
3. What does Leo say about non-fuel cost growth in their company, compared to other companies?

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BEP 293 – English Collocations for Implementing a Plan (2)

Business English, English Collocations, English for Meetings, Project Management /

Business English Pod 293 - English Collocations for Discussing How to Implement a Plan 2

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on English collocations related to implementing a plan.

Everyone knows that you have to plan for the future. But many “plans” are only that: they are just plans. But a plan is only useful if it leads to action. Or, as a wise man once said: a plan without action is a dream wasted. In order to not waste that dream, we need to implement the plans we create.

In today’s lesson, we’ll hear a discussion about how to implement a marketing plan. And you’ll hear lots of common expressions we use when talking about implementation. These expressions are called “collocations,” which just means a set of words that usually go together. For example, have you heard the expression “put something into action?” That’s a common collocation that means “to implement.” We don’t say “make something into action” or “activate something.” It’s always “put something into action.”

You can learn these natural combinations of words used by native speakers. Studying English collocations will help you sound more natural and expand your active vocabulary. As you listen to today’s dialog, try to catch some of these collocations, and we’ll go over them later in the debrief.

In the dialog, we’ll rejoin Carlos, Viv, Byron, and Marion, who are discussing how to implement a marketing plan. In the last lesson, they talked about some of their online marketing activities. Today, they’re going to talk about some other parts of the plan, including the timeline.

Listening Questions

1. Why does Carlos mention that Marion is a strong writer?
2. What does Carlos say about the importance of the CRM?
3. What does Viv think about the timeline on the CRM activities?

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BEP 292 – English Collocations for Implementing a Plan (1)

Business English, English Collocations, English for Meetings, Project Management /

Business English Pod 292 - Lesson Module

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on English collocations related to implementing a plan.

In business, good planning is important, whether you’re talking about a long-term strategy or a short-term project. But a plan itself means nothing without action. It’s not what you decide to do that matters, but what you actually do. And what you actually do with a plan is called “implementation.” Implementing a plan is all about deciding who will do what, and when they will do it.

In this lesson, we’ll listen in on a meeting about how to implement a marketing plan. During the discussion, you’ll hear lots of useful expressions that we call “collocations.” A collocation is a natural combination or group of words. For example, I’ve already used the collocation “to implement a plan.” We don’t say “do a plan” or “activate a plan.” The natural expression is “to implement a plan.”

Native speakers use collocations like this automatically, and you can learn to use them as well. By studying English collocations, you’ll improve your vocabulary and sound more fluent. As you listen to the dialog, try to pick out some of these collocations and we’ll discuss them later in the debrief.

In the dialog, we’ll hear Carlos, Viv, Byron, and Marion. The small company they work for has just had a new marketing plan developed by a consulting company. Now they are meeting to figure out how to implement the plan.

Listening Questions

1. Carlos asks for volunteers on one aspect of the plan. What exactly does he want the volunteers to do?
2. As there’s lot to do on the website, what does Byron need to do as the lead?
3. What is Carlos going to do in three weeks time?

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BEP 282 – English Vocabulary for Job Interviews (2)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, English Collocations, Job Interview in English /

English Collocations for Job Interviews 2

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on English collocations you can use to make a good impression in an English interview.

A job interview is both an opportunity and a challenge. And facing an English interview with confidence requires certain skills and language. In today’s lesson, we’ll hear two interviewees demonstrate some of these skills and language. They’ll use chunks of natural language that we call “collocations” to talk about their abilities.

But what exactly is a “collocation?” Well it’s a combination of words that often go together. Rather than always learning individual words, you can learn these natural chunks of language. Think about the noun “career.” Do you say “follow” a career “at” something? No, we say “pursue a career in something.” That’s a collocation, and you should learn those words together as a natural combination.

As you listen to the two different interviews in this lesson, try to pick out some of these collocations and we’ll discuss them later in the debrief.

In the first interview, we’ll hear Dale interviewing Carla for an accounting job at an insurance company. Dale is asking Carla about her weaknesses and her career plans, two common tough interview questions. In the second interview, we’ll hear Sofia interviewing Joseph for a management job. She asks Joseph to talk about his interpersonal and leadership skills, and his attitude to personal development.

Listening Questions

1. What is Carla’s ultimate goal in the insurance industry?
2. What does Joseph say about his relationship with direct reports?
3. What two qualities does Joseph say help him in leadership roles?

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BEP 281 – English Vocabulary for Job Interviews (1)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, English Collocations, Job Interview in English /

Business English Collocations for Job Interviews

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on English collocations you can use to describe your capabilities in a job interview in English.

A job interview is one of the most stressful and high-pressure situations you experience in your working life. With such high stakes, you don’t want to leave anything to chance. So you prepare by anticipating what questions you’ll be asked and planning how you might respond.

In this lesson, we’ll hear how a couple of interviewees respond to typical – but challenging – English interview questions. And as they respond, the speakers use some useful expressions that we call “collocations.” Learning collocations is a great way to expand your active vocabulary and sound more natural and confident.

But what exactly is a collocation? Well, a collocation is simply a group of words that we usually use together. It’s like a “chunk” of language that you can plug into a sentence. For example, you might have heard the expression “to take an approach” to something. We always use that verb “take” with the noun “approach,” so you can remember them together. Collocations sound natural, and they make language learning efficient, because you can learn chunks of language rather than individual words.

As you listen to the two different interviews, try to pick out some of these collocations and we’ll discuss them later in the debrief.

In the first interview, we’ll hear Dale interviewing Carla, who is applying for an accounting job at an insurance company. Carla is talking about her experience, knowledge, and accomplishments. In the second interview, we’ll hear Sofia interviewing Joseph. Joseph is applying for a management position at the company where he works. He’ll talk about his approach to work and his problem-solving skills.

Listening Questions

1. How much experience does Carla say she has in the field of insurance?
2. What special accomplishment does Carla mention?
3. How does Joseph say he has decreased stress in his department?

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BEP 273 – English Collocations for Discussing Business Strategy (2)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, English Collocations, English for Meetings /

BEP 273 - Discussing Business Strategy 2

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on business English collocations for talking about strategy.

Think about the future of your company. How will it remain competitive? What are the long-term goals of your company? What does your company want to achieve? And how will it do that? These are just some of the questions that you might consider when you discuss business strategy. You need to think about what your business does well, how you can use your resources wisely, and what you need to do to grow the company. And when you discuss these ideas, you can use some common expressions, or combinations, which we call “collocations.”

But what is a collocation? A collocation is a group of words that sound natural together. They sound natural because native speakers commonly use them. And you can sound natural too if you learn these collocations. For example, you can say “implement a plan.” That sounds natural. But how about “do a plan?” Well, that’s not a common collocation and so it doesn’t sound natural.

As you listen to the conversation in this lesson, try to pick out some of these collocations and we’ll discuss them later in the debrief.

In the dialog, we’ll hear Anne, Jenny, and Max, three executives at a food company called Healthy Organics. They are discussing their strategy for developing the company into the future. They’ll talk about some important strategic decisions, and they’ll use lots of useful expressions.

Listening Questions

1. According to Anne, why do they need to broaden their product offerings?
2. What does Jenny think they need to build on?
3. What specifically does Anne want to figure out for the next three to five years?

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BEP 272 – English Collocations for Discussing Business Strategy (1)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, English Collocations, English for Meetings /

BEP 272 - English for Discussing Strategy 1

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on English collocations for discussing business strategy.

Look behind any successful business and what will you find? Good strategy and wise planning. Good strategy involves understanding the environment, the market, the customers, and the competition. And good planning means taking all that knowledge and deciding how to compete now and into the future.

In this lesson, we’ll hear how the executives in a food company discuss business strategy. And as they strategize, the speakers will use some useful expressions that we call “collocations.” Learning English collocations will help you improve your vocabulary and sound more natural. So what exactly is a collocation? Well, it’s just a group of words that we commonly use together. For example, we often say “reach a goal.” It sounds natural, because that’s what people say. But what about: “grasp a goal” or “arrive at a goal?” Well, those don’t sound natural because they’re not common combinations or collocations.

As you listen to the discussion, try to pick out some of these collocations and we’ll discuss them later in the debrief.

In the dialog, we’ll hear Anne, Jenny, and Max, executives at a food company called Healthy Organics. The speakers have gone on a weekend retreat to try to create a good strategy for moving their company into the future. They’ll talk about their vision and a strategic plan for growth.

Listening Questions

1. What does Anne say they have managed to accomplish so far during the retreat?
2. What does Max say is the goal over the next two days?
3. What does Jenny want to figure out first?

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