Practice Listening Business English Exercises for B1 – Brands

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1. Exercise 1

Audio

A. Listen to three speakers starting a presentation to visitors to their organisation. Which ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ below does each speaker use?
DO
• Begin with a warm welcome – thank the audience for coming
• State your name and job title (or say what you do)
• Confirm the objective of the presentation
• Explain the structure of the presentation
• Say how long you will talk for
• Let the audience know when to ask questions – during or at the end of the presentation
• Move smoothly to the first point in the presentation
DON’T
• Apologise for your English (be confident and focus on expressing your ideas)
• Worry about making mistakes (people want to listen to your ideas, not your grammar)
• Rush things (take your time and give your audience time to understand the information)

B. Now look at three more unusual ways to start a presentation. What do you think is the value of using these techniques?

• Open with questions

• Begin by telling the audience about a conversation you had recently

• Start with a personal story

C. Listen to three more presentation openings and decide which unusual technique in B each speaker uses.

D. How effective do you think these alternative techniques were, and why? Would you be comfortable using them? Why / Why not?

2. Exercise 2

Audio

A. Listen to the first speaker continuing his presentation and introducing his company. Note down the information he gives about the following.
COMPANY PROFILE
When established:
Main strength:
Size of workforce:
Countries of operation:
Plan for growth:
B. How did the speaker react to the question? Do you think this is a good way to react to questions? Why / Why not?

3. Exercise 3

Audio

A. Listen to some comments from customers and staff about Kloze-Zone. Match the speakers (1-6) with the problems (a-h). You need to match some speakers with more than one problem.
a)
Window displays do not always engage customers.
b)
Fast fashion is mostly marketed at women.
c)
Staff work long hours: from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., including Saturdays and Sundays.
d)
The store should have more promotions and offers for customers.
e)
They should have more interesting marketing campaigns.
f)
Shop assistants don’t help customers in the fitting rooms.
g)
Staff turnover is fairly high in some locations.
h)
Brand awareness is low.
B. Which of the issues mentioned relate to customers and which ones to staff? Which ones relate to both?

4. Exercise 4

Audio

A. Listen to a woman talking about her company on the radio. Decide if the statements are true (T) or false (F).
1)
Cynthia is used to being on the radio.
2)
Her company exclusively makes woollen clothing.
3)
The business developed from her hobby.
4)
At first the clothes were sold only in local shops.
5)
Cynthia took a course in clothing design.
6)
Product placement boosted sales.
7)
The jumpers are still hand-knitted.
8)
Cynthia doesn’t want anything to do with woolly clothes in her retirement.
B. Listen again and choose the correct option.
1)
Why is the company name not really appropriate now?
a)
None of the clothes are made from wool.
b)
The clothes are made from several different materials.
c)
Most of the clothes are made from cotton.
d)
The clothes are for all seasons.
2)
How did Cynthia feel about her early business?
a)
She was surprised at its success.
b)
She enjoyed her popularity.
c)
She was overwhelmed by the amount of orders she was receiving.
d)
She was disappointed.
3)
The Woolly brand sells itself because
a)
the garments are expensive.
b)
the garments are unique.
c)
the garments are only made from good quality materials.
d)
a well-known celebrity advertises them.
4)
Which country outside Britain did she first sell her clothes to?
a)
France
b)
Germany
c)
UFA
d)
Denmark
5)
When did she first realise the importance of brand loyalty?
a)
From the beginning.
b)
When she got mail from different countries.
c)
When clients began to order tops in advance.
d)
When customers wrote to her personally.
6)
Now her problem is that
a)
she doesn’t speak any Asian languages.
b)
she needs to employ more people.
c)
she needs to find reliable sales people.
d)
she needs a translating program for Asian languages.
7)
What is her main focus for the future?
a)
to work on new designs and materials
b)
to expand into warmer markets
c)
to retire
d)
to learn another language quickly
C. Choose the best title for the radio programme.
a)
Five rules for growing a business
b Learning business the hard way
c)
Woolly – a success story

5. Test

Audio

1)
Listen to the speaker and choose the correct response a, b or c.
1)
a b c
2)
a b c
3)
a b c
4)
a b c
5)
a b c

6. You will hear eight short recordings twice. For questions 1–8 choose the correct answer.

Audio

2)
You will hear eight short recordings twice. For questions 1–8 choose the correct answer.
1)
Which product had the biggest sales last year?
2)
What is Julia going to do tomorrow?
3)
Which date is the sales conference?
a)
20 April
b)
10 May
c)
20 May
4)
What do the speakers decide to do?
a)
expand the product range
b)
bring the products up-to-date
c)
design a new logo
5)
Where has the market grown dramatically?
a)
Europe
b)
China
c)
North America
6)
Who are the company’s target customers?
a)
wealthy millennials
b)
professional women
c)
retired people
7)
What is the company planning to invest in next year?
a)
staff
b)
new headquarters
c)
a factory
8)
Which graph describes last year’s sales?
c