商業英語簡報教學分享

2014 年 6 月 16 日 / 10:40-12:10

陳其芬 副教授國立高雄第一科技大學 應用英語系

National Kaohsiung First University of Science & Technology

103年度教育部職業學校外語群科中心學校教師教學分享研習 How to make

business presentations?

Before we start... What are the differences between making

presentations for classroom activities in school and making presentations for business at the workplace?

Who the presenter the audience

Why – the purpose Where – the setting What – the content

How – the style

Context

Structure Language

DeliveryVisuals

Participants

Audience

SettingInstitutionSituation

PurposesTasks

Functions

Context

What constitute a context?

Institutional Roles

Situation Roles

Institutional

Purposes

Analysis of the Context

1. What is your institutional role?

2. Who are you talking to? What is your relationship with the audience?

3. Where is the talk taking place?

4. What points are you trying to make?

5. Why are you talking to them?

6. How formal is the presentation?

7. How long is the presentation?

8. What sociocultural knowledge is needed?

•participants

•setting

•topic / content

•purpose

•formality

•time

•culture

Analysis of language use

1. Is your choice of words appropriate in terms of the context and your professional field?

Politeness & persuasion professionalism (field specific

vocabulary)

2. What formulaic expressions can be used?

3. How do you open and close the presentation?

4. How do you structure the presentation?

5. How do you describe visuals?

6. How do you handle questions?

• lexicon

• speech acts

• communicative patterns / moves

• discourse structure

Contextual / Background Knowledge Knowledge of Institutional context,

sociocultural knowledge,business background knowledge, business etiquette

Language Use (verbal)vocabulary, grammar, discourse,

communicative functions, linguistic politeness,

interpersonal & cross-cultural communication strategies

Image Building (nonverbal)

confidence, trustworthiness, professionalism

Critical Thinking Skillsreasoning, analysis, organizing,

evaluating, problem-solving, persuasion

Visual Literacyuse of visuals, color sensitivity, graphic

design, aesthetic effect

Required Knowledge & Skills

Look at the Checklist

Which parts do you think are more important than others?

*Source: Comfort, J. (2002). Effective Presentations. Oxford University Press.

1. The Audience “ The aim of a presentation is to get

through to the audience – anything else is secondary.” *Frendo, E. (2005). How to teach business English. Pearson Education Limited.

Make sure what your role as a presenter is and who will be your audience.

Four stories to share: 1)a fund raising campaign for elders suffering from

dementia2)songs chosen for a job fair3)a college admission interview4)a learning software sales visit to a professor

1. The Audience

Activities:

1) Introducing your school to - foreign teachers

- students from other high schools

2) Introducing a hotel (e.g. the Grand Hotel) to

- tourists- managers from other hotels

2. The Purpose “Tell your audience your destination –

the reason they’re there to listen to you and the purpose of your presentation.”*Williams, E. J. (2008). Presentations in English. Macmillan Education.

to introduce your company to sell a product to make a proposal to give a demonstration

Meeting the audience’s expectations is the most crucial for effective presentations.

3. The Structure

A sales presentation:

1.building rapport (opening)

2.arousal of interest

3.a description of the problem that needs solving

4.a solution

5.advantages of this particular solution

6.a statement about what the audience has to do next (conclusion)

4. The Language (1)

Signposting (linking words / phrases)

Sequencing / ordering

Giving reasons / causes

Contrasting

Comparing

Contradicting

Adding

Summarizing

Concluding

Highlighting

Digressing

Giving examples

Generalizing

Hello. My name’s Leena Perttonen. I’m the marketing manager at AYT, and I’m going to give you a brief overview of our company. My aim is to outline the main reasons why you should consider AYT for your construction project.

First, I’ll give you some general information about the company. Then I’ll talk about our international operations. And finally, I’ll point out the main reasons for our success.

So, let me start with the company...

Well, that was some general information about the company. Now I’ll move on to our international operations...

And so to my final point: the reasons for our success.

Well, firstly, there’s our expertise...

Secondly, our quality standards are extremely high – as high as anywhere in the world...

Thirdly, we have excellent project management and cost control...

So, to sum up, I hope to have shown you that we are a well-established company, financially sound and a market leader in the home market. We also have strong international experience in several countries outside Finland. We offer the highest possible standard of construction together with excellent project management. These are the reasons why you should consider AYT for your construction project.

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4. The Language (2)

Rhetorical language

Triplinge.g. “Our computers are fast, reliable, and

inexpensive”

Emphasizinge.g. “really, absolutely, extremely,

incredibly”

Rhetorical questionse.g. “What does this mean? Let me tell you...”

Metaphorse.g. “The sales are like a second Christmas.”

Anecdotes

4. The Language (3)

Parallel structure and consistent style

* Dignen, B. (2007). Fifty ways to improve your presentation skills in English. Summertown Publishing.

Conclusion

AYT is a well-established company,

financially sound,

market leader in the home market.

Having strong international experience.Offering the highest standard of

construction with project management.

Bad example

AYT is› Well-established company› Financially sound & market leader

AYT has› Strong international experience

AYT offers› Highest standard of construction› Excellent project management

Good example

4. The Language (4)

Convincing language (1) Power words – The Yale 12

A Yale University study identified 12 words as the most powerful words in the English language.

The Yale 12

discover(y) easy

guarantee(d) health

love money

new proven

results safety

save you

4. The Language (5)

Convincing language (2) Use repetitions.

Avoid a tentative tone.

Be careful with the use of possibility auxiliaries and phrases.

Speak with a positive tone. Use more positive words than negative words.

*Do the activity on Convincing language (Example 2).

Tense and Time expressions

1. I fly to Japan this February. (?)

2. I wish we could work with each other. I hope we can work with each other.

3. If you buy this product, you’ll get a 20% discount.

If the company moved to Shanghai, I would get another job.

• I shouldn’t say that to him. I shouldn’t have said that to him.

5. The train may be late for half an hour. The train may have been late for half an hour.

4. The Language (6)

Numbers and approximations

1. 4,531 employees

2. 30.19 meters

3. $995

4. 7.386%

5. 5.126 million

4. The Language (7)

1. around 4,500 employees

2. just over 30 meters

3. close to $1,000

4. approximately 7.4$

5. roughly 5 million

5. The Voice

Volume

Speed

Intonation

Stress and rhythm

Chunking and pausing

6. The Body Language

Eye contact

Smile

Gestures

Powerful stance

Confidence and trustworthiness

7. Visual Aids (1)

Design: simple and professional

Organization of the content

Color

Font type and font size

Words per line

Tables

Graphics

Effects

Describing trends, charts, and graphs (1)

7. Visual Aids (2)

pie chart line graphbar chart

Describing trends, charts, and graphs (2)

7. Visual Aids (3)

flow chart

organigram

About AYTAbout AYT

International Experience

Outside Finland, more than 40 years’ experience of residential construction.

Having operations in Sweden, the Baltic States and Russia.

More than a quarter of AYT employees work outside Finland.

Bad example

Over 40 years’ experiences of residential construction outside Finland› Sweden› The Baltic States › Russia

Over ¼ employees work outside Finland

Good example

What do we have?

7. Visual Aids (4)

Ten top failings of slide management (Dignen, 2007)

1. Overloaded slides2. Illegible and inconsistent text3. Too many “seen before” cartoons and animation effects4. Unclear or mismatched colors5. Too many slides which are too similar to each other and

too boring6. Allowing the audience to see all the slide text at once –

no transition effect7. Reading word for word from a visual with no personal

analysis or comment8. Talking without looking at the audience9. Standing in front of the screen so that you obscure the

visual from the audience10. Relying too much on PowerPoint to communicate the

message

8. Closing and Handling Questions

Closing = summary + reflection + recommendation

(call for action)

5 basic principles for ending a presentation effectively (Dignen, 2007)

1. Be short

2. Be consistent

3. Be clear

4. Be tailored

5. Be memorable

8. Closing and Handling Questions

The RACER model for handling questions ： (Dignen, 2007)

R = Respond

A = Answer

C = Check

E = Encourage

R = Return to presentation

Communication = Information Exchange + Relationship Building

How do business presentations differ from classroom presentations?

- The contextcontext is different!

Conclusions

Every presenter has an institutional role.

Every presentation is for an institutional purpose.

Understanding of the Context Understanding of the Context is a must!

Language Use: Information Exchange + Relationship Building

ContextContext

Conclusions

"If there is any great secret of success in life, it lies in the ability to put yourself in the other's place and to see things from his point of view as well as your own."

~ Henry Ford

Audience-based

approach

Chi-Fen Chen 陳其芬National Kaohsiung First University of Science & Technology

Email: emchen@nkfust.edu.tw

Questions and Comments?

Thank you!