unit iii Products, markets and marketing

lesson 1

Text: Customers, Consumers and Clients

Terms to remember:

customer		покупець товару чи послуги, клієнт, замовник
consumer		споживач
resale		перепродаж
safeguard (v)		гарантувати (щось), охороняти
consumer protection		захист споживача
emerge (v)		з’являтися, виникати
pass a law (v)		приймати закон
consumerism		консюмеризм (рух на захист прав споживача)
protect (v)		захищати
investigate (v)		досліджувати, вивчати
consumer taste		смак споживача
safety		безпека
market research		вивчення (можливостей) ринку; дослідження ринку
client		клієнт, замовник, покупець професійної послуги
accountant		бухгалтер
advertising agency		рекламна агенція

Customers, Consumers, and Clients

There are different ways to talk about people who buy things.

Customers are individuals or organizations who buy things from other individuals, shops or organizations, pay for a service or order something from a company.

Consumers are people who buy goods and services for their own use or consumption and not for resale. Consumers are now recognized as an important group – the government has passed laws to safeguard the interests of the consumer. An organized movement (consumerism) for consumer protection has emerged in the last 40 years.

Consumerism consists of all those activities that are undertaken to protect the rights of consumers in their dealings with business. There exist four basic rights of consumers: the right to safety, the right to be informed, the right to choose and the right to be heard. Manufacturers investigate consumer tastes using market research.

Clients are individuals or organizations who pay for services provided by a professional person or organization such as a lawyer, an accountant, a bank, advertising agency, etc.

A business may refer to its customers as its customer base or client base.

Exercises in Word Study Ex.1. Give the English for:

покупець, споживач, платити за послугу, споживання, перепродаж, приймати закон, охороняти інтереси споживача, захист прав споживача, смаки споживача, дослідження ринку, клієнт, бухгалтер, рекламна агенція.

Ex.2. Match words from list a with words from list b that have a similar meaning.

A	B
customer consumer protect activity manufacturer investigate choose buy	end user producer study purchase buyer action safeguard select

Ex.3. The words in the box frequently occur after “consumer”.

Find combinations that mean:

1. loans made to the public by banks, shops and businesses for the purchase of everyday items;

2. articles necessary for daily living, such as food, clothes, and everyday things;

3. the average cost, published monthly, of a group of consumer goods, such as bread, milk, chicken, etc. in comparison to their past cost;

4. goods such as cars, furniture, refrigerators, televisions, etc. that last for a long time;

5. the situation of buying and selling goods for personal use, not for resale;

6. goods such as foods, drinks, newspapers, etc. that have a short life and need to be replaced often;

7. a period when consumers are spending a lot.

Ex.4. Look at the words and phrases in the box. Match them with the correct definition from the list below:

1. a person or business who buys something from another person or business;

2. a person who buys and uses goods and services;

3. a customer of someone who provides a professional service;

4. an organized movement for consumer protection;

5. a sale of something again;

6. the condition of being free or protected from harm;

7. the study of what products and services customers might like to buy;

8. action taken against harm or loss, a defense.

Ex.5. Write the appropriate word or phrase in the following spaces. Translate the sentences into Ukrainian.

1. … have the right to return faulty goods and demand a refund from the supplier.

2. Prices of … goods have risen by an average of 3% in the last 3 month.

3. A good hairdresser never lacks … .

4. Please serve the next … before answering the phone.

5. … of alcohol in that country is high.

6. The government … new legislation concerning health and safety in factories.

7. The Consumers’ Association … the rights of the consumer.

8. We made money on … of our house.

9. My … prepares my tax returns every year.

10. … helped us design our products to sell better.

11. She has good … in clothes.

12. We … various towns before we decided where to buy a house.

investigated, taste, market research, the resale, accountant, safeguards, has passed, the consumption, customer, clients, consumer, consumers.