Tiptoeing through the minefield

Do

• Show an interest in, and at least an elementary knowledge of the country you are visiting;

• Learn a few words of the language - it will be seen as a compliment;

• Be sensitive to countries who have bigger and better-known neighbours, and try not to confuse Canadians with Americans, New Zealanders with Australians, Belgians with French;

• Familiarize yourself with the basics of business and social etiquette. As a starting point, learning how to greet people is very important.

Don't

• Assume you won't meet any communication problems because you speak English. You may think you are paying somebody a compliment by telling them their business is going a bomb*, Americans will infer you think it is failing.

• Appear too reserved. As Americans are generally more exuberant* than their European colleagues, they may equate reserve with lack of enthusiasm.

The Irish Independent

• to empower: to give s.b. more control

• to go a bomb (GB): to be successful

• etiquette: polite behaviour

• to bomb (US): to go badly

• exuberant: happy, cheerful, full of energy

2. In pairs, discuss these questions.

a) What social etiquette is important for business travellers to your country?

b) In your experience, what can be difficult about dealing with British or Americans?

Vocabulary

Match the words from the text with their corresponding definitions.

1. abroad (para 1) a)something done in a society because of tradition

2. a minefield (para 1) b) able to understand others' feelings

3. a pitfall (para 2) c) in or to a foreign country

4. a custom (para 2) d) something that expresses admiration

5. etiquette (para 2) e) to show or represent

6. scheduled (para 3) f) rude or insulting

7. to be a sign of (para 4)g) a situation with hidden dangers

8. offensive (para 4) h) formal rules for polite behaviour in society

9. a compliment (para 8)i) a likely problem

10. sensitive(para 8)j) arranged for a certain time

ЗАДАНИЕ N 4.Translate into Russian. Discuss the problem.

How to write a killer sales letter

To write a successful sales letter, there are several strategies you should use:

1. At the top of your sales letter, use a strong headline that states the most important benefit you are offering. This headline should be bold and a larger font size than the font size you use for the body text in your sales letter.

2. When writing your sales letter, use a friendly conversational style. Do not try to write “corporate” where you use large words and try to impress your prospects with your command of the English language. All that does is turn people off. Instead, write your sales letter as if you were talking to your best friend.

3. Your sales letter needs to explain the benefits your potential customer will receive. Understand that everybody cares about one thing in life – “What’s in it for me?” Put yourself in your customer’s shoes and ask yourself, “If I was receiving this letter, why would I want to buy the product or service being sold? What’s in it for me?”

4. Ask your prospect to take action such as to call you for more information, to visit your website, to complete and order form and mail you a check, etc. If you do not ask your prospects to take action, they won’t.

5. Include testimonials from customers. Testimonials are one of the most powerful sales tools available, so always include at least one testimonial in your sales letters.

6. Use a P.S. in your letter and restate your most power benefit and sales offer in it. Most people will read a P.S. first before reading the sales letter, so it is important to make your P.S. have a very strong sales message and a call to action.

7. Make sure to include all of your contact information – telephone number, fax number, email address, postal address, and your website address.

8. Make your envelope “lumpy” by enclosing a small, inexpensive free gift. Make sure the gift has your company name and contact information on it and that the gift is something a person would want to keep – such as a nice pen, a good highlighter, etc. And, the promo gift should have your company information on it including your company’s name, phone number, and website address.

To your success!

Peter Geishkeer