BEP 170 – Meeting with a Vendor (Part 1)

This is the first of a three-part Business English Pod lesson about meeting with a vendor¹, or potential supplier.

 When you meet with a vendor to discuss a proposal, it’s partly about getting information and partly about negotiating better terms. You may be meeting with several vendors² who are bidding on the same job. You want to make sure you understand each proposal and can have confidence in each vendor’s ability to deliver. You’ll also want to get the best terms possible in the deal. Then you can make a wise decision about who deserves the contract.

In this lesson, we’ll look at using probing questions to dig for more information, ensuring vendor expertise³ by asking about past experience, asking leading questions, and confirming information. We’ll also see how a vendor attempts to address the client’s concerns.
In today’s dialog, we’ll hear Steve, who works for a company that wants to hire someone to run Business English training courses for its employees. Steve is meeting with Karen, a potential vendor, who works for Lexis Training Solutions.

Listening Questions

1. What are Lexis Training Solutions’ strengths?
2. What are Steve’s biggest concerns in this meeting?
3. Why does Karen say that each company is unique?

1 vendor   

n.卖主；小贩

参考例句：

• She looked at the vendor who cheated her the other day with distaste.她厌恶地望着那个前几天曾经欺骗过她的小贩。
• He must inform the vendor immediately.他必须立即通知卖方。

2 vendors   

n.摊贩( vendor的名词复数 )；小贩；（房屋等的）卖主；卖方

参考例句：

• The vendors were gazundered at the last minute. 卖主在最后一刻被要求降低房价。
• At the same time, interface standards also benefIt'software vendors. 同时，界面标准也有利于软件开发商。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

3 expertise   

n.专门知识(或技能等)，专长

参考例句：

• We were amazed at his expertise on the ski slopes.他斜坡滑雪的技能使我们赞叹不已。
• You really have the technical expertise in a new breakthrough.让你真正在专业技术上有一个全新的突破。