BEC口语（五）
第三辑 TEST 1
Customer relations
Now more than ever, it's important to listen to what your customers say.
If you don't ask for feedback directly, it will pop up somewhere on the Internet and it's not all going to be positive.
So instead of taking the back seat 被动 and waiting for those comments to surface, be proactive and request it first.
Successful companies capitalize on customer reviews（反馈，观点） as a way to determine what they are doing well and more importantly, what areas need improvement.
Provide room for improvement for change
Of course you can't make everyone happy and there will always be naysayers（唱反调的人）. Most of the time, however, folks that complain about something in particular have a valid reason for their dissatisfaction.
Perhaps a customer is having a difficult time using a product. If that's the case, that company may want to revisit the instructions provided in their associated packaging to ensure that the directions are easy to follow.
Another individual may state that the purchased item（购买产品） didn't fulfill their needs.
This might shed light on （详细阐明）an opportunity for the manufacturer（制造商）to develop a different product that better fits their requirements.
Provide additional selling points
Often times sales representatives get caught up in （陷入）their conversation scripts and forget to mention other pertinent information（相关信息）during their pitch（销售措辞，话术）.
sales pitch 推销商品用语;商品宣传语
Reviews are a great way to provide a sales team with additional selling points to help attract and convince customers. For example, there is a misconception that our TV Ears（天线）products are only for older generations.
Provide validation of your brand
validation 有效性，认知度
Everyone loves a pat on the back or to hear customers are enjoying a product. That's every company's dream.
Instead of wondering if people enjoy your product or taking the one-off, out-of-context（断章取义）, Internet posted comments bashing（抨击）your product, take a proactive approach and request customer feedback.
Hearing opinions straight from the hores's mouth （来源可靠）will contribute to a company's success by allowing them to continue doing what they do well or informing them of any changes that may be needed.
Staff development
Knowledge and skills development is vital to the health of organizations.
We live in an information age today, and organizations are routinely valued not just on their physical but on their intellectual capital.
Training is one of the chief methods of maintaining and improving intellectual capital, so the quality of an organization's training affects its value.
ensure adequate human resources for expansion into new programs
Business strategy
You prove that your business is going to be a success before you even think about approaching them.
Get started before you seek investment
Realistic financial projections
Don't think that massively overambitious financial projections （过于夸张的财务预期） are the key to impressing investors; better to underpromise and overdeliver. 低承诺高兑现
Keep your financial projections based on prior information if possible, or do your research exhaustively（不遗余力，充分地） if you don't have any information to work from.
Though you're excited about the potential for your idea, don't let this enthusiasm run away from you; stay modest and slightly pessimistic (only a tiny bit). 热情且谦虚
It's an old debate - public transport versus driving. For commuters who live close to the city or work, it's usually cheaper to ride the bus, train or ferry. 泛指
No doubt orivate transport is more confortable and convenient, but most of the time I commute by public transport...Train/Tram（电车）, bus... Big city, public transport is the only way to get around. If you live in farms or something then yeah, there isn't any public transport so you have to use your own car.
Everyone knows one of the biggest costs to driving your car into the CBD（Central Business District 中央商务区） is parking. And it's cheap to ride your bike, cheaper than public transport, cheaper than parking your car and you save on fuel costs and gym fees.
Most of us know using public transport is better for the environment and can even offer a cheaper and quicker route. In reality the number of cars on the road is continuing to rise.
As you will see below, it can be more convenient, quicker, and cheaper to do so. And the green benefits are great too. Car journeys contribute a significant account of our overall carbon footprint. 碳排放量
If you can get a few people to car-pool（拼车）, it's a cost-effective option.
Rather than only being able to drive to a certain point before getting stuck in a one way system, you can reach your central point directly. Plus you get the bonus of sitting back, relaxing with a newspaper and letting someone else do the driving.
Contrary to popular belief, nearly all forms of public transport pose less of a cost to the traveller. If you're regularly visiting a place, or planning a trip in advance, you can get season tickets or advance booked tickets for a cheaper price.
The cost of running a car（养车） goes much further than the mere cost of petrol, which in itself can be very expensive in the UK. Getting on public transport means no congestion charges, car insurance and tax costs, plus eradicates the expense of maintaining your car to a high standard.
Flexible working describes a range of employment options designed to help employees balance work and home life.
Eight out of ten American workers today say they want more flexibility on the job, and offering it can help your business thrive, whether you manage two people or twenty.
The best-in-class business sustainability cultures can be summarized in two words: open and flexible.
Aligning （调整，协调，考虑到）employee wants and needs with business interests creates additional value, from cost savings to increased employee engagement (参与度).
Allowing staffers to keep flexible hours instead of sticking to a traditional 9-to-5 schedule can benefit small businesses in myriad（各种各样的）ways.
This leads to increased discretionary effort, such as helping others with heavy workloads, offering to take on additional responsibilities, and looking for ways to do their job more effectively.
Highly engaged workers expend nearly six times as much effort as their non-engaged peers. Also, staggering（交替，错开的）employee schedules allows businesses to stay open longer and serve more customers.
Allowing employees to work at home even part of the time can cut down on how much a small business spends on everything - administrative costs（行政成本）, office supplies, utility bills, etc.
Having fewer people working onsite also makes a smaller office possible: less square footage（面积）equals lower rent.
Businesses that allow flexibility report less absenteeism（旷工）, fewer late employees, and less use of sick leave.
