Describing Business Strategy, Markets and Products - Business English Lesson

Hi, I’m Liam. Welcome to Oxford Online English! 

嗨，我是Liam。歡迎來到Oxford Online English！

In this business English lesson, you’ll  learn to talk about marketing strategies  

在本節商務英文課裡，您會 學到談論行銷戰略

and corporate competition. You’ll see lots  of useful vocabulary and collocations you  

和企業競爭。您會看到您能用來 談論商業戰略的大量

can use to talk about business strategy. You’ll learn useful language to talk  

有用的單字和搭配。您會學到 有用的講法來談論

about losing market share, entering  a new market, launching new products,  

失去的市場份額，進入一個 新市場，投放新產品，

and staying competitive in an evolving market.

以及在不斷發展的市場中 保持競爭力。

Hello, everyone, and thanks for joining us for  this conference call, wherever you might happen  

大家好，無論您在世界的哪一個 地方，感謝你們參加這個

to be in the world! If you don’t know, my name’s  Dimitri, and I lead the marketing department.  

電話會議！如果您不知道，我的 名字是Dimitri，我領導營銷部門。

I’m not sure that you’re aware, but our European  business has not been doing well in the last  

我不確定您是否擔心，但是我們在 歐洲的生意去年不是很好

year or so. In particular, we’ve been losing  market share to our rivals. A Korean company,  

或類似這樣。大致上來說，我們的 競爭者分佔了我們的市場份額。

Neidon, entered the European market three  years ago, and have adopted an aggressive  

一家韓國公司， Neidon，三年前進入歐洲 市場，採用了一個侵略性的定價

pricing strategy, which is putting pressure on  our revenues. Additionally, a German start-up,  

戰略，那給我們的營收帶來很大壓力。 此外，一家名為Hammer的德國

called Hammer, have expanded their market  share in Germany, Austria and Switzerland,  

初創公司，在德國、奧地利和瑞士 拓展了他們的市場份額，

partially at our expense. It’s clear that  we need to respond to these market forces,  

那原是由我們佔有的。很明顯，我們需要 對這些市場力量做出反應。

and I’d like to start thinking about  our options during this meeting. 

我想在本次會議裡開始考 慮我們的選項。

In this presentation, you heard some phrases based  on the word ‘market’. Let’s look at a few of them. 

在這個陳述裡，您聽到了一些以單字“market” 為基礎的片語，我們來看一下他們。

Imagine that you want to explain the meaning of  these phrases in English. What would you say? 

想像您想解釋這些英文片語的意思， 您會說什麼？

If you’re losing market share, then your  business has a smaller proportion of  

如果您正在失去市場份額，那麼 您的生意在可能的客戶裡

the available customers. The phrase in  sentence two has the opposite meaning;  

佔有一個更小的份額。在句二裡的 片語有相反的意思：

if you expand your market share, you reach  a higher proportion of potential customers.

如果您拓展了您的市場份額，您佔有了 一個更高的潛在客戶的比例。

You can also gain market share,  which has the same meaning. 

您也能贏得市場份額， 那是相同意思。

‘Market forces’ – you can also say ‘market  pressures’ – describes the conditions in a market,  

“Market forces” – 您也能說“market  pressures” – 描述市場條件，

and how they affect company  behaviour and strategy.

以及他們怎樣影響公司利益 和戰略。

For example, a market in a particular field,  

例如，在一個特定領域的市場，

or a particular area, might get more or  less competitive with time. Consumers there  

或一個特定區域，隨著時間推移，也許 有更多或更少的競爭。那的

might get richer or poorer. These are examples of  market forces which businesses need to adapt to. 

消費者可能會更富有或更貧困。這些是 商業需要適應市場力量的例子。

Generally, you can improve your English to  talk about these topics by paying attention  

通常來說，為了談論這些主題，您 可以通過留意*單字搭配*

to *collocations*. A collocation is when  you use words in a specific combination.

提高您的英文。一個單字搭配是您用 特定的組合來使用單字。

‘Expand your market share’ is a collocation.  You might know all these words individually,  

“Expand your market share”是一個搭配。 您也許知道這些所有的獨立單字，

but could you use them together? With  collocations, you need to learn the  

但是您可以結合在一起使用他們嗎？ 就搭配來說，您需要當做

combination of words as a single block, so that  you can use them together without thinking.

一個單個的整體來學習單字組合，所以 您可以不用思索就合在一起用他們。

We recommend going back to the presentation text  and trying to find more useful collocations. Do  

我們推薦回到陳述文字，並試著找 更有用的搭配。

the same with the other presentation texts  which you’ll see in the rest of this lesson!

在您會在本節課剩餘部份裡看到的其他 陳述文字裡做同樣的事情！

You’re about to hear the  presentation for part two.  

您即將聽到第二部份的陳述。

Don’t forget to listen out for  collocations. In the presentation,  

不要忘記聽搭配。 在陳述裡

there are three new collocations with the  word ‘market’. Try to find them as you listen! 

有三個帶單字“‘market”的新搭配。 當您聽的時候試著找出他們！

I’d like to discuss an idea which  has been floating around lately,  

我想討論一個最近一直 浮現的想法，

and explain why I don’t think it’s a solution  to our problems. I’m talking about China;  

解釋為什麼我不認為那能解決我們 的問題。我在談論中國；

I’ve heard from many of you that we should try to  enter the Chinese market, but I don’t think this  

我聽了很多您的有關我們必須試著進入 中國市場的想法，但我不認為

is a good strategic move for us right now. First  of all, the regulatory barriers to entry are high.  

目前這對我們是一個好的戰略舉措。 首先，進入的監管門檻很高。

Secondly, there’s already fierce competition,  from both local and international companies.  

其次，已經有了來自本地和國際 公司的激烈競爭。

Finally, the cost of getting established  in a new market can be large, and while  

最後，在一個新市場站穩的成本 會很大，同時我們的財務

we’re financially solid, we don’t have so much  free cash flow, so we’d have to take on debt.  

狀態穩健，沒有太多自由現金流， 因此我們不得不承擔債務。

Instead, I think we should focus  on our North American presence,  

取而代之的是，我認為我們必須聚焦 在我們目前的北美市場，

where we’re already in a strong market  position and the competition is less intense. 

在那，我們已經有很穩固的市場 地位，競爭沒那麼緊張。

Did you hear the collocations with  the word ‘market’? Here they are. 

您有聽到單字“market”的搭配嗎？ 他們是這些。

What does ‘getting established’ mean? ‘Established’ means something like ‘stable’ or  

“getting established”是什麼意思？ “Established”意思像是“stable”或是

‘comfortable’. If you get  established in a new market,  

“comfortable”，如果您在一個 新市場站穩 ，

you reach a position where your business is  comfortable, and you’re not fighting for survival. 

您到達了一個會讓您的生意舒適的位置， 您不會為了生存而奮鬥。

There were also several other useful phrases  in the presentation. Let’s look at a few. 

在陳述裡，也有幾個其他的有用的 片語。我們來看幾個。

Can you remember the missing words? Remember  that you can go back and listen to the  

您能記得漏掉的單字嗎？記住， 如果您想要，您可以

presentation again if you want! Here are the answers. 

回頭再聽陳述！ 回答在這。

‘Move’ here means something like  ‘decision’ or ‘plan’. It’s a noun.

“Move”在這意思像是“decision”或 “plan”的某些東西。是一個名詞。

If something is a good decision, you can  describe it as a ‘good move’ or a ‘smart move’. 

如果某事是一個好的決定，您能描述它是 一個“good move”或一個“smart move”。

If you want to enter a new market, there  will usually be some barriers to entry.  

如果您想進入一個新市場，通常會 有一些進入門檻。

These could be regulatory – laws and rules  which it is difficult or expensive to follow.  

這些可以是監管 – 法律或規則，那是 很難的或是要花費不菲來遵循的。

They could be cultural – maybe there isn’t much  demand for your product in some countries or  

他們可能是文化上的 –也許您的產品在 一些國家或因一些文化沒有

cultures. They could be financial – maybe you need  to invest heavily to start a new operation. If the  

太多的訂單。他們可能是財務上的 – 也許 您要大量地投資來開始一個新運營。

barriers to entry are high, then it’s especially  difficult to get established in a new market. 

如果進入門檻高，那麼在一個新市場 站穩特別地難。

There are many words which you can  combine with the word ‘competition’.  

有很多您能用來和單字“competition” 組合搭配的單字。

In the presentation, you also  heard ‘intense competition’.

在陳述裡，您也聽到“intense competition”。

Here’s a task: go to a good online  dictionary – we recommend Longman or  

這有一個任務：去找一個好的線上辭典—— 我們推薦Longman或是

Lexico – and find three more adjectives which  can collocate with the word ‘competition’.  

Lexico —— 找出三個能與單字 “competition”搭配的形容詞。

If your English is intermediate level or  higher, focusing on collocations is often a  

如果您的英文是中階或更高階， 聚焦在搭配常是一個

better way to improve your vocabulary, rather than  spending all your time learning individual words.

提高字彙能力的較好方式，而不是要花 您所有的時間來學單個的單字。

Again, when you listen to the presentation, try  to find new collocations with the word ‘market’.  

再一次，當您聽陳述時，試著找新的 有單字“market”的搭配,。

There are three to find. 

有三個。

Another way that we might compensate  for the decline in our European business  

對於歐洲業務的下滑，我們可以 抵消掉的另一種方法是

is by bringing new product lines to market, both  in Europe and elsewhere. This could help us to  

將新產品線推向歐洲和其他地區。  這能幫我們來

expand our customer base and claw back some of  the market share we’ve lost in recent years.  

擴展我們的客戶群，並挽回我們 近年來失去的部份市場份額。

Additionally, to cut down on travel expenses,  we’ve been retraining our sales teams  

此外，要削減差旅費；  我們一直有培訓我們的行銷團隊，

so that they can work remotely. We  started work on this very early,  

所以他們可以遠程工作。我們 很早就開始用這種方式工作，

which we hope will give us a competitive edge over  other firms that still rely on face-to-face sales.  

我們希望這會使我們比其他仍依賴面 對面行銷的公司更具競爭優勢。

Overall, our strategic vision for the next  five to ten years is to take a more global,  

總體而言，我們對下一個五到十年的 戰略遠景採取更全球化，

less Europe-centric approach. That doesn’t  mean we’ll be neglecting our European business,  

較少以歐洲為中心的方式。那不意味著 我們會忽略我們的歐洲生意，

but we’ll be focusing more on emerging markets,  and trying to build a dominant position there. 

但我們會更加專注於新興市場， 並試著在那建立一個統治地位。

Here are the three new collocations with ‘market’. 

這有三個帶“market”的新搭配。

‘Claw back’ is an interesting verb. Do  you know what it means, or can you guess? 

“Claw back”是一個有趣的動詞。您知道 那是什麼意思嗎？或者您能猜下嗎？

‘Claw back’ means to fight to get  back something which you lost. 

“Claw back”意思是為了得回您失去 的某些東西而戰鬥。

Now, to practise the other language  you heard, look at some questions. 

現在，練習您聽到的其他說法， 看一些問題。

Pause the video, and try to make answers to these  three questions. Make sure your answers are full  

暫停影片，試著來做這三個問題的回答。 確保您的回答是完整的

sentences, and make them as detailed as possible.  Write them down, or say them out loud, or do both! 

句子，並盡可能的詳細。寫下他們， 或大聲地唸他們，或者兩者都做！

Ready? Could you do it? 

準備好了嗎？您可以做嗎？

Of course, there’s more than one way to  answer, but let’s look at some sample answers.

當然，回答的方式不止一種， 但讓我們看一些事例答案。

You could say: ‘A company can expand its  customer base by launching new products,  

您可以說：“A company can expand its  customer base by launching new products,

entering new regional markets, or attracting  new customers through advertising.’ 

entering new regional markets, or attracting  new customers through advertising.”

You could say: ‘A company can gain a  competitive edge by having a superior product,  

您可以說：“A company can gain a  competitive edge by having a superior product,

having lower prices, or by offering  better customer service and support.’ 

having lower prices, or by offering  better customer service and support.”

You could say: ‘In my country,  there’s a restaurant chain  

您能說：“In my country,  there’s a restaurant chain

called Goody’s that have a dominant  position in the fast food market.  

called Goody’s that have a dominant  position in the fast food market.

It’s one of the few countries where MacDonald’s  haven’t been able to gain much market share.’ 

It’s one of the few countries where MacDonald’s  haven’t been able to gain much market share.”

If you found it difficult to answer the three  questions yourself, use our answers as templates.  

如果您覺得自己回答這三個問題有點 難，使用我們的回答作為模板。

Use the sentence structures we used, and  change the details to use your own ideas.

使用我們用的句子結構，並用 您自己的想法改變細節。

Also, just practising your answer once  

同樣，一旦可能不夠好就要 練習您自己

might not be enough! Say your answer out loud  several times, until you can do it fluently.

的回答。大聲地唸出您的回答幾 次，直到您能流利地做。

Let’s move on to our last section. 

我們進入最後一個單元。

As before, try to find new collocations  with the word ‘market’ in the presentation.  

就像之前一樣，試著在陳述裡找有 單字“market”的新搭配。

This time, there are three to find. 

這次，可以找到三個。

So far, we’ve focused more on challenges which  we’re currently facing, but there’s plenty of good  

到目前為止，我們把重點更多地放在 我們面對的挑戰上，但是

news, too. In Latin America, we are in a dominant  position, with two of our largest competitors  

也有很多好消息。在拉丁美洲，我們處於 統治地位，我們的兩個最大

announcing recently that they’re planning to  get out of the market, which is great news for  

的競爭對手最近宣佈他們打算退出 市場。這對我們來說

us and should allow us to consolidate our position  further. However, we don’t want to get complacent.  

是個好消息，應該會鞏固我們的 地位。但是，我們不能沾沾自喜。

We have a first mover advantage in most of  Latin America, but other companies will notice  

我們在拉丁美洲大部分地區擁有先發 優勢，但其他公司會注意到我們的

our success and try to move in. One thing I’d  like our product teams to start thinking about  

成功並嘗試進軍這一市場。我希望我們的 產品團隊開始思考的一件事

is how to keep our pricing competitive and  make it difficult for any new market entrants.  

是如何保持我們的定價競爭力並讓任何 新的市場進入者感受到困難。

We should also be looking at long  term trends in South America,  

我們也必須要研究在 南美的長期趨勢，

and make strategic decisions that reflect the  changing market conditions across the continent. 

並擬定反映整個南美大陸不斷 變化的市場狀況的戰略決策。

Did you find the new collocations? Here they are. In part two, you heard a collocation which  

您有找到新的搭配了嗎？他們是這些。 在第二部份，您聽到了一個

means the opposite of ‘get out of  the market’. Do you remember it? 

意思是“get ot of the market” 反義的搭配。您記得它嗎？

The opposite is ‘enter the market’,  as in ‘enter the Chinese market’,  

反義是“enter the market”。就像 是在“enter the Chinese market”、

‘enter the Brazilian market’, and so on.

“enter the Brazilian market”，等等。

Let’s look at some more useful phrases you  heard. Can you remember the missing words here? 

我們看一些您聽到的更有用的片語。 您能記得這遺漏的單字嗎？

Can you remember? Pause the video  if you need more time to think. 

您能記得嗎？如果您需要更多時間 來考慮，暫停影片。

Ready? Here are the answers. 

準備好了嗎？這是回答。

If you consolidate something, you  make it stronger and more stable. 

如果您將某些東西合併，您 可以讓它更堅固、更穩定。

‘First mover advantage’ means the benefits you  get from being first to enter a new market,  

“First mover advantage”意思是您從是首先進入 一個新市場或是

or launch a new product. For some  time, you have no competition,  

首先投放一個新產品而獲得的好處。 有時，您沒有競爭，

because you were faster than your rivals. 

因為您比您的競爭者要快。

‘Move in’ here has the direct meaning of entering  a new market, but it has a secondary meaning, too:  

“Move in”在這有進入一個新市場的 直接意思，但也有第二層意思：

it has the idea of trying to  take market share and customers. 

那是有試圖佔領市場份額和 客戶的想法。

That’s all for this lesson, but there’s  a lot of information and vocabulary here.  

本節課就到這，但是這有 大量的信息和字彙。

We recommend that you go through the presentations  again and find new words and phrases to learn.

我們推薦您在複習這些陳述，找 新的單字和短語來學習。

Thanks for watching!

感謝觀看！

See you next time!

下次見！