MK Engleza Seminar

7/29/2019 MK Engleza Seminar

1/107

COMUNICARE N AFACERILIMBA ENGLEZ

SEMINAR


2/107

3

CUPRINS

SEMESTRUL I

1. Grammar in Context ....................................................................... 5

2. Cultural Approaches concerning ................................................... 13

3. The European Union Democracy/ Global Business Relations .. 18

4. Microeconomic Terms ................................................................... 27

5. Banking Terms and Notions .......................................................... 35

6. Adjective Intensifiers ..................................................................... 47

7. Marketing Campaigns.................................................................... 53

SEMESTRUL II

8. Styles in Written Communication ................................................. 59

9. The Memorandum, The Report ..................................................... 69

10. Guidelines for writing business documents ................................ 78

11. The Pronoun and qualifying expressions .................................... 85

12. The contract: - types .................................................................... 94

13. Whos Who in economics .......................................................... 103


3/107

4


4/107

5

SEMESTRUL I

1. Grammar in Context

1.1. Communicative Situations

It is difficult to come to an understanding unless one has a grasp

of the full complexity of language, and hence of language learning.

Language is multifaceted to the extent that human activity is various.

There is an enormous variety of walks of life/occupations/lifestyles,

each of which has its own language and cultural setting. We may

divide the walks of life/occupations/lifestyles into two categories:

those that are common to everybody and those that are concerned with

specialized topics familiar only to a few.

Obviously, those walks of life/occupations/lifestyles that are

common to many people are concerned with everyday existence.

Examples of these universal topics are socializing, shopping,

travelling, eating out, telephoning friends, greetings and introductions,

and reading newspapers. So, when one learns a language, one must beexposed to linguistic items relating to these universal topics.

Yet in addition to such topics, there is an enormous range of

specialized topics that are of significant importance only to sections of

the population. Examples of these are as follows: sports, hobbies and

interests, business, banking and finance, medicine, academics, literary

criticism, travel and tourism, biology, chemistry, physics, agriculture


5/107

6

and law or military matters. The list is endless. The extent to which an

individual will need language pertaining to any of these specific topics

depends upon how important the topic is to him in his everyday life. If

the topic is not at all important for him, there is no need for him to

know any of the linguistic items pertaining to it. At the other end of

the scale, when we reach the stage at which any topic constitutes an

individual's profession, it becomes crucial that he have a mastery of

the specialized language pertaining to it.

Each topic will contain certain tasks, specific to it, which an

individual will need to accomplish and which require him to use

language. Here are some examples taken from different fields:

- University Professor: - Giving lectures, participating inseminars, reading and writing papers for publication, reading and

writing books, discussing academic topics with students and

conducting examinations, oral and written.

- Businessman/businessperson/executive: -Giving presentations,negotiating, participating in meetings, writing reports, press releases,

letters, faxes and memos, telephoning, note taking, socializing and

entertaining.

- Research Scientist: - Writing the results of experiments,writing reports on the significance of the results, giving presentations,

participating in seminars, reading recent research.

- Army Professional: Training soldiers, discussing strategiesand tactics, giving instructions, writing reports, giving interviews to

the press


6/107

7

These lists are quite general in scope. It is possible, and

desirable, to define the fields of expertise more specifically so that the

accompanying tasks can be defined precisely. In addition, each

defined task should be divided into its various subtasks, so that the

linguistic items to be learned may be identified more easily. In

general, we may state the situation as follows. Human life, and hence

human language, is concerned with many and various topics. Each

topic requires certain communicative tasks to be performed, and these

tasks require mastery of certain task-based skills. Such skills are:

reading and writing texts of various styles, register and lengths,

listening in various styles, accents and registers, speaking

appropriately in a variety of contexts including socializing,

negotiating, interviewing, presenting information and pronouncing

material in a clear and culturally acceptable way. People who are

engaged in different activities need to master different skills.

In order to acquire the desired skills, a range of linguistic items

specific to each skill must be mastered.

- Specialized vocabulary: Each field will have vocabulary,which is special to it. Some of the words may have meanings specific

to the field, different from their meanings in everyday life.

- Register: Basically, register is concerned with the levels ofpoliteness and formality to be found in language and the attitudes or

values conveyed by certain words and phrases. Within each field,

there will be specific registers to be learned. Speaking and writing in

different social and cultural contexts require language with differentlevels of formality and politeness. Register is very complex and highly


7/107

8

developed in English and includes not only certain forms of

grammatical structure, but specific kinds of vocabulary. Using even a

single word inappropriately can have disastrous consequences.

- Functions: Each field will have different linguistic functions,which need to be performed, such as apologizing, complaining,

introducing, requesting, refusing requests and making suggestions.

Each function may be performed in different registers.

- Structures: Certain tasks require certain structures much morethan others. For example, a mastery of the various forms of

conditional sentence is essential for writing philosophy, but is hardly

needed at all for writing personal letters.

Different human activities require different communication

skills, which in turn require mastery of specific linguistic items.

Within this broad definition, we may identify two central areas:

content and methodology.

So, for instance, a course in English for Business Purposes will

be concerned with developing all of the linguistic skills, which are

required in order to function at a professional level in the world of

international business. For some people, even a course entitled

"English for Business Purposes" will prove to have too broad a scope

and for them, a course designed for their specialization within the field

of business will be appropriate, for instance in Advertising,

Accounting, Marketing or Human Resources.

In general, we may say that learning should take place in

contexts that are as authentic as possible and content-based. Therequirement of authenticity means that learning materials should use


8/107

9

actual texts produced by people working in the field under

consideration. For instance, a class on how to write business reports

should use good examples of reports produced by actual

businessmen/businesspersons/executives. A class devoted to the oral

skills needed to function in the currency exchange market should use,

as listening materials, recordings of conversations carried out on the

telephone by actual dealers. The requirement that the learning

materials be content-based means that they should focus on specific

problems that people are likely to encounter in their everyday working

lives. For instance, to develop fluency in a course on negotiating, a

case study, which presents a real negotiating situation-, faced by

actual companies or in specific military, police or community

departments- could be used.

The extent of the authenticity of the learning materials will vary

depending upon two related factors: the language level of the trainees

and the degree of linguistic complexity of the skills presented and

practiced. If the language level is low, then perforce the degree of

authenticity will be compromised. As the language level increases, the

degree of authenticity becomes greater.

Romanian people have a very specific way of discussing things.

If you are brought up with it, you see no problem. However, in terms

of strategies for communication in Business English, the Romanian

way may be ineffective.

It is over direct and often could be received as an abusive one.

Therefore, I decided to investigate the case and find some solution.


9/107

10

Unfortunately, there was absolutely no data and no descriptive

evaluation of Romanian strategies for communication.

Searching libraries, I came across Intercultural Communication

- a Discourse Approach by Scollon and Scollon. It focuses on

professional communication in a cross-cultural context and

emphasises the importance of proper meaning interpretation. Briefly,

Scollon and Scollon suggest that in most cases, a sudden breach of

any kind of professional communication could be owed to the

misinterpretation of signals, verbal messages and gestures particular to

a given culture. Therefore, they believe that to eliminate or lower the

risk of a breach, professional students should be informed about

potential problems and sensitised to peculiarities of an alien code of

practice. Nevertheless, it is virtually impossible to predict every

professional problem, one might say. To solve this problem, the

authors suggest a skeleton for situation-context analysis Grammar of

Context.

The main purpose of Grammar of Context is to analyze and

describe the environment in which a communicative situation occurs.

It takes into consideration the following factors:

1. Scene - participants expectations in terms of location andcommunication content ( what information should be used and how)

2. Key - participants expectations of the communication tone(formal / informal)

3. Participants - their status; relationship with each other4.

Message Form - whether it is speaking, writing, or other

media


10/107

11

5. Manifestation - deals with the way members of a particulargroup find out about a code of practice; whether it is explicit a

companys statute // regulation, or tacit common knowledge,

traditional behaviour

LOL-speak, fractured grammar, and emoticons are all finding

their way into the college essays of Canadian students with increasing

and disturbing frequencies, if a report in that nation's popular press is

to be believed. Entitled "Students failing because of Twitter, texting,"

the report is based in part on the failure rate of an English language

exam administered by the prestigious University of Waterloo in

Ontario. The failure rate has now approached one third, up from 25

percent a few years ago, and a University administrator blames failure

of basic grammar.

Emoticons and textspeak have apparently made their way into

these exams, and the administrators are horrified. All of which flies in

the face of some research that's only a few years old, which suggests

that teens who are heavy texters actually have a reasonable grasp of

grammar. One of those studies, in fact, was performed with Canadian

teens, some of whom have probably made their way to college in the

intervening years.

Although it would be tempting to ascribe the apparent

differences to those between anecdote (in the form of college English

exam scores) and formalized studies, the differences may really be a

matter of what's being measured. The earlier studies focused on howthe students were expressing themselves, and focused on the


11/107

12

complexity of the communications; these came through despite what

our report termed "informal diction and bizarre acronyms." It's

precisely that informal diction, like replacing "because" with "cuz"

and merging "a lot" into a single word, that's grating on college

administrators. At the same time, liberated from the tyranny of

character limits, students are apparently sprinkling commas liberally

throughout the text.

Thus, it looks like students are retaining the ability to express

themselves in rich terms, but are either incapable of recognizing when

to adopt formal usage, or incapable of doing so when necessary.

Either of those should be easier to fix than an inability to express ideas

through text. Of course, given the historical evolvability of the English

language, chances seem good that the teens won't so much fix the

problem as force those with higher expectations to meet them

halfway.


12/107

13

2. Cultural Approaches concerning

2.1. Time, being late

2.2. Team Work, Difficult People/Situations

What is your cultural approach to the following aspects?

Answer the following questions:

1. Time Do you tolerate being late - If yes, how much?2. Eye contact Is it important for a communicative event? Do

you need to maintain it? If yes, for how long?

3. Small Talk Do you use it? Do you think it is important?What is your personal attitude to it?

4. Silence How do you understand silence? Is it meaningful?5. Teams Is it natural for you to work in teams?6. Difficult people & situations

- What is your way of dealing with interruptions and difficult

people?

Business English serves the role of a medium for a corporate

communication; it is used and influenced by different cultures.

Therefore, by raising cultural awareness we help improve both the

language and the working relationships.

Informal communication is vital for achieving certain types of

work-related tasks. Research on scientific collaboration has shown


13/107

14

that physical distance is the strongest predictor of collaboration

between researchers. Physical proximity promotes frequent,

impromptu face-to-face communications, which are crucial for the

planning and negotiation phases of projects. Work on software

development also has demonstrated that the degree to which project

workers engage in interpersonal communication strongly predicts

project success. Furthermore, other work has shown negative impacts

on teamwork when opportunities for ad hoc communication are

reduced, as in remote collaboration. Work becomes more difficult to

coordinate and advance despite the use of longer and more task-

focused meetings in remote settings. Sociological studies of

organizational life stress the primary role of mundane office

conversations in helping workers learn, understand, adapt, and apply

formal procedures and processes.[]

Despite research from various disciplines showing the value of

informal interactions, evidence indicates that people in the workplace

do not recognize its value. Kraut & Streeter (1995) found impromptu

communication is under-utilized compared with its value, whereas

formal communication techniques are overused relative to their value.

Our own preliminary evidence supports this result. In a series of

interviews with a dozen employees in a Fortune 500 U.S. corporation,

we found that although people reported gaining most of their work-

related news and information from informal interactions, those same

people said they used almost exclusively formal approaches to convey

information to other parts of the company. Most commonly, theyreported their information to a high-level management group and


14/107

15

asked that they pass the information down the hierarchy in their staff

meetings. In many cases, they wrote a document to convey

information and either gave it to managers to give to their employees,

or made it available to employees directly (in email, mailings to the

home, or by publishing it on the company's internal World Wide Web

pages). Some also gave formal presentations to supplement the

document. When we asked information disseminators if they had

considered spreading their information through word of mouth, they

either had not thought of it or did not trust it. They were concerned

that information passed informally would be distorted and

misinterpreted and might not become available to all the intended

recipients.

Say whether the statements below it are true (T) or false (F).

Read the part that has helped you choose your answer:

The farther they are from each other, the more effectivelyscientists can cooperate.

Sometimes interpersonal communication makes it difficult forthe team to concentrate on their specific tasks.

Corporate workers should be discouraged from engaging inroutine conversation during office hours.

Unfortunately, only sociologists recognize the value ofinterpersonal communication.

Researchers interviewed dozens of employees in 500 U.S.corporations.


15/107

16

The employees used to find out about the latest projects anddevelopments within the firm most of the time by talking to their

colleagues.

To communicate effectively you need to be familiar with the

process and the variables involved. The basic communication

process includes a source, a message, a channel and a receiver.

The source isyou, including your communication skills, your attitudes

and your purpose, as well as your knowledge of the subject, your

audience, and the context in which you are communicating.

Themessage includes the code or language you are using as well

as the messages treatment, that is, what content is selected and how it

is organized. You can think of thechannelas both the senses and the

medium of communication used. For instance, seeing and hearing, are

the senses variously involved in reading the printed page, listening to

a tape, or speaker, watching TV, video. Generally, the more channels

we use, that is, the more senses we stimulate, the more effective the

communication. Keep Marshall McLuhans aphorism "the medium is

the message" in mind. McLuhan overstates his point but, by affecting

different senses and thus our perception of reality, the media or

technology used can itself influence the message we receive and how

we respond to it. Recall that radio and print reports of the Ethiopian

drought and famine a few years ago were largely ignored. We really

did not receive the message until it was conveyed through photos and

TV video footage.


16/107

17

Receivers are the final link in the communication process. They

must accurately receive and decipher your message. How well your

audience understands the message you intend will depend on not only

the previous factors, but also their own knowledge, attitudes and

context.

The process of communication is on going and dynamic, is

irreversible, requires perception of meaning, and occurs in a

situational context. There are many barriers to effective, accurate

communication. These can be mechanical, involve differing

perceptions or values (not having the same understandings), or be a

matter of semantics, that is, the use of words, images, or examples that

are beyond the receivers intellectual or cultural ability to understand.

Non-communication is not possible. Every word, every gesture

communicates something to the receivers, to your audience. In

addition, once communicated, they cannot be retracted. You want to

communicate your intended message and enhance your professional

reputation. You do not want to be remembered for a lacklustre

presentation and a garbled message. First impressions are difficult to

overcome!

Communicating well benefits you, your audience, and society as

a whole. Thinking about communication as a process is useful

because it helps explain why we must establish the purpose and goals

of our message, why we need to know our audience, what media we

select, what meaning is perceived, and more.


17/107

18

3. The European Union Democracy/ Global Business

Relations

3.1. Human Rights,Disctimination, Social Assistance

A worldwide economic recession in the early 1980s brought

with it a wave of 'euro-pessimism'. Nevertheless, hope sprang anew in

1985 when the European Commission, under its President Jacques

Delors, published a 'white paper' setting out a timetable for completing

the European single market by 1 January 1993. The Communities

adopted this ambitious goal and enshrined it in the Single European

Act, which was signed in February 1986 and came into force on 1 July

1987.

The political shape of Europe was dramatically changed by thefall of the Berlin wall in 1989. This led to the reunification of

Germany on 3 October 1990 and the coming of democracy to the

countries of central and Eastern Europe as they broke away from

Soviet control. The Soviet Union itself ceased to exist in December

1991.

Meanwhile, the European Communities were changing too. The

member states were negotiating a new treaty that was adopted by the

European Council (i.e. their presidents and/or prime ministers) at

Maastricht in December 1991. This 'Treaty on European Union' came

into force on 1 November 1993. The EEC was renamed simply 'the

European Community' (EC). Moreover, by adding areas of


18/107

19

intergovernmental cooperation to the existing Community system, the

Treaty created the European Union (EU). It also set new ambitious

goals for the member states: monetary union by 1999, European

citizenship, new common policies - including a common foreign and

security policy (CFSP) - and arrangements for internal security.

The new European dynamism and the continent's changing

geopolitics led three more countries - Austria, Finland and Sweden -

to join the EU on 1 January 1995. The Union now had 15 member

states and prepared for its most spectacular achievement - replacing its

national currencies with a single European currency, the euro.

On 1 January 2002, euro notes and coins came into circulation in

12 EU countries (the 'euro area'). The euro is now a major world

currency, having a similar status to the US dollar.

As the world moves forward into the 21st century, Europeans

must together face the challenges of globalization. Revolutionary new

technologies and the Internet explosion are transforming the world

economy. However, these profound economic changes bring with

them social disruption and culture shock.

Meeting in Lisbon in March 2000, the European Council

adopted a comprehensive strategy for modernizing the EU economy

and enabling it to compete on the world market with other major

players such as the United States and the newly industrialized

countries. The 'Lisbon strategy' includes opening up all sectors of the

economy to competition, encouraging innovation and business

investment, and modernizing Europe's education systems to meet theneeds of the information society.


19/107

20

At the same time, unemployment and the rising cost of pensions

are both putting pressure on the member states' economies, and this

makes reform all the more necessary. Voters are increasingly calling

on their governments to find practical solutions to these issues.

Scarcely had the European Union grown to encompass 15

member states when another 12 began knocking at its door. In the mid

1990s, it received membership applications from the former Soviet

bloc countries (Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland,

Romania and Slovakia), the three Baltic states that had once been part

of the Soviet Union (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania), one of the

republics of the former Yugoslavia (Slovenia) and two Mediterranean

countries (Cyprus and Malta).

The EU welcomed this opportunity to help stabilize the

European continent and to extend the benefits of European unification

to these young democracies. Accession negotiations with the

candidate countries were launched in Luxembourg in December 1997

and in Helsinki in December 1999. The Union was on the way to its

biggest enlargement ever. For ten of the candidate countries,

negotiations were completed on 13 December 2002 in Copenhagen.

The European Union had 25 member states in 2004, and continued

growing as more countries joined in the years ahead.

More than half a century of integration has had an enormous

impact on the history of Europe and on the mentality of Europeans.

The member state governments, whatever their political colour, know

that the age of absolute national sovereignty is over and that only byjoining forces and pursuing "a destiny henceforward shared" (to quote


20/107

21

the ECSC Treaty) can their ancient nations continue to make

economic and social progress and maintain their influence in the

world.

Integration has succeeded in overcoming age-old enmity

between European countries. Attitudes of superiority and the use of

force to resolve international differences have been replaced by the

'Community method' of working together. This method, which

balances national interests with the common interest and respects

national diversity while creating a Union identity, is as valuable today

as ever. Throughout the Cold War period, it enabled Europe's

democratic and freedom-loving countries to stick together. The end of

east-west antagonism and the political and economic reunification of

the continent are a victory for the spirit of Europe - a spirit that

European peoples need more than ever today.

The European Union offers a response to the huge challenge of

globalization - a response that expresses the values Europeans believe

in. The EU offers, above all, the best possible 'insurance policy' for a

free and peaceful future.

What do we understand by Democracy today? What are the

fundamentals of Democracy?

Democracy comes from the Greek word, "demos," meaning

people. In democracies, the people hold sovereign power over

legislator and government.


21/107

22

Although nuances apply to the world's various democracies,

certain principles and practices distinguish democratic government

from other forms of government.

Democracy is government in which power and civicresponsibility are exercised by all citizens, directly or through their

freely elected representatives.

Democracy is a set of principles and practices that protecthuman freedom; it is the institutionalization of freedom.

Democracy rests upon the principles of majority rule, coupledwith individual and minority rights. All democracies, while respecting

the will of the majority, zealously protect the fundamental rights of

individuals and minority groups.

Democracies guard against all-powerful central governmentsand decentralize government to regional and local levels,understanding that local government must be as accessible and

responsive to the people as possible.

Democracies understand that one of their prime functions is toprotect such basic human rights as freedom of speech and religion; the

right to equal protection under law; and the opportunity to organize

and participate fully in the political, economic, and cultural life of

society.

Democracies conduct regular free and fair elections open to allcitizens. Elections in a democracy cannot be facades that dictators or a

single party hide behind, but authentic competitions for the support of

the people.


22/107

23

Democracy subjects governments to the rule of law andensures that all citizens receive equal protection under the law and that

their rights are protected by the legal system.

Democracies are diverse, reflecting each nation's uniquepolitical, social, and cultural life. Democracies rest upon fundamental

principles, not uniform practices.

Citizens in a democracy not only have rights, they have theresponsibility to participate in the political system that, in turn,

protects their rights and freedoms.

Democratic societies are committed to the values of tolerance,cooperation, and compromise. Democracies recognize that reaching

consensus requires compromise and that it may not always be

attainable. In the words of Mahatma Gandhi, "intolerance is itself a

form of violence and an obstacle to the growth of a true democraticspirit."

On the surface, the principles of majority rule and the protection

of individual and minority rights would seem contradictory. In fact,

however, these principles are twin pillars holding up the very

foundation of what we mean by democratic government.

Majority rule is a means for organizing government and deciding

public issues; it is not another road to oppression. Just as no self-

appointed group has the right to oppress others, so no majority, even

in a democracy, should take away the basic rights and freedoms of a

minority group or individual.


23/107

24

Minorities - whether because of ethnic background, religiousbelief, geographic location, and income level, or simply as the losers

in elections or political debate - enjoy guaranteed basic human rights

that no government, and no majority, elected or not, should remove.

Minorities need to trust that the government will protect theirrights and self-identity. Once this is accomplished, such groups can

participate in, and contribute to their country's democratic institutions.

Among the basic human rights that any democratic government

must protect are freedom of speech and expression; freedom of

religion and belief; due process and equal protection under the law;

and freedom to organize, speak out, dissent, and participate fully in

the public life of their society.

Democracies understand that protecting the rights of minorities

to uphold cultural identity, social practices, individual consciences,

and religious activities is one of their primary tasks.

Acceptance of ethnic and cultural groups that seem strange if not

alien to the majority can represent one of the greatest challenges that

any democratic government can face. Nevertheless, democracies

recognize that diversity can be an enormous asset. They treat these

differences in identity, culture, and values as a challenge that can

strengthen and enrich them, not as a threat.

There can be no single answer to how minority-group

differences in views and values are resolved - only the sure knowledge

that only through the democratic process of tolerance, debate, and

willingness to compromise can free societies reach agreements thatembrace the twin pillars of majority rule and minority rights.


24/107

25

Social assistance and welfare services provide protection to

society's most vulnerable groups, i.e., those with no other means of

support such as single parent households, victims of natural disasters

or civil conflict, handicapped people, or the destitute poor. Social

assistance interventions may include welfare and social services to

highly vulnerable groups such as the physically or mentally disabled,

orphans, or substance abusers cash or in-kind transfers such as food

stamps and family allowances temporary subsidies such as life-line

tariffs, housing subsidies, or support of lower prices of staple food in

times of crisis

Social security is primarily a social insurance program

providing social protection, or protection against socially recognized

conditions, including poverty, old age, disability, unemployment and

others. Social security may refer to:

social insurance, where people receive benefits or services inrecognition of contributions to an insurance scheme. These services

typically include provision for retirement pensions, disability

insurance, survivor benefits and unemployment insurance.

income maintenancemainly the distribution of cash in theevent of interruption of employment, including retirement, disability

and unemployment

services provided by administrations responsible for socialsecurity. In different countries this may include medical care, aspects

of social work and even industrial relations.


25/107

26

More rarely, the term is also used to refer to basic security, aterm roughly equivalent to access to basic necessitiesthings such as

food, clothing, shelter, education, money, and medical care.

Social protection refers to a set of benefits available (or not

available) from the state, market, civil society and households, or

through a combination of these agencies, to the individual/households

to reduce multi-dimensional deprivation. This multi-dimensional

deprivation could be affecting less active poor persons (e.g. the

elderly, disabled) and active poor persons (e.g. unemployed). This

broad framework makes this concept more acceptable in developing

countries than the concept of social security. Social security is more

applicable in the conditions, where large numbers of citizens depend

on the formal economy for their livelihood. Through a defined

contribution, this social security may be managed. But, in the context

of wide spread informal economy, formal social security arrangements

are almost absent for the vast majority of the working population.

Besides, in developing countries, the state's capacity to reach the vast

majority of the poor people may be limited because of its limited

resources. In such a context, multiple agencies that could provide for,

social protection is important for policy consideration. The framework

of social protection is thus capable of holding the state responsible to

provide for the poorest sections by regulating non-state agencies.


26/107

27

4. Microeconomic Terms

4.1. Definitions

Selected Glossary of Microeconomic Terms1

Adjustment process: Path by which a system moves from a

position of disequilibrium to one of equilibrium.

Aggregation: A method of simplifying theory by combining

many markets into a large, composite market.

Allocation: The determination of what goods and services will

be produced from available resources. Allocation can be done with

markets or with hierarchy.

Antitrust policy: Policy that makes companies act in a

competitive manner by breaking up companies that are monopolies,

prohibiting mergers that would increase market power, and finding

and fining companies that collude to establish higher prices.

Arbitrage: Simultaneously buying in a cheap market and selling

in an expensive one.

Budget Constraint: A line that separates outcomes that are

affordable from outcomes that is not affordable. Occasionally it is

called a consumption-possibilities frontier.

1 After: English International Lyon internet pages


27/107

28

Change in demand: A shift in the demand curve.

Change in quantity demanded: A change in the amount people

buy because a change in price moves them along a stationary demand

curve.

Change in quantity supplied: A change in the amount sellers

sell because a change in price moves them along a stationary supply

curve.

Change in supply: A shift in the supply curve.

Circular flow: The flow of products from businesses to

households and the flow of resources from households to businesses.

Consumer Sovereignty: In a market economy, it is ultimately

the wants of the consumers, not the preferences of the producers that

determine what goods and services are produced.

Contingent behaviour: Behaviour that exists when each

person's actions depend on what he expects others to do.

Cross-price elasticity (cross-elasticity): A measure of whether

goods are substitutes or complements.

Demand curve: The relationship between price and the amount

of a product people want to buy.

Derived demand: The demand for a resource depends on, or is

derived from, the demand for the things that the resource helps

produce.

Disequilibrium: A condition that exists when a system is not at

rest and has a tendency to change.


28/107

29

Dollar voting: An explanation of how a market economy

determines what goods are produced made with an analogy to the

political process of voting.

Duopoly: A market in which there are two sellers.

Economic efficiency: A situation in which value is maximized.

Given resources, technology, and preferences, no changes will

increase value. It is also called the Pareto optimality.

Economic inefficiency: A situation in which there is potential

value that no one captures. Given resources, technology, and

preferences, there is some change, which will improve the well-being

on one individual without harming anyone else.

Entrepreneur: An individual who creates new: a new

organization, market, or product, usually in the quest for profit.

Entrepreneurs are innovators.

Equilibrium: A condition that exists when a system is at rest

and has no further tendency to change.

Externality: A cost or benefit that a decision maker passes on to

a third party. Pollution is an example of a negative externality.

Excise tax: A sales tax on a specific item.

Fixed cost: Cost that does not change as output changes.

Free rider: Person who does not pay for good or service

because there is no way to exclude those who do not pay from using

the good or service.

Game theory: An analysis of interactions in which the outcome

a person faces depends not only on his strategy of action, but also onthe strategies of others.


29/107

30

Human capital: Peoples assets in the form of investment in

themselves.

Inferior good: A good that people buy less frequently if their

incomes rise.

Invisible hand: A phrase that expresses the belief that the best

interests of a society can be served when individual consumers and

producers compete to achieve their own private interests.

Law of demand: The principle that there is an inverse

relationship between the price of a good and the quantity that buyers

are willing to purchase.

Law of diminishing returns: Adding more of one input while

holding other inputs constant eventually results in smaller and smaller

increases in added output.

Lorenz Curve: A graphical way to illustrate the equality or

inequality of the distribution of income.

Marginal cost: The change in total cost caused by a one-unit

change in an activity, or the slope of the total cost curve. In the case of

a business, the change in total cost is caused by a change in output.

Marginal rate of substitution: The ratio at which people will

trade good B for good A.

Marginal rate of transformation: Slope of the production-

possibilities frontier, which shows how much of good B must be given

up to produce more of good A.

Marginal resource cost: The change in total cost caused by a

one-unit change in an input.


30/107

31

Marginal revenue: The change in total revenue resulting from

a change in sales; the slope of the total cost curve.

Marginal revenue product: The change in total revenue

resulting from a one-unit change in an input.

Market failure: A situation in which a market yields a result

that is economically inefficient, that is, there is value that is not

captured.

Maximization principle: The rule that net benefits are

maximized when marginal benefit equals marginal cost.

Monopoly: An industry with only one seller.

Monopolistic competition: An industry that has easy entry and

exit, but in which sellers are price searchers.

Moral hazard: Insurance problems; when the cost of a disaster

is reduced with insurance, people have less incentive to avoid the

disaster.

Negative-sum game: In terms of game theory, an interaction in

which losses exceed winnings.

Normative analysis: An analysis based on a judgment about

what is desirable and what is undesirable.

Paradox of Value: The puzzle of why essential items such as

water are cheap while frivolous items such as diamonds are expensive.

The paradox is easily resolved when one understands the difference

between total value and marginal value.

Pareto optimality: See Economic efficiency.

Present value: Money in the future is less valuable than anequivalent amount of money now because money in the future gives


31/107

32

fewer options. The comparison of money in different time periods is

made with a present value computation.

Price ceiling: Legally established maximum price a seller can

charge.

Price-discrimination: Charging different prices for the same

good or service.

Price floor: Legally established minimum price a seller can be

paid.

Price searcher: A seller (buyer) who can influence price by the

amount he sells (buys).

Price taker: A seller (buyer) who has no control over price, but

sells (buys) at the given price.

Principal-agent problem: The potential conflict of interest

when a person (the principal) has someone (the agent) acting on his

behalf.

Producers' surplus: The difference between the lowest price a

producer will accept and the actual price; also called economic rent.

Production function: The mathematical way of stating that

output depends on inputs.

Progressive tax: A tax that charges a higher percentage of

income as income rises.

Proportional tax: A tax that charges the same percentage of

income, regardless of the size of income.

Public good: A good or service that, once produced, has two

properties: Benefits are available to all and there is no way to bar


32/107

33

people who do not pay (free riders) from consuming the good or

service.

Quota: Limit on the quantity of a good that may be imported in

any time period.

Regressive tax: A tax that charges a lower percentage of income

as income rises.

Rent seeking: Efforts to obtain value through transfer without

providing anything in return.

Scarcity: The condition in which human wants exceed the

available supply of goods, time, and resources. In a world without

scarcity, there would be no economics.

Shortage: The market condition existing when quantity

demanded exceeds quantity supplied. Generally, an increase in price

will eliminate a shortage.

Speculation: Attempting to buy when the price is low and sell

when it is high.

Sunk cost: Is cost which cannot be recovered.

Surplus: The market condition existing where the quantity

supplied is greater than the quantity demanded. Generally, a decrease

in price will eliminate a surplus.

Tariff: Excise tax on imported goods.

Tax incidence: Taxes can be shifted from those who write the

check to the government to others. The study of tax incidence is the

study of who ultimately bears the burden of the tax.

Utility: An abstract variable, indicating goal-attainment orwant-satisfaction.


33/107

34

Utility function: A mathematical way of saying that utility

depends on consumption of goods and services.

Zero-sum game: An interaction in which the sum of winnings

and losses equals zero.


34/107

35

5. Banking Terms and Notions

5.1. Definitions

A well-functioning financial sector increases economic growth.

If an economy does not allocate savings to the most productive uses, it

will grow more slowly than it can grow.

From a microeconomic point of view, the primary purpose of

financial markets is to allocate available savings to the most

productive use.

Markets are interrelated, and a problem in one market can have

its source in a different market. This finding is a starting point for

macroeconomics.

Macroeconomists ask two central questions: "Is this market a

likely source of instability that shows up as inflation or recession,"

and "Will the adjustment process in this market cause problems for the

overall adjustment of the economy."

Changes in one part of the economy are rapidly transmitted to

other parts through financial markets. Such transmission is not limited

to questions of tariffs or to the market for foreign exchange; all

financial markets transmit.

When most people think of financial markets, they think of the

stock market. A stock is a share in the ownership of a corporation, and

through the stock market, one can buy and sell. The stock market has

high visibility because it is open to anyone who can collect several


35/107

36

hundred dollars together. However, the stock market is only a very

small part of the total financial market and plays only a minor role in

macroeconomic theory.

Markets for debtare much larger than the stock market in terms

of their daily transactions. These markets have less visibility because

many require hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars to

enter directly. Some of these markets for debt do play an important

role in macroeconomic theory. Whenever economists include an

interest rate in their discussion, a market for debt is playing a role in

their thinking.

There are many kinds of transactions that take place in the

market for debt. Some transactions are highly publicized: when a big

corporation issues marketable bonds with the aid of a brokerage

house, the brokerage house advertises the event to attract buyers.

Transactions on the New York Bond Exchange are also very visible--

they are reported in the financial section of major newspapers. Many

more transactions involve financial intermediaries and less publicity.

Eventually most people visit a bank (or a savings and loan association,

which has become almost identical) to arrange a loan. Large

corporations, small businesses, non-profit groups, and individuals all

use banks to obtain funds.

In addition to lending money to individuals and groups, banks

are part of financial markets in other ways. Banks borrow and lend

funds among themselves in the funds market. They buy and sell

foreign exchange. They buy and sell government and commercialdebt. Finally, one form of bank debt serves as money in modern


36/107

37

economies, and banks create this debt because of their financial

transactions.

Prices in the debt market are interest rates, what one pays (or

receives) for the use of funds for some period of time. Because they

aggregate financial markets, economists often talk about "the interest

rate." In fact, there are many interest rates. Rates differ depending on

factors such as the risk of default, the liquidity and time to maturity of

the debt, and the tax status of the interest payments.

The press commonly reports several interest rates. The prime

rate was once the interest rate that large commercial banks charged

their most credit-worthy customers for short-term loans. In recent

years, banks have usually given their best customers discounts from

the prime, so this definition is no longer accurate. A good definition of

the prime is hard to give other than - it is the rate that banks publicize.

Thefunds rate is the rate that banks charge one another for funds

they borrow on an overnight basis. The discount rate is the rate at

which banks may be permitted to borrow from a Central/Federal

Reserve bank. Finally, the interest rate on 13 and 26 week Treasury

Bills is used by many banks to determine rates that they pay on some

of their accounts. This interest rate is probably the one most

economists have in mind when they talk about "the interest rate." In

practice, all these rates tend to fluctuate together.

Though many of us hold savings bonds, very little of the debt is

financed with them. More of the debt is in the form of long-term debt

(bonds), medium-term debt (notes), and short-term treasury bills, or T-bills for short.


37/107

38

Financial intermediaries, large companies, and governmental

units buy T-bills. Organizations find them a safe and profitable way

to invest funds available for short periods of time. The attractiveness

of T-bills is enhanced by the secondary marketthat has developed. A

secondary market does not sell newly-issued securities, but previously

issued - or "used" - securities. (The stock and bond exchanges are

examples of secondary markets.) The existence of this secondary

market has made T-bills very liquid, that is, T-bills can be converted

into cash quickly and cheaply. However, because it does not deal in

small transactions of $50000 or $100000, it is not visible. It is an

over-the-counter market, which means transactions are done by

computer or telephone.

T-Bills are now sold as book-entry security, which means they

are in the form of a paper certificate, but are only entries in the books

of the Treasury.

Most people do not enter financial markets directly but use

intermediaries or middlemen. Commercial banks are the financial

intermediary we meet most often in macroeconomics, but mutual

funds, pension funds, credit unions, savings and loan associations,

and to some extent insurance companies are important financial

intermediaries. When people deposit money in a bank, the bank uses

the funds to make loans to homebuyers for mortgages, to students so

they can pay for their education, to business to finance inventories,

and to anyone else who needs to borrow. A person who has extra

money could, of course, seek out borrowers himself and bypass the


38/107

39

intermediary. By eliminating the middleman (intermediary), the saver

could get a higher return.

Financial intermediaries provide two important advantages to

savers. First, lending through an intermediary is usually less risky than

lending directly. The major reason for reduced risk is that a financial

intermediary can diversify. It makes a great many loans, and even

though some of those loans will be mistakes, the losses will be largely

offset by loans that are sound. In contrast, an average saver could

directly make only a few loans, and any bad loans would substantially

affect his wealth. Because an intermediary can put its "eggs" in many

"baskets," it insures its depositors from substantial losses.

A second advantage financial intermediaries give savers is

liquidity. Liquidity is the ability to convert assets into an able form to

spend money - quickly. A house is an illiquid asset; selling one can

take a great deal of time. If an individual saver has lent money directly

to another person, the loan can also be an illiquid asset. If the lender

suddenly needs cash, he must either persuade the borrower to repay

quickly, which may not be possible, or he must find someone else who

will buy the loan from him, which may be very difficult. Though the

intermediary may use its funds to make illiquid loans, its size allows it

to hold some funds idle as cash to provide liquidity to individual

depositors. Only when a great many depositors want to withdraw

deposits at the same time, which happens when there is a "run" on the

institution, will the financial intermediary be unable to provide

liquidity. Unless it can obtain help from the government or otherinstitutions, it will be forced to suspend payments to depositors.


39/107

40

Financial intermediaries help large numbers of people to use,

though indirectly, financial markets. Although these intermediaries are

important in the macroeconomic functioning of the economy, they are

usually stable and change only slowly. With the exception of those

intermediaries that issue deposits against which checks may be

written, economists do not expect disturbances to arise in financial

intermediaries. As a result, macroeconomic theory does not pay much

attention to them.

A financial market is an "efficient market" if its prices take into

accounts all knowledge that people have about that market. If there is

knowledge, which is not being used, unexploited profit opportunities

exist, and in financial markets, these opportunities should be quickly

taken. If one knows that a stock or bond is undervalued and that it will

rise in value, one will make a large amount of money by buying until

it does rise. Because profit opportunities are quickly exploited once

they become known, one cannot "beat" an efficient market unless one

has special information that is unavailable to others.

The idea of efficient markets suggests that one should not place

a great deal of faith in any forecasts about interest rates or stock

prices, because if the person making the forecast really does know

what will happen, he could keep quiet and get rich.

The speculators play a useful role in an efficient market where

prices adjust very quickly to new information. They are coolly rational

individuals looking at the fundamental values of items, buying when

prices are too low and helping lift these prices, and selling whenprices are too high and helping to lower these prices. As a result,


40/107

41

prices correctly transmit information about values, which people can

then use to make decisions. An efficient market will not be the source

of economic disturbances. However, it can transmit disturbances, and

this alone would be enough to interest economists.

An important reason people buy items in financial markets is in

the hope of selling them at a profit. Thus trading in these markets

involves not only an analysis of the fundamental value of an asset, but

also an analysis of how other people will react. If people are confident

that others will buy the item for more than they paid for it, then they

will buy it even if it has little value to them.

The idea described above has been called the "greater-fool"

theory. It implies that although one may be a fool for buying an asset

that is overpriced, one can profit if there are still greater fools who

will pay even more for it.

Markets based on the "greater-fool" theory always collapse.

Eventually the greatest fool is found, and once he is found, the process

cannot continue. It can affect the production of an economy if the

speculations cause enough financial disruption. They will cause

bankruptcies, reduce people's trust in others, and cause unemployment

for the people who became speculators.

A speculative crash in financial markets is not enough, by itself,

to trigger a recession.

The federal government not only regulates financial markets and

intermediaries, it is also a major financial intermediary itself. Two

agencies with important regulatory functions are the SecuritiesExchange Commission (SEC), the Federal Deposit Insurance


41/107

42

Corporation (FDIC). The SEC regulates behaviour in stock and bond

markets, and also specifies which information a publicly-traded

company must provide to shareholders. The FDIC insures deposits at

commercial banks and, with the demise of the Federal Savings and

Loan Insurance Corporation in the 1980s deposits at savings and loan

associations.

The U.S. government makes extensive loans for agriculture and

housing. Because the government can borrow at a lower interest rate

than most private borrowers can, and because it does not need to make

a profit, it can lend at lower interest rates than private intermediaries

can. The government also subsidizes borrowers by guaranteeing loans

that private lenders make. However, the issues that these actions of the

government raise are primarily microeconomic in nature.

From a macroeconomic perspective, by far the most important

government institution involved in financial markets is the Federal

Reserve System. The Federal Reserve System (often referred to as the

"Fed" by economists and bankers) is the central bank of the United

States. A central bank functions as a banker's bank. Just as individuals

and businesses have deposits at a regular bank and can write checks

on these deposits, banks have deposits at a central bank and can write

checks on these deposits.

The Federal Reserve System is a rather strange "central" bank

because it is composed of 12 separate banks. When you examine your

paper currency, you will see the district number and letter of one of

these 12 banks on the left side of the portrait. This strange structureexists because of the political realities that faced Congress when it


42/107

43

established the system in 1913. In 1935, Congress reduced the

independent authority of these 12 banks and centralized policy-

making authority in a group called the Federal Open Market

Committee (FOMC) which decides monetary policy. Though today

the individual Reserve banks retain little independent power, the

president of each can serve as a voting member of the FOMC.

In the market for foreign exchange, people trade one country's

money for another's. If, for example, you decide to travel to Thailand,

you will need to buy some bahts, the currency of Thailand, either

before you go or once you get there. In your transaction, you will

supply dollars to the foreign exchange market and demand bahts.

The foreign exchange market provides an excellent illustration

of how financial markets can transmit disturbances. The market is

usually considered to be an efficient market, not subject to runaway

speculative binges. The heart of the market is the trading by a number

of very large banks. A trade worth a million dollars is very small in

this market, but it is the prices of these very large bank transactions

that newspapers report when they publish exchange rates. When you

deal in smaller amounts when you travel to Thailand, you will get less

favourable prices.

The market for foreign exchange can be analyzed in terms of

supply and demand. Americans demand foreign money (and supply

dollars) when they buy things abroad, such as vacations, goods,

services, factories, and financial assets. Foreigners supply foreign

currency (and demand dollars) when they buy things here, such asvacations, goods, services, factories, and financial assets. Though


43/107

44

when you buy a Japanese camera, you do not deal in the foreign

exchange market, someone did in the process of bringing the camera

to you. It may have been the American importer, who would have sold

dollars to buy yen, and then used the yen to buy the camera. On the

other hand, it may have been the Japanese exporter, who sold cameras

for dollars and then sold the dollars for yen. In either case, dollars

were supplied to the foreign exchange market and yen were

demanded.

The exchange rate, or the price of foreign money, is an important

price when we buy things made in other countries.

Two things affect the price of the Japanese camera as seen from

America. The first is the yen price of the camera, and the second is the

dollar price of the yen. If either one increase: Japanese cameras will

become more expensive and Americans will want fewer of them. The

exchange rate also affects the price of American goods as seen in

Japan.

When foreign currency is cheap, foreign products are cheap in

dollars, and Americans will want a lot of them. To buy these foreign

products, Americans must buy a lot of foreign exchange. When the

price of foreign exchange is expensive, so also are foreign products

and Americans will not want many. Hence, they will not need as much

foreign exchange.

Let us consider what will happen if the United States increased

its tariffs. Because tariffs are taxes on imports, foreign products will

become more expensive for Americans. As a result, Americans willwant to buy fewer imports, which is usually the desired result of


44/107

45

tariffs. However, if the exchange rate is: a floating rate, that is, one

that can take whatever value supply and demand dictate, the story has

not ended. Because of the tariff and the resulting decrease in imports,

foreign money becomes cheaper for Americans and American dollars

become more expensive for foreigners. If dollars become more

expensive, foreigners will find American goods more expensive. The

end effect of a tariff with floating exchange rates, then, is to cut not

just imports, but to cut exports as well.

If a country treats the foreign exchange market as any other

market, allowing the marketplace determine the price of foreign

money, it has a system offloating exchange rates. This is what most

of the Western world has had since the 1970s. However, governments

have often fixed prices in this market. In doing so they simultaneously

establish price floors and price ceilings--they will neither let the price

rise nor fall (except within a small range).

There are two ways a government can keep exchange rates fixed.

One method, which has been common in less-developed nations, is

called a fixed and unconvertible exchange rate because the exchange

rate is fixed, but domestic currency cannot be freely converted into

foreign money. Governments using it almost always set the price of

foreign exchange below the market-clearing price (which means that

they price their own currency too high), and thereby cause a shortage

of foreign money. The government prevents the market-increasing

price to eliminate this shortage by outlawing private transactions in

foreign exchange and requiring citizens who obtain foreign exchangeto sell it to the government. Because the government becomes the only


45/107

46

legal source of foreign money, those who want to buy products from

abroad must obtain those funds from the government, which rations

these funds to those purposes it deems most worthy. Though this

system is hard to justify on economic grounds, and is often evaded

with extensive black-marketing, the system gives rulers a powerful

tool to reward friends and punish enemies.

The second method is a fixed and convertible exchange rate.

With this method a government does not abolish the private market

for foreign exchange, but fixes exchange rates by standing ready to

absorb any surpluses or to fill any shortages.

If the price of foreign exchange is set above the market-clearing

price, there will be a surplus of foreign exchange (and a shortage of

the domestic currency). At this price, people will want to sell more

foreign exchange than they want to buy. The government can prevent

this surplus from lowering price by stepping into the market and

buying the excess foreign exchange. On the other hand, if the price

that the government sets is below the market-clearing price, there will

be a shortage of foreign exchange called a balance of payments deficit.

The government can prevent the shortage from raising price by selling

foreign exchange into the market. The government can obtain this

foreign exchange from reserves it stored up when there was a surplus,

or by borrowing from other countries, or by selling assets such as

gold. It should be obvious that a government can only fill a balance of

payments shortage temporarily and that if it runs for too long; the

country will run out of foreign exchange to provide to the market.Now most of the industrial world has floating exchange rates.


46/107

47

6. Adjective Intensifiers

6.1. Expressions and Phrases

There are some words which can be used to 'intensify' many

adjectives 'very' 'really' 'totally' 'absolutely' 'completely' 'utterly'

'entirely'.

It's very tall. We're really happy. She's totally exhausted. I'm absolutely horrified. He's completely hopeless. You look utterly miserable. I'm entirely satisfied.Certain adjectives have their own 'special' intensifiers which are

often used with them. Here are some common ones:

blind drunk

He was blind drunk and behaved really badly.bone dry

I must have a drink. I'm bone dry.brand new

I've just bought a brand new car.crystal clear

The sea near Rhodes is crystal clear.


47/107

48

dead easy

That exam was dead easy. I've certainly passed.dead lucky

He's won three lottery prizes this year. He's dead lucky.dead right

I agree entirely. You are dead right.dirt cheap

I bought my car for a dirt cheap price from an old lady whohad hardly driven it.

fast asleep / sound asleep

I was in bed and fast asleep by nine. I was sound asleep and I didn't hear anything.paper thin

These office walls are paper thin. You can hear everythingsaid in the next office.

pitch black

There's no moon. It is pitch black out there.razor sharp

Be careful with that knife- it is razor sharp.rock hard

It's impossible to dig this soil it is rock hard.stark naked

The hotel door slammed behind me and I was left standingstark naked in the middle of the corridor.

stone deaf


48/107

49

He can't hear a thing. He's stone deaf.wide awake

I was wide awake by six.wide open

Who left the door wide open?

Food Phrases2

If you 'bolt down' food, you eat it very quickly. This expression

is informal.

He bolted down the food. He really enjoyed it. I'm so busy that I'm going to bolt down some food and get

straight back to work.

If you 'wolf down' food, you also eat it quickly but specifically

because you are hungry. This is also informal.Did you see the way she wolfed down that food? She must

have been ravenous.

After the marathon, I wolfed down some fish and chips.If you consume a lot of drink (usually alcohol) quickly, you

'knock it back'. This is informal and is often used quite negatively.

He was knocking back the champagne at the reception.We must watch Bill carefully in the bar with the clients. He

can really knock it back.

If you eat an excessive amount of food, you 'pig out'. This is

informal.

2 From: http: // business english. com


49/107

50

I'm not hungry because I pigged out on chocolate thisafternoon.

We really pigged out in the restaurant.If you 'plough through' some food, you eat it all but with some

difficulty because there is a lot of it. In American English, 'plough' can

be written as 'plow'.

He served a huge plate of spaghetti and it took me ages toplough my way through it.

They served us snake. I didn't like it but I plowed my waythrough it to be polite.

If you 'put away' food or drink, it can mean you eat or drink a

lot of it. (Obviously, it can also mean that you place the food or drink

in a fridge or cupboard the context of the sentence should make

clear the meaning.)Watch Peter. He's been putting away a lot of beer and he

sometimes turns aggressive when he's drunk.

He has put away some sandwiches but is still hungry.If you 'pick at' your food, you only eat a small amount of it,

usually because you are not hungry, you are on a diet or because you

are ill.

She only picked at her food, even though it was delicious.We were so busy talking that we only picked at our food.If you 'cut down' or 'cut back' on a particular food or drink,

you consume less of it.


50/107

51

My doctor told me to cut back on the amount of salt in mydiet.

I need to cut down the amount of fried food I eat.If you 'eat up', you finish all your food.

I don't like tripe but I ate it all up when it was served to us byour hosts.

Eat up. It's time to go.If you 'drink up', you finish all your drink.

We seem to have drunk up all the orange juice.Drink up. It's time to go.If you 'polish off' some food, you finish it completely and

quickly.

The guests polished off all the food in the first thirty minutes.He has just polished off two whole pizzas and still says he is

hungry.

If you 'dish up' some food, you put it onto plates or dishes,

ready to be served.

I've heard she is going to dish up something really special.Can you collect up the starter plates, while I dish up the main

course?

'Serve up' is another way of saying the same thing as 'dish up'.

They served up a six-course meal for their guests. It's no better than the food we serve up in our canteen and

twenty times more expensive.

If you 'lay on' some food or drink, you provide it.


51/107

52

We've laid on a buffet lunch for our visitors.They lay on a small drinks party for us.If you make a meal very quickly and easily, you 'whip it up'.

This is informal.

Have a seat and I'll whip us up something to eat. I could whip up a salad, if you are hungry.If you make food quickly and without much effort, you 'knock

it up'.

I knocked myself up a quick meal from what was left in myfridge.

Do you want me to knock up some lunch?If you make food hot so that it can be eaten, you 'heat it up'.

I've already prepared the food for the party. All we need to dois to heat up the pizzas.

I could heat up a can of soup if you are hungry.If you 'warm up ' cold food, you are making it hot again so that

it can be eaten.

I'll warm up that stew from last night.The canteen makes a large quantity once a week and then just

warms up the amount needed every day.


52/107

53

7. Marketing Campaigns

7.1. Case study: - Verity, - Impact ads, - Transworld

Definition: A specific, defined series of activities used in

marketing a new or changed product or service, or in using new

marketing channels and methods

Effective marketing is often what separates rapidly growing

companies from slow-growing or stalled companies that started at the

same time, serve the same market and offer similar merchandise.

Companies such as Gillette, Frito-Lay and Coca-Cola have succeeded

in highly competitive mass markets for consumer goods because,

while they certainly produce competitive products, they out-market

their rivals. If you expect your business to grow to any size, you'll

have to become an effective marketer, advertiser and promoter of your

business. In fact, you're likely to grow to the extent that you master

marketing, and no more

A marketing campaign isn't something that comes to you while

you're taking a shower. Successful campaigns tend to be carefully

researched, well thought-out and focused on details and execution,

rather than resting on a single, grand idea. Planning a marketing

campaign starts with understanding your position in the marketplace

and ends with details such as the wording of an advertisement.

Keep in mind that your plan for a marketing campaign is not

supposed to be a prison. You have to leave room to make changes as


53/107

54

you go along because no plan can perfectly capture reality. But you

should also be able to commit fully to implementing your plan--or

some future version of it--if you want to take a strong step toward

growth.

Here are some ways to launch your campaign:

Speak at community events. Offering your expertise at public

occasions is an easy way to get the word out about your business.

You'll maximize your impact and lend credibility to your product or

service.

Ask customers for referrals. Generating referrals from current

customers is one of the best ways to market your business. Don't

forget to query your vendors (they're likely to have many contacts)

and explain to your customers exactly what kinds of referrals you're

looking for and how they can help.

Spend two days in your customers' shoes. To find out what

your customers really want, visit a wide range of businesses they're

likely to frequent. Observe how customers are treated, as well as the

kinds of services that appear important to them; then adapt your

business accordingly.

Offer free samples. If you can get someone to try your product

or service, chances are they'll buy it later. Have employees pass out

product samples in front of your business; if you provide a service,

offer free services on a trial basis.

The chapter is dedicated to a description (case studies) of threemarketing companies: - Verity, Impact Ads and Transworld.


54/107

55

CASE STUDY: I.

This is a conversation between the managing director Andrew

Hodge to Stephen Johnson, the assistant sales director who will

choose who will manage his company's marketing campaign:

Andrew Hodge: Well, have you decided which one it is going to

be?

Stephen Johnson: Well, its tough - but I think it is between

Impact Ads and Verity.

Andrew Hodge: What is wrong with Transworld?

Stephen Johnson: Well, they are a little low on substance. They

keep saying they are a 'top' company, but they do not say what they

are top of! They say they have original designs, and ideas, but they do

not give any examples. I would like to know more about their

campaigns and their clients. The only thing they do say is that they are

cheaper than the others - but do they give value for money? I could

find more about them, but if a marketing company can't sell itself, can

it sell for us?

I like Verity's idea; of working closely with us at every stage of

the process I think we need something like that. They seem to me

to be a good company, and all the people who have worked with them

tell me that they do exactly as they say - they work with you, and they

don't mess you around.

Andrew Hodge: And Impact?

Stephen Johnson: That's the problem. They are good, very good.They are very expensive, but they do a fantastic job. If you look at


55/107

56

their list of satisfied customers, it is as long as your arm. They are a

young team, very professional, very innovative but they are a bit

light on their management consultancy side - they know it too, so they

have brought in an outside partner. They will do a very good

campaign, but we will have to organize it a lot more for them - their

service is less complete.

Andrew Hodge: So they do less, but do it well?

Stephen Johnson: Very well. And they are cheaper than they

look.

Andrew Hodge: So it's going to be Impact then?

Stephen Johnson: Well, if we end up with Impact, it will be no

bad thing. But I have been talking to George Halds at Verity - they

have a new young employee, Sandra Sean. She's got some original

ideas, and they want to give her a try on a big project. And she is

almost as good as Impact in one way - they tried to poach her from

Verity earlier this year!

CASE STUDY: II

Who we are: When John Weznik lost his job in 1935, he started

an advertising company from his own kitchen at home. Verity

advertising was born. Now Verity has 85 employees and offices in

London, Paris and New York. Still today, we keep to our founder's

principles of integrity, customer service, and dynamic advertising

campaigns tailored in close consultation with our clients.What we do: Verity advertising makes you, the client, an active


56/107

57

partner in our advertising campaigns, combining our knowledge of the

advertising market with your knowledge of your product to make an

unbeatable partnership.

How we do it: Verity has an intimate knowledge of the markets,

and our skilled analysts will work with your managers and designers,

bringing marketing into every aspect of design, production and sales,

optimizing them to meet what you are seeking. Market share, and all

the rest are all very well, but what you really, really want, is customers

buying your product in large amounts, and at good margins. That is

what it is all about. And that's what Impact Ads will get you.

You have seen our award-winning marketing campaigns; you

know our clients are some of the top companies in the Fortune 500.

We have come from nowhere to the top in 10 years, because we are

good, we hire the best, we have one of the most creative and

innovative teams in the business.

We are not just a talented team. We work closely with Valerie

Maxim management consultants guaranteeing that our campaigns do

not just grab the attention of the public, but make good business sense

too. We are not the cheapest in the business, but the ROI we generate

speaks for itself!

CASE STUDY: III

Your campaign needs a company that is top for quality top for

price and top for performance. You need Transworld - the advertising

company with the ideas and results that are changing the industry.Contact us today, to find how we can turn your campaign into a


57/107

58

dynamic, powerful monster that leaves your competition stopped dead

in their tracks!

For the past two decades, we have combined innovation, high-

quality concept designs and strategic vision, to make ourselves the

first choice to help you meet the challenge of successfully reaching

your target audience. From concept to completion, Transworld

supplies the experience and the support that gives your message

maximum impact.

No other advertising agency supplies the value for money that

Transworld can bring to your campaign. With our slim, flat

management structure, helped by the latest in IT, we put more of your

expenses back into your campaign than any other agency in the

business.

Questions concerning the three case studies:

1.Which company emphasizes that it costs less?2.Which company stresses its relationship with clients?3.Which company puts most weight on the quality of its

product?

4.Which is the oldest company?5.Which company has the least aggressive sales pitch?6.Which company tells you least about itself?7.Which company offers the least complete service?8.Which company stresses it will generate income?


58/107

59

SEMESTRUL II

8. Styles in Written Communication

8.1. Technical Specifications

This chapter deals with company or newspaper reports,marketing, advertising and public relations and discusses some basic

guidelines for writing style for some of the types of business

documents including business letters.

To begin with, we will briefly define different types of report:

Organizational policies and proceduresThese are the operating documents for organizations; they

contain rules and regulations on how the organization and its members

are expected to perform. Policies and procedures are like instructions,

but they go much further.

Feasibility, evaluation, recommendation reportsThis group of similar reports does things like compare several

options against a set of requirements and recommend one. It considers

an idea (plan, project) in terms of its "feasibility," in terms of some

combination of its technical, economical, social practicality or

possibility. It passes judgment on the worth or value of a thing by

comparing it to a set of requirements, or criteria.


59/107

60

Technical background reportsThis type is the hardest one to define but the one that most

people write. It focuses on a technical topic, provides a certain

background on that topic for a specific set of readers who have

specific needs for it. This report does not supply instructions, nor does

it supply recommendations in any systematic way, nor does it report

new and original data.

Primary research reportsThis type presents findings and interpretation from laboratory or

field research.

Business plansThis type is a proposal to start a new business.

Technical specificationsThis type presents descriptive and operational details on a new

product.

Business Plans and Technical Specifications3

A business plan is a document used to start a new business or

get funding for a business that is changing in some significant way.

Business plans are important documents for business partners who

need to agree upon and document their plans, government officials

who may need to approve aspects of the plan, and of course, potential

investors such as banks or private individuals who may decide to fund

the business or its expansion.

3 From: Online technical writing resources


60/107

61

A business plan is very much like a proposal, except for at least

one big difference. The prospectus seeks to start a new business or

significantly expand an existing business. A proposal, on the other

hand, seeks approval to do a specific project. For example, a business

plan might seek funding and other support to start a software company

to create computer games. A proposal, on the other hand, might bid to

do the development work for some specific computer game.

Common sections in business plans:

Many of the elements of the plans are only typical and not

necessarily in any required order. For your plan, you will need to think

about the best sequencing of the sections and about other sections that

might also be necessary.

Product or service to be offered - One of the most importantsections of the business plan is the description of the actual

product or service to be offered by your company. If it is a

description of a product--a physical object - you need to use

the techniques for description. If you are going to offer a

service, explain it, and take readers on a step-by-step tour of

how the service will be handled.

Technical background on the product or service - If yourproduct or service involves technologies or technical

processes potentially unfamiliar to your readers, explain

these. Remember that business plans often go to non-

specialists who, despite their lack of technical expertise,


61/107

MK Engleza Seminar

Documents

Transcript of MK Engleza Seminar