Embedded Files
Discussion
Discussion
- What do you know about the term franchising?
- Which of the logos on the right are from organisations which are run as franchises?
- Which, if any, franchises are prolific in your country?
Identifying key points in a lecture
Identifying key points in a lecture
Task 1
Task 1
Listen to part 1 of the lecture, which is in three sections. Identify the three sections and number them in the correct order.
a definition of franchising - examples of successful franchises - one reason for setting up a franchise
how franchising works - the types of business that are suitable for franchising
Image from https://www.gofffinancial.com/wp-content/uploads/brandnames-1.jpg
Which of these two words combine together to form a phrase?
Task 2
Task 2
Listen to part 1, section 1 again and answer the questions. Check that you understand the words and phrases on the left before listening. Two of the words combine to form a phrase. Can you identify which two? Use the tools we have been practising with: SKELL and Longman. How are they used in sentences?
- What may you need in order to develop a small or medium-sized enterprise?
- What example of such a business is given?
- What risks are there for a business owner in expanding his or her business?
- Which of these is the key point made in this section? Why?
- Expanding your business can be very risky.
- Franchising your business can minimise the risks involved in its expansion.
- Franchising your business can be very profitable.
Task 3
Task 3
Listen to part 1, section 2 again and answer the following questions:
- What type of franchising is defined here?
- If Bill Jones opens a branch of McDonald's in his hometown, who is the franchisor and who is the franchisee?
- What does the license entitle the franchisee to do?
- What would the package received by the franchisee include?
Task 4
Task 4
Listen to part 1, section 3 again and answer the following questions:
- What does the franchisor provide to the franchisee?
- What two kinds of fee does the franchisee pay?
- What is the difference between these two fees?
- Which of these is the key point made in the section?
- That fast food restaurants can be successful franchise businesses
- How the fees are calculated
- How each party in the business agreement benefits
Distinguishing key points from examples
Distinguishing key points from examples
The lecturer begins part 2 of the lecture by saying: 'there are a number of issues that you need to consider when deciding whether or not to franchise your business.' He is looking at this from the viewpoint of the owner of a growing business trying to decide whether or not to become a franchisor.
Task 1
Task 1
- Listen to part 2 of the lecture. Make brief notes in your notebook on the key points made by the lecturer. You need to write down 5-10 words for each point.
- Compare your notes with a partner. Have you identified the same main points?
Lecturers often use specific words or phrases (e.g., Firstly, Secondly, Another point to remember is...) to introduce a key point. For example, the lecturer signposts the first point in part 2 by saying: 'Firstly, there needs to be...'
Task 2
Task 2
Listen to part 2, Section 1 again and answer the following questions.
- The lecturer makes the point that a relatively stable, long-term market is needed for a successful franchise operation. To support this point, the lecturer gives two reasons and two examples. What are they?
- Do the examples help make his point clearer? If so, how?
Task 3
Task 3
Listen to part 2, Section 2 again and answer the following questions.
- What point does he make about buying supplies in bulk?
- How is this point related to the main point in this section?
- Now look at the excerpt on the right. Having made the key point (highlighted), the speaker repeats the idea twice. Underline the words in the excerpt where he repeats the idea.
Task 4
Task 4
Listen to part 2, Section 3 again and answer the following questions.
- What does the franchisor need to provide to the franchisee?
- When are these required?
- What point is made about franchisees in the restaurant industry?
- What do you think is the key point in this section?
Transcript
Transcript
In addition – and this is fairly obvious – you will need a fairly wide margin between cost and income. Remember that the gross margin needs to provide a return on the investment to both the franchisor and the franchisee. So you will need to keep costs low and prices as high as the market will bear. One advantage of a franchise operation is that supplies can be bought in bulk across the whole franchise, which will help to keep costs down. But you can see that franchising would be unsuitable in a market where the margin between cost and income is very narrow.
Signposting and highlighting key points
Signposting and highlighting key points
In Part 3, the lecturer continues to discuss some of the issues that need to be considered when deciding whether or not to franchise your business.
Task 1
Task 1
Listen to part 3 of the lecture. Make notes on the key points in your notebook. Then compare your notes with another student. Have you identified the same key points?
Task 2
Task 2
Listen to part 3, Section 1 again and complete the excerpt with one to three words in each space.
One further issue you may need to consider is whether the business is __________________________ to another geographical area. If you have developed your business serving one particular part of the country and you want to set up a franchise network covering a __________________________ – the whole country, for example – another thing you will have to consider is whether there is a __________________________ for your product or service in different regions. It may be, for example, that competition in other parts of the country may be so __________________________ that it is difficult for franchisees to __________________________ , or that for localized __________________________ or __________________________ reasons the business may not be as profitable .
Task 3
Task 3
Listen to part 3, Section 2 again.
- Underline the signposting language used to highlight key points.
- Now listen again and circle any key words or phrases the lecturer stresses.
Study tip
Study tip
Lecturers often use signposting language to indicate the start of a new point. Techniques to highlight ideas include:
- stressing key words or phrases
- pausing after key words or phrases
Finally, when you are setting up a franchise network, you will need to bear in mind that you will be losing direct control of the way your brand is perceived by the customer, so this brings me to my last point, which is to emphasize the importance of protecting your brand. I am sure you are all aware that it often takes a long time to establish a distinctive brand with a valuable reputation, but that this reputation can be damaged comparatively quickly if, for example, quality standards are not consistently applied. The detailed operating manual that I referred to earlier will play a role in maintaining the brand but, just as important, you need to take care selecting franchisees and monitoring their operations. In addition to checking that franchisees have the relevant skills and experience to run a successful business, you also need to ensure that they share the same business values as you, that they accept the importance of maintaining the brand and that they are clear about what they can or can’t change about the way the business is run – so people who are very individualistic will probably not make good franchisees.
Task 4
Task 4
Listen to part 3, Section 3 again and on a separate piece of paper complete the notes in as much detail as you think is necessary.
Sound advice:
Sound advice:
- As you listen, try to keep in mind the key ideas and relate any new information you hear to those ideas.
- Listen for signposting language, stressed words or phrases and pauses as indicators of key points.
- If you do not understand a key point, listen for any examples which may help you to recover the meaning.
- Remember that effective lecturers sometimes repeat key points. This gives you time to note them down, but try to avoid writing down the same idea twice!
Microskills: Word families
Microskills: Word families
You can extend your vocabulary by learning groups of words which have the same basic form and which are often related in meaning.
Task 1
Task 1
Practise the pronunciation of the words in the table and underline the stressed syllable in each word.
Examples
Examples
Task 2
Task 2
Use the words in the table to study how changes in syllable stress within word families affect pronunciation.
In many cases, a different syllable stress has an effect on the pronunciation of the sounds.
Example:
product / 'prɒdʌkt/
produce /prə ' dju:s/
Task 3
Task 3
You can also modify the meaning of a word by adding a prefix, e.g., interpret/ misinterpret, assess/reassess, appear/disappear.
Listen to the sentences and write in the missing prefix to each word.
How do the prefixes change the meaning of the original words?
- All trade unions were declared ____legal by the government.
- This is one example of a ____match between the individual’s goals and those of the organization.
- They found no significant ____relation between class size and levels of achievement.
- Real estate ____actions rose by 30% last month.
- Prices are determined through the ____action of supply and demand.
- These animals exhibited ____normal behaviour compared to the control group
Task 4
Task 4
Listen to the sentences and complete them with two to four words in each space. Some of the words include prefixes.
- We had to get the __________________________________ because the detail was not very clear on the original ones.
- Many doctors work __________________________________ , which put them under a lot of stress.
- Crime prevention is __________________________________ of the police’s work, but it is often difficult to assess its effectiveness.
- Doctors have noticed an __________________________________ , such as bulimia and anorexia, not just among young women but, surprisingly, among young men.
- These plants should be grown in partial shade, rather than __________________________________ .
- Researchers have found that __________________________________ much more likely to be involved in traffic accidents.
Task 5
Task 5
Listen to the groups of sentences. Complete the sentences with two to four words in each space. One of the words in each space is a form of the word in bold.
- Children need a secure environment in which to grow up.
- Many immigrants are only able to find __________________________________ .
- The money was invested in __________________________________ and property.
- Achievement levels vary considerably from school to school in the city.
- Some economists believe that interest rates can be predicted by examining __________________________________ .
- In the Eden Project they have managed to create __________________________________ habitats.
- There is __________________________________ to health care in different parts of the country.
3. How are we going to solve this problem?
- You need to __________________________________ in water before applying it to the crop.
- There appears to be __________________________________ between the two countries, despite years of peace negotiations.
4. A mass spectrometer was used to analyse the gases.
- __________________________________ of the data is needed to confirm these initial findings.
- The course is designed to help students develop __________________________________ .
5. The results indicate that the virus mutates more rapidly than was first believed.
- All the __________________________________ suggest that the economy is recovering.
- The strike was __________________________________ the level of the workers' frustration.
6. Chomsky was a fierce critic of Bush senior's foreign policy.
- There was __________________________________ the way the election had been administered.
- The negotiations __________________________________ establishment of peace in the area.
Report abuse