Decoding the Silences

Ben and Hannah are having their weekly sales coaching session in a quiet meeting room in Manchester, reviewing a recent software pitch.

Decoding the Silences

True or false?

Hannah thinks the client is dealing with a budget freeze.

• True
• False

The client immediately agrees to buy the enterprise package.

• True
• False

Hannah notices that the client's reply took two weeks.

• True
• False

The client in the recording turns out to be Ben's business partner.

• True
• False

Ben realizes the client is actually his retired father testing the link.

• True
• False

Listen again and complete the sentences

• Hannah: Sure, Ben. Well, he sounds hesitant at first. He gives a very ____ when I mention our enterprise pricing package.
• Hannah: Wait, he gives a ____ right after that. He says he'll check his calendar and get back to me by Friday.
• Ben: Exactly. That's a classic ____ . He's just trying to stall for time because he doesn't want to say no directly.
• Hannah: It's so frustrating. I thought we had a ____ here, but now I'm worried he's just a window shopper or a tyre-kicker.
• Ben: Hold on, let's look closer at his company profile. Are you sure he isn't just an ____ with a slow internal process?

Sources: photo by Centre for Ageing Better on Pexels