Commodity markets

Unit 4

Key

VIII. Match the words with their definitions.

1. Press and Public Relations (PR)

2. Brochures, leaflets and printed material

3. Door-to-door leaflet drops

4. Display advertising

5. Directories

6. Web-sites, e-broadcasting

7. Direct mail

8. Local radio, TV

9. Guide books, handbooks and newsletters

10. Open days and exhibitions

a) can be used for a variety of purposes, and can be distributed in different ways. Your local printer will give you an indication of cost.

b) you actually get to talk to your potential customers, but there's a limit to how many people you can target and costs can be big.

c) publishing your own information material is potentially very effective, and costs can be reduced by selling advertising space to other interested organisations.

d) taking an ad in the editorial sections of magazines or newspapers. If you want a direct response, feature a coupon of some kind. Otherwise display advertising is mostly about image-building and creating awareness.

e) can be very effective, but good response relies on a good list and excellent execution. Better than 5% response is very good; less than 1% is more common.Loose and bound inserts - inserted into newspapers, magazines, programmes, etc. You have to produce the materials yourself and then pay for them to be inserted.

f) you get a free Yellow Pages entry under a single classification. Display adverts cost more.

g) often underrated: can be very effective and generally costs nothing more than the time to manage it.

h) expensive and challenging to create, but any people think this is the future of all advertising and customer communications

i) you pay to produce the materials and then to have them delivered. Can be roughly targeted at different postcodes.

j) although getting cheaper all the time, cost and difficulty of accurate targeting can make this hard to justify.

Listening

1. You are going to hear a short programme which deals with consumers' affairs. As you listen:

a) Complete the table below which summarises the programme's contents. Put x where information is not available or not applicable. You may put more than one letter in a box. Use the key below.

ITEM
COMPLAINT	Mrs Stewart	Mrs Bowen	Mr Walters
FROM
CONSUMER	MO
AREA*
GOODS	pushchairs etc.	suit	stamps
CONCERNED
PROBLEM**		g
AMOUNT PAID

*Consumer area	**Problem
Retail ¾ R Mail Order — MO Service S	Retail and Mail Order a) goods not received; b) goods not satisfactory; c) goods damaged on delivery; d) goods sent unsolicited; e) other;	Service f) goods lost; g) goods damaged; h) service unsatisfactory; i) service overpriced; j) other.

b) Choose the best variant:

1. Mrs. Stewart wasn't satisfied with the pushchair when she received it because it

a) was more difficult to assemble than she'd expected;

b) wasn't as properly constructed as she'd expected;

c) was cheaper than the one she ordered;

d) was smaller than the one she ordered.

2. Mrs. Stewart ordered extra goods in order to

a) show them to potential customers;

b) open up a shop of her own;

c) obtain a special discount for bulk orders;

d) supply them to customers at a profit.

3. An investigation is now being made by

a) the newspaper where the advert appeared;

b) the Post Office;

c) the police;

d) the programme itself.

4. Mrs. Bowen's complaint is that her son's suit

a) is now too tight for him;

b) is now too shabby to wear;

c) has been discoloured;

d) has been destroyed.

5. Jack, the programme's adviser, feels that responsibility lies with

a) the dry cleaners;

b) the manufacturers;

c) both the cleaners and manufacturers;

d) the consumer herself.

6. Mr. Walters returned the package because

a) there had been such a delay in its delivery;

b) he didn't think the stamps were worth the money;

c) he didn't want to join a stamp club;

d) he knew he hadn't ordered it.

7. The letter he received threatened to

a) inform his employer's of his debt;

b) damage his credit-worthiness;

c) make him bankrupt;

d) retrieve the money from him at home or at work.

Speaking

All these notes represent advertising 'gimmicks' ¾ offers or incentives which catch your attention and encourage you to buy a product.

Would you be influenced by any of them? Why/Why not? What other examples of gimmicks can you think of?

Writing

Try to answer the following questions:

What are the arguments for and against modern advertising methods? Does advertising policy exist in our country? Are there any controls which you think should be imposed on advertisers? Name the most successful advertising campaigns in our country. (About 300 words)

Lead-in

Work with a partner to discuss the following questions:

1. How would you define two terms “commodity” and “commodity market”?

2. Can you outline the basic problems our country is experiencing now in this sector?

3. What were the main reasons for the appearance of commodity markets?

4. Do you think the organization and functioning of commodity markets has changed since that time? If yes, how?

5. Is there any connection between state protectionism and commodity markets? Why is it necessary?

Useful language

soar	стремительно повышаться
volatile	неустойчивый (рынок)
shortfall	нехватка/дефицит
futures	срочные контракты
commodities	сырьевые материалы/сырье; природные продукты до переработки
commodity circulation	товарооборот
commodity expert	товаровед
SDR, Special Drawing Rights	международная валюта для расчета по межгосударственным долгам; специальные права заимствования
extrapolate	экстраполировать
cap	предел/верхний уровень
crops	сельскохозяйственные культуры
erode	фактически уменьшать доходы, активы
supply and demand	спрос и предложение
stockpile	запас, резерв
purchases of stocks	закупки
actuals	реальные наличные товары
speculator	спекулянт, биржевой делец
shutdown	закрытие/остановка (предприятия)
flat money	бумажные деньги
hedging	хеджирование, страховая сделка
proliferation	распространение, расширение

Reading

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