Determining
your need for one of the courses offered on Talk Business-Online®
is a crucial step in maximizing you or your employees’ ability
to communicate successfully on the job. Below are descriptions and
examples of individuals who can and have benefited from the use
of courses provided by Talk Business-Online®. By reading below,
you should be able to determine whether you can benefit from taking
one of the courses.
Voice Course
The Voice Course is applicable to a range of individuals.The Voice
Course can benefit individuals who experience vocal fatigue after
speaking or singing, who have a hoarse voice, who are interested in
better protecting their vocal chords, or who depend on their voice
to make their lliving. Those with any medical problem should not take
this Course unless it has been approved by their doctor.
Ms. V. is a newscaster for the local
TV station. She “talks through her nose” and is difficult
to understand.
Ms. K. is the CEO of a large corporation.
She must constantly make presentations. She has an allergy problem
which makes her hoarse, and she does not know what to do to relieve
her resulting voice problem.
Mr. P. is the receptionist. He speaks
in such a monotone, you question whether customers will ever be
motivated enough to want to buy your new widgets.
For a detailed description of the
Voice Course, visit its course page.
Foreign Accent Modification Course
The Foreign Accent Modification Course is designed to help individuals
learn better American pronunciation of common troublesome consonants
and vowels, rate of conversational speech, intonation (rhythm) patterns,
common language areas such as pronouns or plurals, and general American
telephone usage.
Mr. B. is an international businessman
from Japan who does business within the United States. He knows
American English, but people still have a hard time understanding
him.
Miss R. is a flight attendant. She
talks so fast as she announces the gate changes on the intercom
that all of the passengers are confused and disgusted.
Mr. H. works out of Bombay, India,
as a customer service representative for an American computer company.
Although he knows English, he is difficult to understand due to
the way he pronounces some sounds, his fast rate of talking, and
his incorrect intonation patterns.
Dr. C. is a famous surgeon from
a foreign country. He is possibly endangering people’s lives
by not being understood on the telephone when he calls in patients’
orders. Instead of having his native tongue “hold him back,”
he desires to reduce its impact so that it does not interfere with
his job as much.
For a more detailed description of the Foreign Accent Modification
Course, visit its course page.
Consonants Course
The Consonants Course helps provids general information about the
place of articulation, voicing, and manner of production of American
English consonant sounds. Specific drills from individual consonant
sounds through complex conversation are given to help individuals
on sounds they have difficulty with. This course can also be beneficial
for parents who want to teach their children correct pronunciation
of the consonant sounds so that they are able to speak and read them
accurately.
Mr. M. is the receptionist at the
front desk. He cannot pronounce his “r” correctly so
behind his back, people call him “Elmer Fudd.”
Mrs. J.'s daughter who is being
Home Schooled needs help is learning the proper pronunciation of
American English Consonant Sounds so that she may be more successful
in speaking and reading skills.
Mr. S. is the spokesperson for a
multi-national factory. He is interviewed on TV quite frequently,
and he has a very noticeable lisp. People end up paying more attention
to how he is speaking rather than to what he is
saying.
For a detailed description of the
Consonants Course, visit its course
page.
Telephone
Skills Course
The Telephone Skills Course helps provides more extensive practice
in how to properly place and return telephone calls, leave telephone
messages by voice mail or answering machines, ask for missing or
misunderstood information transmitted over the telephone, learn
American telephone etiquette, and provide general sales techniques
such as the handling of difficult telephone situations. The course
teaches skills useful for those whose job success may depend upon
their telephone adeptness.
Mrs.
S., in a letter written to your company, complains, “The receptionist
you have at the front has no telephone manners!”
Mr.
C.has to answer the telephone frequently and use it for telephone
sales, but he doesn’t feel comfortable doing it.
For
a detailed description of the Telephone Skills Course, visit its
course page.
Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) Course
The ADA Course is designed to address disability concerns stemming
from speech, language or hearing difficulties from either your customer
or your employee’s perspective. This course is helpful
for raising the sensitivity level of management and/or staff to these
issues. Today’s diversity among staff and customers can lead
to misunderstanding causing inefficiency and offense.
Mr. L. knows there is an Americans
with Disabilities Act to which his company should adhere, but all
the company has done to address this issue of disability accommodation
is install a wheelchair ramp. What are the guidelines as they apply
to speech, language or hearing issues for his customers
and employees?
Miss B. came into your store and
because she was wearing a hearing aid, your clerk made fun of her
and would not face her when she told him she needed him to look
at her when he was talking to her.
For a detailed description of the
ADA Course, visit the its course page.
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