Английский язык. Практический курс для решения бизнес-задач - стр. 16

domestic market

domestic producer

domestic prices

Exercise 5*. Fill in the blanks using terms given below.

Getting Customers to Love You

In 1984, General Motors shrank the Cadillac two feet and sales declined, forcing the dismayed…….. to rethink the way it…… cars. Instead of interviewing car buyers only at the start of………….. met over three years with five groups, each composed of 500 owners of Cadillacs and other models, to discuss design ideas. General Motors literally placed these people behind the wheel of prototypes, letting them fiddle with switches and knobs on the instrument panel, door handles, and seat belts while…….. sat in back and took notes.

The result: The new De Ville and Fleetwood cruised into……. with subtle tail fins, nine extra inches, and fender skirts – all reminiscent of the opulent post-war automobiles. As a result…….. quickly increased. The troubles and the comeback taught the company a very tough lesson. GM says, «We learned to….. on the consumer.»

Many companies that once led in technology must now hang on to…….. by carefully tailoring their products to customer needs and……… quickly. Says Du Pont Chairman Richard Heckert: «As the world becomes more and more………., you have to sharpen all your tools. Knowing what’s on the customer’s mind is the most important thing we can do.» It is also cheaper than finding new buyers. Studies by Forum Corp., a Boston-based consulting firm, show that keeping a…….. typically costs only one-fifth as much as acquiring a new one.

Techsonic Industries in Alabama, which manufactures Hummingbird depth finders, keeps its customers…….. even though some 20 Japanese……. make technologically……… products. Depth finders are electronic devices that fishermen use to measure the water beneath the boat and track their prey. Techsonic had nine new-product failures in a row before 1985, when Chairman James Balckom…….. 25 groups of sportsmen across the U.S. and discovered that they wanted a gauge that could be read in bright sunlight.

«The customer literally developed a product for us,» Balkcom says. In the year after the $ 250 depth finder was……., Techsonic’s sales tripled. The company has 40% of the U.S. market for depth finders, and its motto – not surprisingly – is, «The……of any product or service is what the customer says it is».

Source: Fortune, 1990, June 25 (excerpts)

Terms:

interviewed, delivering, manufacturer, competitive, loyal, quality, engineers, development, customer, showrooms, designs, sales, market share, competitors, focus, innovative, launched, planners

Exercise 6. Translate into English.

Когда уволенный из «Форда» Ли Якокка пришел в «Крайслер» на должность президента, компания находилась на грани банкротства. «Крайслер» обладал завидным послужным списком в области исследований и разработок, хорошей дилерской сетью и первоклассными конструкторами. Однако Ли Якокка быстро выяснил, что компания не функционировала как целостный организм. Каждое подразделение работало в полной изоляции, не поддерживая никакого общения с коллегами. В концерне было 35 вице-президентов, которые ничего не слышали о делегировании ответственности. Корпоративная структура была совершенно не рациональна – сбыт и производство автомобилей находилось в ведении одного вице-президента. При этом производственники выпускали автомобили, не интересуясь мнением сбытовиков, просто надеясь, что их кто-нибудь купит.