How not to tick off adult demo clients…..!!
— Writen by Rhona Dick
Have you ever been in a demo with an adult, but they just seem a bit angry or irritated?? Read this article to make sure it´s not you causing the problem!! Follow the advice to make sure they are happy, comfortable and consequently choose to sign up!
What causes an adult client to get ticked off?
- Introducing inappropriate topics of conversation….
Don´t risk it! Stay away from any topic of conversation related to sex, salary, religion, politics, sensitive health issues and most importantly at iTutorgroup, don´t put China and Taiwan in the same context.
e.g. ´So, are you from China or Taiwan?´
´So you are from the Taiwan region of China, right?´
´Are you happy with your salary?´
´What do you think of Chinese politicians?´
These types of questions will most definitely cause some uneasiness amongst clients, and it is certainly not the first image you want to be displaying of the company.
- Being unprofessional
This is quite an obvious one, but is worth mentioning, as it will look bad and will put clients off straight away. They will start to get irritated as they feel they have wasted their time.
Do not do the following during a demo:
-use a cell phone
-use own materials
-yawn
-use offensive language or insult the client
-smoking
-drinking alcohol
-eating
-chewing gum
-wearing inappropriate dress
- Not having a good teaching style
If the client thinks you are not a good teacher, they will switch off and again…get annoyed because they feel they have wasted their time L
Make sure to leave a good impression by keeping the following in mind:
-too much teacher talk
-too many yes/no questions
-reading only
-not enough correction
-not giving thinking time
-talking too fast/slow
-not knowing how to explain a word or grammar concept
So we have spoken about what you shouldn´t do….now let see how we can not just keep the client happy, but also impress them!
Here are some tips for impressing your clients in those 15 minutes!
- Make personalized gap fill sentences using their name
e.g. Cindy ___ eaten breakfast this morning.
- Get them to ask questions about you to practise questions and build a connection
- Apply the lesson material as much as you can to their lives so it is relevant to them
- Write a joke on the opening slide, everyone relaxes when they laugh…
e.g. A woman in labour suddenly shouted ´Won´t, can´t, shouldn´t, didn´t!´
The doctor said don´t worry, they´re just contractions. (Higher levels)
- Safe topics of conversation to warm them up could be: hobbies, music, food, what motivates them, exercise, goals and dreams, what they would do if they won the lottery, shopping, future plans, sports, why they want to learn English, if they have ever lived in a different country
- Activities to practise the vocabulary could be describing a picture, thinking of synoynms and antoynms etc
- Don´t get flustered when things go wrong and always wear a smile J
Follow this advice and you will not just have happier students but also more sign ups J
Happy teaching!
Open ended questions are a great reminder.
I agree!
Sorry, but in light of all the other advice we’ve had about what not to talk about, I can’t think that a joke about a woman in labour is appropriate for relaxing people.
I understand the purpose of this email. Yet, I never ever discuss the above topics that this talks about. In fact, I hate talking about politics, religion and asking personal questions. Would I talk to strangers or clients that way? No, I am respectful and I was taught manners. It is not my business to know somebody’s personal business. I am here to build a connection with clients and build their confidence to conquer their fear of English.
Great advice – good list of discussion topics too!
These are some good tips. I especially like the idea of a joke.
Thank you for the tips!
Great advice. Thanks for sharing.
It’s very useful! Thank you!
Excellent suggestions!!
We should make it relevant!
Excellent reminders to keep in mind!