Sales English Conversations: Essential Phrases and Sample Dialogue
If you work in sales or are hoping to enter the industry, you’re going to need to know how to have sales conversations in English.
You may have learned some essential English sales terms, but how do you put it all together to actually close the sale?
In this article, you’ll learn some useful phrases and explore sample dialogues between customers and salespeople.
Then, you’ll get to see a full conversation to see how a sale is made in English from greeting to payment.
Contents
- English Phrases for Sales Conversations
- Sample Sales Dialogues
- Example of a Full Sales English Conversation
- Practice Having Sales Conversations
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
English Phrases for Sales Conversations
Opening the conversation
It’s really important to start the conversation off in a positive and helpful manner with a strong introduction. You stand a much higher chance of closing the sale if you’re friendly from the very start.
If the customer comes to you, they will often say:
Do you think you could help me with… ?
Then you can say:
Of course, can you tell me what size you need? (You can replace “size” for “style” or “model.”)
Yes, I can. Please tell me more about what you’re looking for.
If you’re approaching a customer in a store:
Hi! Can I help you with anything?
Are you looking for something in particular?
Welcome in, can I help you find something?
Good morning/afternoon, has anyone helped you yet?
If you’re contacting a new customer by phone:
Hello, have you heard of the new… ?
Hi, I’m [name] and I represent [company name]. Would you be interested in finding out about our latest product/service?
Finding out about customer needs
If you get the customer to tell you what they need, then you have a much better chance of offering them something that they’re willing to buy. This also helps you establish a relationship with the customer. Customers are more likely to buy from you if they feel listened to and feel that they can trust you.
Here are some questions you might ask a customer to get to know them and their needs:
Have you used such a product or anything similar before?
How do you want to use the product?
How often do you need to use the product?
Are you using anything else from this range?
Describing products
This is your chance to highlight all the product’s advantages. Remember to use all the information the customer gave you earlier about what they need or want. For example, if you know they’re always using their technology, then you might highlight the long battery life of a phone or laptop.
The most important feature of this product is…
This newer version has many advantages over the older one.
One of the things I like best about this product is…
This product can be used in several ways, but we recommend…
Sample Sales Dialogues
Dealing with customer questions
Customers almost always have questions before making up their minds. So make sure that you’re well-informed about the products you’re selling and if you don’t know the answer to a question, tell them you will find out, like in the first example below.
Example 1
Customer: What’s the warranty on this product?
Salesperson: I’m not sure, but let me check that for you… Okay, I see now. The warranty covers your product for 3 years.
Example 2
Customer: How long does the battery last in this phone?
Salesperson: It should last around 36 hours, but it depends on how you’re using your phone.
Example 3
Customer: What if I can’t figure out how to use this product?
Salesperson: You can always stop in or give us a call. We’ll be more than happy to help!
Responding to doubts about products
If customers express their doubts to you, it can actually be a good sign. It often means that they want you to convince them the product is worth buying. So pay attention to their concerns and don’t just dismiss them as unimportant.
Customer: I’m not sure I like this product in this color.
Salesperson: We can also order it in black or blue. Which color would you prefer?
Customer: Maybe I shouldn’t buy a new laptop. My old laptop is still doing a pretty good job.
Customer: Yeah, maybe. I’m not sure…
Salesperson: For instance, this newer version has this amazing feature that allows you to…
Dealing with difficult customers
Difficult customers can be pretty tough to manage, but not if you remember one important thing: Don’t take it personally! They’re having a problem with the product or with company policies, not with you.
You’re there to help them find the best option for them. So just listen to what they’re saying and try to ignore the tone and negative words that they’re using so you can focus on finding the best solution.
Salesperson: I understand you’re upset. If you have the warranty certificate, we should be able to replace it for you.
Customer: I don’t want a replacement! What if that breaks down too? I want my money back!
Salesperson: I’m afraid we don’t have that option. You could, however, choose another product in this price range.
Closing the sale
The whole sales conversation can go really smoothly, but if you don’t close the sale, the customer will leave and you won’t achieve your sales goal.
Once you’ve had a good conversation and feel the customer is ready to make a decision, take charge and move the conversation toward the final point: paying for the product or signing the contract.
Example 1
Customer: I guess I like this one in black more than the other one in grey.
Salesperson: Great! If I place an order now, you’ll get it by tomorrow morning.
Customer: Sure, I’d like that.
Salesperson: We need an advance payment guarantee of 20%. You’ll pay the remaining 80% when you get the product.
Customer: That sounds great, thank you!
Example 2
Customer: This seems to look better on me than the other one, doesn’t it?
Salesperson: I like this one more too. Do you want to use our installment system or buy it now at a discount?
Customer: I’d rather pay up-front and get the discount. How much is it?
Salesperson: 10%.
Customer: Cool, let’s do this.
Example of a Full Sales English Conversation
Here’s a full example of a sales conversation. You can practice role-playing this with another student, then make your own versions for similar situations.
Situation: It’s the beginning of December and a customer enters an electronics store. She seems to be looking for a specific product when the salesperson approaches him.
Salesperson: Hi, are you looking for something in particular?
Salesperson: Unfortunately we only had that offer last weekend, after Black Friday.
Customer: Darn, I’m really disappointed. Have you run out of stock?
Salesperson: We still have the headphones, but they’re only 20% off now. It’s still a very good price.
Customer: I guess I’ll just wait for the after-Christmas sales.
Customer: But I don’t want a wired option, I want them to be wireless.
Customer: That sounds great, but how long do the batteries last?
Salesperson: Around 20 hours, but it depends on the volume level.
Customer: I guess you’re right. Okay, I’ll go with those. Can I pay for them now?
Salesperson: Sure, are you paying with cash or card?
Customer: With my credit card.
Salesperson: Great, here you are and your receipt is in the bag. Thank you! I hope you enjoy the headphones.
Customer: Thank you for your help!
Practice Having Sales Conversations
To succeed in sales, you need to practice as much as you can. The more often you practice sales conversations, the more often you’ll be able to find the right thing to say when you want to convince someone to buy something.
Role-play sales scenarios
To practice sales conversations, try doing a role play with other English learners. One of you will pretend to be the buyer and the other will be the seller. Come up with a scenario to act out, then switch roles so you can both practice playing each role.
During your role play, don’t stop to look up new vocabulary. Instead, take notes during or after the role play so you can look at them later and ask yourself things like:
• What do I need to talk about during the role play?
• What vocabulary do I need to improve my conversational skills?
Ask friends and family to practice with you this way as often as possible. If you don’t know anybody to practice with in person, you can do role plays over Skype with a language exchange partner.
Build your English vocabulary
To get better at making conversation—and therefore better at sales—you should learn some key phrases and sentences. The ones above will help, as well as more general English phrases commonly used in conversation.
Practice reading these words, phrases and sentences out loud and imagine that you’re using them with a customer. You can watch yourself in the mirror and focus on your mouth movements, facial expressions and body language.
To improve your pronunciation, you can try recording yourself to see how you sound and work on difficult words. Then try to include these phrases in your role plays with other students. The more you practice them, the easier it will be to use them in real situations.
Watch authentic English content
The best way to learn English sales language is to hear how native speakers use it. You can start by watching some sales English videos online, paying attention to the way words are spoken.
You can find many videos on YouTube, like the one below.
You can also use a convenient language learning program like FluentU. FluentU has a large library of video clips from authentic English media, and every video comes with interactive subtitles to learn new words and phrases.
You can find scenes from movies and TV shows that take place in stores and other sales-related scenarios to see how native speakers have sales conversations in English. Then, add new words to FluentU’s flashcard decks to review them later and take personalized quizzes to test your knowledge.
Once you’ve practiced the conversations above, you’ll likely feel much more confident when interacting with customers in various situations.
The most important thing for you as a salesperson is to be as helpful as you can be, while also respecting the rules of the company that employs you. And remember to smile!
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
