Essential Business & Economic Terms Defined

Key Negotiation Terminology

• Opening Point: This is the figure you give for a particular variable when you first state your position.
• Target Point: This is the figure for a particular variable that you would find satisfactory.
• Reservation Point: This is your limit for a particular variable. You cannot go beyond this point.
• BATNA: This is your Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement. In other words, it is what you will still have if the negotiation fails.
• Deadlock: A situation where there is no solution, because neither side can move.

Understanding Financial Terms & Payments

Types of Payments

• Tip: To thank someone for their services (for example, a waiter).
• Commission: To an agent or salesperson.
• Charge: For a service (electricity, postage).
• Fees: For a professional service (lawyer).
• Fare: For traveling.
• Wage: To your staff every week.

Essential Financial Documents

• Receipt: To acknowledge payment.
• Reminder: To ask again for payment.
• Order: To ask for goods.
• Invoice: To ask for payment.
• Delivery Note: To confirm what has been sent.
• Letter of Enquiry: To find out if goods are available.
• Quotation: To give a price and conditions of sale.
• Cheque: To pay.

Career Development Concepts

• Career Ladder: A series of levels that lead to better and better jobs.
• Career Move: Something you do in order to progress in your job.
• Career Break: A period of time away from your job to, for example, look after your children.
• Career Plan: Ideas you have for your future career.
• Career Opportunities: Chances to start or improve your career.

Free Trade: Concepts & Counterarguments

Arguments for Free Trade

• Free Port: A designated area where goods can be imported, stored, and re-exported without customs duties.
• Laissez-faire: An economic system in which transactions between private parties are free from government intervention.
• Deregulation: The process of removing or reducing state regulations, typically in the economic sphere.
• Liberalize: To make a system or policy less strict.
• Subsidize: To support an organization or activity financially.

Arguments Against Free Trade

• Barriers: Obstacles that restrict trade.
• Protectionism: The theory or practice of shielding a country's domestic industries from foreign competition by taxing imports.
• Quotas: Limits on the quantity of goods that can be imported or exported.
• Tariffs: Taxes or duties to be paid on a particular class of imports or exports.
• Restrictions: Limitations or controls on trade.
• Customs Duties: Taxes levied on imported or exported goods (Impuestos de Aduanas).
• Infant Industries: New industries in a country that need protection from foreign competition until they are established.
• Dumping: The practice of selling goods in a foreign market at a price lower than their production cost or lower than their price in the domestic market.

Essential Branding Terminology

• Trademark: A symbol, word, or words legally registered or established by use as representing a company or product.
• Brand Luxury: A brand associated with expensive, high-quality products.
• Brand Manager: The person responsible for planning and managing a branded product.
• Brand Leader: The brand with the largest market share.
• Classic Brand: A famous brand with a long history.
• Brand Image: The ideas and beliefs which consumers have about a brand.
• Brand Loyalty: The tendency of a customer to continue buying a particular product.
• Brand Stretching: Using a successful brand name to launch a product in a new category.
• Brand Awareness: The knowledge which consumers have of a brand.