Lesson 2.1 — Negotiation masterclass (Spoken English B2)

Listen first

A freelancer and a client settle on a rate — track every conditional offer.

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New vocabulary — tap to hear

If you can do X, then we can do Y./ɪf juː kən duː ɛks ðɛn wiː kən duː waɪ/ · the core conditional trade 🔊

That's a little outside our budget./ðæts ə ˈlɪtl̩ ˌaʊtˈsaɪd aʊər ˈbʌdʒɪt/ · a soft "no" that keeps talking 🔊

Would you be open to...?/wʊd juː biː ˈoʊpən tuː/ · floats a counter without demanding it 🔊

Let's meet in the middle./lɛts miːt ɪn ðə ˈmɪdl̩/ · proposes a compromise, sounds fair not weak 🔊

Just so we're on the same page.../dʒʌst soʊ wɪr ɑːn ðə seɪm peɪdʒ/ · precedes a summary of agreed terms 🔊

I think we've got a deal./aɪ θɪŋk wiːv ɡɑːt ə diːl/ · a warm, low-pressure close 🔊

Now say it

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« If you can do that, then we can do this. » 🔊

Keep your voice level and unhurried; a rushed conditional sounds like begging, a calm one sounds like a trade.

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Pronunciation

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Your rate is a little outside our budget, honestly. 🔊Opens with a soft no, not a rejection

I hear you. If you can commit to three months, then I can lower it. 🔊Counters with a conditional trade

Would you be open to a two-month trial first? 🔊Floats an alternative without demanding

Let's meet in the middle — ten weeks, at the reduced rate. 🔊Proposes a concrete compromise

Just so we're on the same page: ten weeks, that rate, starting Monday. I think we've got a deal. 🔊Confirms terms aloud, then closes

Grammar in focus · the first conditional in offers

Negotiators live in the first conditional: "If you can commit, then I can lower it" — real present possibility, real consequence. Keep both halves in the present and use "can" or "will," never "would," for a firm offer. The common learner error is "If you would commit, I would lower it" — that second conditional makes your offer sound hypothetical, and the other side hears hesitation.

Full lesson: conditionals for bargaining

Write it yourself

Write a 3-line email reply to an offer that's too low: acknowledge it, make one conditional counter, and propose a next step.

Your answer

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Tip for this task
Never counter with a bare "no" or a bare number. Attach a condition — "if the timeline moves to April, that figure works" — so the other side has a path to yes.

Quick check

An adaptive quiz confirms you've got it and schedules the right words for review.

1. Which is the most effective way to counter an offer politely?

2. Why prefer "If you can commit, then I can lower it" over "If you would commit, I would lower it" in a real deal?

3. What should you do right before closing a negotiation?

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