Lesson goal: Students can describe how a small business grows, talk about competitors and suppliers, and make predictions with the future continuous and future perfect.
Add the lesson to get your own copies of the word set and exercises; the lesson opens in the builder, where you can adjust the steps and teach it.
Lesson plan
- 1
Warm-up
Questions to get the student talking and lead into the topic.
- Would you like to run your own business? What kind?
- Which company do you admire most, and why?
- Do you prefer buying from small local shops or big chains?
- 2
New words
Meet the words and practise them in games.
CrosswordAirplanerevenue · profit margin · launch · merger · negotiate · shareholder · market share · competitor · supplier · turnover · go bankrupt · invest in · startup · target audience · outsource
All words in the set - 3
Exercises
The lesson's words in context. Only you see the answers.
- Fill the gap
Our main ___ has just opened a café on the same street.
Answer: competitor - Fill the gap
We buy all our coffee beans from a small ___ in Colombia.
Answer: supplier - Fill the gap
Without new customers, the company will ___ within a year.
Answer: go bankrupt - Fill the gap
By this time next year, we ___ (open) three more shops.
Answer: will have opened / 'll have opened - Fill the gap
Don't call me at ten tomorrow — I ___ (negotiate) with our new supplier.
Answer: will be negotiating / 'll be negotiating - Multiple choice
The money a company receives from selling its products or services is its ...
revenuedebtshareholdermarket share - Multiple choice
If a company pays another firm to run its IT support, it ___ it.
outsourcesmergeslaunchesnegotiates - True / false
Read: "Two friends started a vegan bakery in their kitchen in 2021. At first their target audience was students, but most orders came from office workers. They changed their menu, found a cheaper supplier and doubled their revenue in a year. Last month a large café chain offered to buy the business, but they said no." Their best customers were the people they had expected.
Answer: False - True / false
Read the text again. The bakery's revenue grew after the friends changed their plans.
Answer: True - Discussion question
Imagine you are starting a small business. Describe your product and your target audience, and say where your business will be in five years.
Sample answer: I'd like to launch an app that helps people find local tutors. Our target audience will be parents of teenagers. In five years' time we'll have opened offices in three cities, and we'll be competing with the biggest education platforms in the country.
- Fill the gap
- 4
Speaking
The student answers using the new words.
- What are the biggest risks of setting up a startup?
- Is it a good idea to start a business with a friend?
- Should big companies be allowed to buy every small competitor?
- Which jobs do you think companies will outsource in the future?
- What makes a product launch successful?
- 5
Review
A quiz on the lesson's words. With a student, it's homework on their link.
Quiz