陳豪在北京的ABC美國公司工作。他在去吃午飯的路上遇到了美國同事Amy。

(Office ambience)

C：Hi Amy，你也去吃飯嗎？

A：As a matter of fact, I am. Would you like to join me?

C：好啊。Amy, 圣誕節馬上就要到了，你說我是不是應該對客戶表示表示呀？

A：Time is short for the American holidays, but it's not too late if you start on it now.

C：我該做些什么呢？

A：You should send holiday cards to all your clients and colleagues.

C：我那天在文具專賣店里看到有賣賀卡的，還能把自己的名字印在上面，然后用電腦把地址一打，就齊了。

A：Before you get too carried way with relief, it's not that simple. You need to personalize your cards or you have wasted your time and money.

C：我怎么樣才能讓客戶覺得賀卡是專門寄給他們的呢？

A：By writing a short note on each one and signing your name.

C：啊？還要自己寫祝詞！卡上不是已經有“節日快樂”了嗎，而且還印了我的名字。

A：Here we are at the restaurant. Let's continue our conversation over lunch.

******

Amy和陳豪在餐館里買了午飯坐下一起來吃。

C：剛才你說我還是應該在賀卡上寫點兒祝詞，然后再簽上名字，這是為什么呢？

A：Because you want each client to feel special. You do that by taking the time to write a few words, and by adding your name in your own handwriting.

C：我要寫點兒什么呢？

A：You can say, "Thank you for your business this past year" or "I look forward to working with you again in 2008."

C：我知道了，大致上就是說去年合作很愉快，希望來年繼續合作。

A：You can be more creative or specific, like saying, "It was great to work with you on the project in Washington DC" or whatever is special in your dealings with your client...

C：不過幸好有電腦，至少我不用手寫客戶的地址了。

A：Sorry to tell you this, but computer-generated labels would ruin the effect and your effort to personalize your cards. Believe me, it's worth the effort.

C：沒想到這么麻煩。看起來我得加班趕寫賀卡了！

A：Good point. Holiday cards that arrive after the fact are detrimental to your professional image.

C：Amy, 你能不能再重復一下寄賀卡的注意事項呢？

A：Of course. Buy the best quality that your budget allows. Write a few words by hand and sign your name. Make sure your greeting arrives at least a week before the holiday.

C：謝謝你，Amy, 看來我得趕緊動手了.