接待客户在商务往来过程中起着非常重要的作用。它是推销准备过程的延伸，又是实质性接触客户的开始。接待客户是指在实质性洽谈之前，销售人员努力获得客户接见并相互了解的过程，是实质性洽谈的前奏。
a: good morning, mr. smith. i’m yang, mr. yao’s secretary. would you like to see around the factory?/早上好，史密斯先生。我姓杨，姚先生的秘书。你想先看看我们的工厂吗？
b: yes, i’d.../是的，我想a: now this is our office block. we have all the administrative department here sales, accounts, personnel, market research and so on./这是我们的办公区。我们所有的行政部门都设在这儿：销售部、会计部、人事部、市场调研部等。
b: what’s that building opposite us?/对面是什么建筑？
a: that’s the warehouse where the large items of office equipment are stored. we try to keep a stock of the faster-moving items so that urgent orders can be met quickly from stock./那是仓库，用来贮存比较大的办公设备。我们尽量贮存一些销售得比较快的设备以便救急之用。
b: if i ordered a desk today, how would it be before i got delivery in scotland? /假如我今天预订一张办公桌，如何在苏格兰提货呢？
a: well, i think perhaps you’d better speak to our works manager, mr. yao. you’ll meet him when we go over to the factory./噢，我想你还是和我们的生产经理姚先生谈谈。到了工厂你便能见到他了。