The salesman is demonstrating the new fax machine to a customer.

(W stands for the potential customer; M stands for the salesman.)
W: Thank you very much for the demonstration of the new fax machine which you’re marketing. I can tell you now that we’re very interested in purchasing a quantity for our branch offices as well as for our headquarters. This will involve about 40 machines in all — provided that we can reach a suitable agreement with you.
M: I’m very happy to hear that. I’m sure you’ll find the machines very reliable indeed.
W: Can you give me again the minimum price per machine bearing in mind that we’re talking about as many as 40 machines?
M: Well, our normal wholesale price including delivery works out at RMB 9,000 per machine. But we can let you have a 12 percent discount for any order of over 20 machines.
W: Actually, we were hoping for a discount of up to 20 percent.
M: Oh dear, I’m afraid that isn’t going to be possible. I’d be in trouble with my company manager if I agreed to such a large discount. 12 percent is our usual discount on bulk orders. I’ll tell you what I’ll do. I will see my supervisor and try my best to get a further 3 percent for you. That’ll give you a total of 15 percent discount.
W: Is there any further discount for early settlement?
M: Oh dear. Our chief accountant won’t be very happy. But we can sometimes make a reduction of 2 percent if the bill is settled in full within ten days.
W: At the other extreme, would a 6-month credit period be acceptable to you?
M: I’m afraid not. If we do give you a 15 percent discount, it’ll use up almost all of our profit, and we’ll require payment within one month. I just can’t do anything about extending that — it’s simply not going to be possible for us.
W: I understand, but what about warranty? What’s the period of warranty on these machines?
M: It’s 6 months, but I can make an exception in you case and give you a one year warranty period.
W: So that’s free repairs if any machines develop a fault within a one-year period. But what happens if any of the machines break down after a year?
M: Well, we have a special scheme: it’s RMB 2,000 or so for a year’s cover. And we guarantee to carry out any repairs on site within 24 hours — provided that the machines are used in offices within the city. If you phone us before ten o’clock in the morning, we usually come out to your office or factory the same day. Outside the city it will obviously take longer. Occasionally, we may even ask you to send the faulty machine to our nearest factory.
W: I understand. Now what about delivery time?
M: Usually two weeks from receipt of your order — three weeks at the most.
W: Can you deliver within one week? It’s all very urgent in our particular case. We run the risk of losing business until we have the machines.
M: Well, if you decide now and let me have a firm order with a 10 percent deposit, I think we can promise to get the machines to you by one week tomorrow — that’ll be eight days. We’ll give your order top priority — and you can have 17 percent discount provided we receive the full amount in ten days from now.