别背单词了，先背句子
外贸英语卡住你的，从来不是词汇量，是场景反应速度。客户一问交期，你脑子里还在组装语法，人家已经去问下一家了。我做了12年外贸，真正高频用到的句子不超过100句，翻来覆去就那些。今天按场景拆给你，直接抄去用。
询盘阶段：别急着报价，先问清楚
新手最容易犯的错：客户发个“Please quote for 500pcs”，立马把价格表甩过去。老业务员会先确认三件事——规格、数量、目的港。句子就这几句：
- Could you confirm the exact specification you need?（能确认下具体规格吗？）
- What's your target quantity for the first order?（首单目标数量多少？）
- Which port should we quote to?（报哪个港口？）
- Do you have a reference sample or drawing?（有参考样品或图纸吗？）
客户催得急，你就回：I'll send the quotation within 24 hours after confirming the details.（确认细节后24小时内报价。）既专业又不拖。
报价环节：把“贵”挡回去
客户说“Your price is too high”，别慌着降价。先接一句：Compared with which supplier, may I ask?（方便问下跟哪家比的吗？）大概七成客户说不出具体对比，只是试探。
真要解释价格，用这个结构：The price includes XX and XX. If you reduce the thickness from 2mm to 1.5mm, we can bring it down by around 8%.（价格含某工艺和某配件。厚度从2mm降到1.5mm，大概能降8%。）给区间、给条件，别给死数。
实战对话片段：
客户：Your price is 15% higher than my current supplier.
你：Thanks for sharing that. May I know the material they use? If it's recycled grade, our virgin material costs about 12% more but lasts 3 times longer. I can send you a comparison sheet.
一句话把“贵”翻译成“值”，比干巴巴说quality好管用十倍。
物流与交期：给确定感，别给模糊话
客户最烦“about 30 days”。老手会这么回：
- Lead time is 25-30 days after deposit received.（收到定金后25-30天。）
- We're booking the vessel this week. ETD is around the 15th.（本周订舱，预计15号左右开船。）
- The factory is running at full capacity, but I've pushed your order to the front.（工厂满产，但我把你的单子往前排了。）
延误了主动说：There's a 3-day delay due to the holiday. New ETD is the 18th. Sorry for the inconvenience.（因假期延误3天，新开船日18号，抱歉。）主动报延误的客户留存率，比藏着掖着高得多——这是我自己客户复购数据里看出来的。
付款与催单：软话硬说
催定金：Just a gentle reminder—the proforma invoice is ready. Once the deposit is in, we'll start production immediately.（温和提醒，PI已备好，定金到账立即投产。）
客户拖付款，别写“Please pay ASAP”，改成：To catch the vessel on the 20th, we need the payment by the 12th. Otherwise it rolls to next month's schedule.（要赶20号船，12号前需到账，否则顺延下月。）给截止日、给后果，客户自己会算账。
尾款催收同理：The goods are ready and packed. We'll release the B/L once the balance is confirmed.（货已备好包装完毕，尾款确认后放提单。）
怎么练：每天10分钟，两周够用
别贪多。把上面四类句子抄到一张A4纸上，每天挑5句，对着手机录音念三遍，再假装回邮件打一遍。两周后你会发现，客户消息进来，手指比脑子快。真遇到没准备的句子，就回：Let me check with the team and get back to you within 2 hours.（我跟团队确认下，2小时内回复。）这句话保底，永远不会错。
英语是工具，不是考试。句子够用就行，剩下的靠订单练。