This Business Exhibition Podcast listening test page gives you Section 2 of Cambridge IELTS 21 Listening Test 4 in full: the official answer key for Questions 11–20, playable audio, an explanation for every question with the exact transcript line that proves it, and the complete recording script. The recording promotes an annual business exhibition through two Choose TWO questions and a six-item matching task that pairs each keynote speaker with the topic of their talk.

The podcast moves from one exhibitor’s account of last year’s stands to discount schemes and six speaker profiles, so the marks turn on tenses and on which claim each profile ends with. Track the difference between what happened, what happens every year and what is only hoped for, using the multiple choice strategy for the Choose TWO items, then check every letter against the complete Cambridge IELTS 21 Listening Test 4 answers page covering all four sections.

Listening Audio — Section 2

Play the recording once, without pausing, and answer Questions 11–20 before you check the key. In the real exam you hear each section exactly once.

Questions 11–20

Questions 11–12

Choose TWO letters, A-E.

11–12. In which TWO areas of the business exhibition did James Craig promote his company last year? the Digital Marketing Centre the TalkCon Zone the Breakout area the Business Village the Business Connections Zone

• A — the Digital Marketing Centre
• B — the TalkCon Zone
• C — the Breakout area
• D — the Business Village
• E — the Business Connections Zone

Questions 13–14

Choose TWO letters, A-E.

13–14. Which TWO facts are given about discounts on popular brands available to exhibitors? They are available to all members of exhibiting companies. They can be used for both food and clothing. They only apply if people spend at least £400. They can be used by family members. The percentage saved is always the same.

• A — They are available to all members of exhibiting companies.
• B — They can be used for both food and clothing.
• C — They only apply if people spend at least £400.
• D — They can be used by family members.
• E — The percentage saved is always the same.

Questions 15–20

Which topic will each of the following speakers focus on?

Choose SIX answers from the box and write the correct letter, A-G.

• A. Supporting job seekers
• B. Dealing with personal problems
• C. Effects of an unexpectedly rapid expansion
• D. A global range of business experiences
• E. Coping with financial set-backs
• F. Developing a company in response to changing markets
• G. Combining business success with contributions to charities

15. Jim Clowrie

16. David France

17. Oliver Stanton

18. Francesca Heptonstall

19. Salman Khan

20. Annie Craven

Business Exhibition Podcast Listening Answers

Questions and Answers

Business Exhibition Podcast Answer Explanations

11. C (the Breakout area) — the question asks where James Craig promoted his company last year, and the Breakout area qualifies twice: “We also used the Breakout area where people could sit down and relax”, then “due to popular request we used that again last year”. Questions 11 and 12 accept the letters C and E in either order.

12. E (the Business Connections Zone) — the second area from last year is named directly: “Last year we also sponsored the innovative Business Connections Zone”. D fails because the Business Village belongs to “The first year we exhibited”, while A and B fail because the Digital Marketing centre and a TalkCon Zone sit under “We’re hoping that in the coming exhibition”.

13. A (They are available to all members of exhibiting companies.) — the first fact about the discounts is eligibility: “The scheme is available to every member of your organisation”. D fails because family members are never mentioned, and the closing phrase “a benefit that really does have something for you all” refers back to those same organisation members.

14. B (They can be used for both food and clothing.) — the brands covered are “major high street fashion and jewellery outlets, as well as grocery chains”, which is clothing and food together. Questions 13 and 14 accept the letters A and B in either order. C fails because “the average saving made by each exhibitor came to over £400” is a figure saved, not a minimum spend, and E fails because discounts “range from 3.5% up to an amazing 15%”.

15. C (Effects of an unexpectedly rapid expansion) — Jim Clowrie’s story is speed with surprise attached: “Rather to his surprise this became a bit of a sensation”, and “in a remarkably short time he had opened an amazing 76 restaurants worldwide”. His talk covers what that expansion did to him and his life, so C matches.

16. G (Combining business success with contributions to charities) — David France’s company “has gone from strength to strength”, and the profile ends with “he also makes regular donations to organisations helping those in need”. Commercial success plus charitable giving is exactly G.

17. D (A global range of business experiences) — Oliver Stanton’s career runs from Malaysia to Japan to Hong Kong, and his talk is announced as what he discovered “during his travels around the world about business practices in different cultures”. None of the other topics uses his travels, so D is his match.

18. A (Supporting job seekers) — Francesca Heptonstall’s profile ends with what she will concentrate on: she is “passionate about helping people gain employment and organises an annual jobs fair”. Helping people into work and running a jobs fair both point at supporting job seekers, which is A.

19. F (Developing a company in response to changing markets) — Salman Khan “has turned around this business from a major publishing business to one of the UK’s largest digital marketing service providers”, and his talk covers “the need for flexibility to cope with new directions”. Shifting the company as the market shifts is F.

20. B (Dealing with personal problems) — Annie Craven’s session takes “an interactive look at different obstacles in people’s own lives, not just in business”. E fails because no financial set-backs appear in her profile; her obstacles are personal ones, so B is the letter.

Listening Transcript — Section 2

Hello and welcome to this podcast telling you about our annual business exhibition. This year, as always, it will be full of the very best speakers, features and innovations.

Let me start by reading some feedback from James Craig, who’s exhibited with us for the past two years. James says, ‘I’m director of a company called TalkCon, which is an office phone system. The first year we exhibited, we had a stand in the Business Village, where we made a lot of useful contacts. We also used the Breakout area where people could sit down and relax, and try out our products, and due to popular request we used that again last year. Last year we also sponsored the innovative Business Connections Zone where people could leave their contact details on a board to contact other companies, and that also effectively raised our corporate profile. We’re hoping that in the coming exhibition we’ll also have a presence in the Digital Marketing centre, which is clearly a key area for our company. And also maybe have our own Talkcon Zone, at some stage.’

The exhibition’s open from 8am to 11 pm and there’s a range of special events for you to enjoy in the evening.

As well as a unique chance to publicise your company, businesses who exhibit with us can claim discounts on a number of popular brands, including major high street fashion and jewellery outlets, as well as grocery chains. Discounts available range from 3.5% up to an amazing 15%, so you can save a lot of money. In fact, the average saving made by each exhibitor came to over £400! The scheme is available to every member of your organisation so this is a benefit that really does have something for you all.

Now let me tell you about some of our keynote speakers for this year’s exhibition.

Jim Clowrie started off selling vegetables from a small plot, then opened a small café. Rather to his surprise this became a bit of a sensation, and in a remarkably short time he had opened an amazing 76 restaurants worldwide. He’ll be telling you how it all happened, and how it changed his life.

David France will be giving an inspirational talk about how as a business-minded teenager he managed to set up his own company, and even to be the first person under 18 to get a business bank account. David’s company has gone from strength to strength but he isn’t just interested in making money – he also makes regular donations to organisations helping those in need both in the UK and elsewhere in the world.

Oliver Stanton was born and educated in the UK, and then went to Malaysia where he set up a rubber-wood furniture business. He then built log houses in the mountains in Japan before moving to Hong Kong to set up a digital marketing business. After that he moved back to the UK with his wife Saiphin, and together they opened a Thai café. He’ll be telling you about what he discovered during his travels around the world about business practices in different cultures.

Francesca Heptonstall is a broadcaster and businesswoman who’s known for her down-to-earth attitude. After winning a top job in a TV contest, she launched a number of online deal sites. Her main business interest is in technology, but she’s also passionate about helping people gain employment and organises an annual jobs fair, so she’ll be concentrating on this in her talk.

Salman Khan is the Chief Executive of QBF Enterprises, and has turned around this business from a major publishing business to one of the UK’s largest digital marketing service providers. He’ll be talking about the need for flexibility to cope with new directions in today’s business world.

Finally, Annie Craven is a consultant and coach who works with people to create lasting changes in their business and life. Her session will offer an interactive look at different obstacles in people’s own lives, not just in business. She also looks at how you can overcome them, whether you’re starting out in business or at the top of your game.

Now let me …

Key Vocabulary and Spelling

Study Tips

Map the tenses before the options distract you. Questions 11 and 12 ask about last year, so only stands used and sponsored in the past qualify: the Business Village belongs to the first exhibition, and the Digital Marketing centre and TalkCon Zone exist only as hopes. Read the Choose TWO stems in the pause and label each option past, present or hoped-for, the way the method of predicting answers before you hear them trains you to.

Both Choose TWO questions accept their letters in either order: C and E for Questions 11 and 12, A and B for Questions 13 and 14. Do not deliberate over which letter belongs to which question number, because both orders score, and reserve your checking time for the trap figures: £400 is an average saving rather than a minimum spend, and the discounts run from 3.5% to 15% rather than staying fixed.

In the matching task, each speaker’s topic is announced in the final sentence of their profile, after the career details that point the wrong way. Ignore the businesses a speaker ran and listen for the closing promise about the talk itself, then hold the box options in paraphrase form, because unexpected expansion, global experience and personal obstacles are never spoken in those words. The Band 8 listening strategy shows how to hold paraphrased options in memory under exam pressure.

Practice More Listening Tests

Mark the ten answers strictly, read the explanation for every miss, then log the result on the full Cambridge IELTS 21 Listening Test 4 answers page, which holds the keys, explanations and transcripts for all four sections. The free IELTS listening practice course from Simply IELTS drills the skills this section rewards: tracking tense in a monologue, handling either-order letters and matching paraphrased topics to speakers. Then try this interactive listening test: stoicism ielts listening test with answers and audio for another single-speaker practice under exam conditions, and continue to Section 3, the Houses of the Future Discussion listening test, to keep the full paper in order.