Question

Complete this text with the correct tenses: past simple, past perfect, past continuous, present perfect. We like to think we are an ethical company, but we -------- (have) a problem last year when we --------- (launch) our new product. Let me give you the back ground to the problem. The new product --------- (sell) very well and we -------- (get) good feedback, and sales ----------- (increase) month by month. Everyone was happy. Then it all---------( go) wrong. In August we -------- (start) to get complaints from some doctors about one of our salesman. They ------------- (complain) about the methods that the salesman --------- (use) to persuade them to endorse the product. He --------- (offer) them expensive gifts and -------------( take) them to expensive restaurants. The doctors ------------ ( feel) under pressure to promote the product. By the end of the year we ---------- (receive) over 30 complaints about the particular salesman. In December articles -------- (start) to appear in the press about our unethical sales methods. In the end we -------- (fire) the salesman. As a result of this, we ------------ (recently issue) guidelines to all sales staff about appropriate gifts.

Answer 1

Complete this text with the correct tenses: past simple, past perfect, past continuous, present perfect.

We like to think we are an ethical company, but we -------- (had) a problem last year when we --------- (were launching) our new product. Let me give you the background to the problem. The new product --------- (was selling) very well and we -------- (were getting) good feedback, and sales ----------- (were increasing) month by month. Everyone was happy. Then it all---------( went) wrong. In August we -------- (started) to get complaints from some doctors about one of our salesman. They ------------- (were complaining) about the methods that the salesman --------- (used) to persuade them to endorse the product. He --------- (offered) them expensive gifts and -------------( took) them to expensive restaurants. The doctors ------------ ( felt) under pressure to promote the product.

By the end of the year we ---------- (had received) over 30 complaints about the particular salesman. In December articles -------- (started) to appear in the press about our unethical sales methods. In the end we -------- (fired) the salesman. As a result of this, we ------------ (have recently issued) guidelines to all sales staff about appropriate gifts.

Answer 2

We like to think we are an ethical company, but we had a problem last year when we launched our new product. Let me give you the background to the problem. The new product sold very well and we got good feedback, and sales were increasing month by month. Everyone was happy. Then it all went wrong. In August we started to get complaints from some doctors about one of our salesmen. They were complaining about the methods that the salesman was using to persuade them to endorse the product. He had offered them expensive gifts and had taken them to expensive restaurants. The doctors were feeling under pressure to promote the product. By the end of the year, we had received over 30 complaints about the particular salesman. In December, articles started to appear in the press about our unethical sales methods. In the end, we fired the salesman. As a result of this, we have recently issued guidelines to all sales staff about appropriate gifts.