+---+---+---+
| 1 | 2 | 3 |
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| D | C | B |
+---+---+---+Franchisor : an individual or company that sells or grants a franchise for the sale of goods or the operation of a service.
Franchisee :a small-business owner who operates a franchise
1. The primary purpose of the passage is to encourage readers toA. take better control of their business endeavors.
Passage offers pros and cons of franchising along with questions that a potential entrepreneur should contemplate, but does not take any side. Author presents the case for franchising and the case against franchising in an unbiased manner.
B. consider the advantages of operating a franchise if they personally have limited business experience.
From paragraph 1,
Quote:
How much financing is required to start my business? Do I know how to find a creative niche in the marketplace? If so, am I capable of maintaining a unique market identity while also managing day-to-day business operations? Do I know how to create a business plan that will ensure financial success? Many prospective business owners who have shortcomings in these areas have turned to franchising as a way to reduce their risk of failure.
The author does encourage the readers to consider the advantages of operating a franchise if they personally have limited business experience, but that is not the primary purpose of the passage. In paragraph 2, author goes on to list some disadvantages of franchising as well, which they encourage the reader to consider.
Quote:
Still, the advantages of buying a franchise must be weighed against contractual issues that can become complicated when the interests of franchisees and franchisors conflict.
C. enter contractual agreements with caution.
This is the gist of paragraph 2, but it doesn't capture the primary purpose of the whole passage. The author ends with this line-
Quote:
The decision to franchise requires an entrepreneur to consider the degree of autonomy he or she desires in a business as well as the amount of preparation it would take to launch one.
Author is prompting the readers to make an informed choice, considering all the factors before deciding to franchise or not. Hence C is incomplete as an answer choice.
D. evaluate their own abilities and notions of entrepreneurial success before purchasing a franchise.
CORRECT : This is exactly what the author is urging readers to do.
From paragraph 1,
Quote:
Entrepreneurs should ask themselves these questions to determine whether franchise ownership is desirable: How much financing is required to start my business? Do I know how to find a creative niche in the marketplace? If so, am I capable of maintaining a unique market identity while also managing day-to-day business operations? Do I know how to create a business plan that will ensure financial success?
These are the abilities which readers should evaluate.
From paragraph 2,
Quote:
Still, the advantages of buying a franchise must be weighed against contractual issues that can become complicated when the interests of franchisees and franchisors conflict. Fees charged by the franchisor may become a source of conflict as the franchisee becomes more successful. Thus, before deciding to purchase a franchise, entrepreneurs should add this to their list of questions: Are franchise owners ever truly in command of their businesses or are they forever relegated, for all practical purposes, to the status of employees?
These are the notions of entrepreneurial success which readers should consider.
This D is correct.
E. evaluate the motives of a potential franchisor who may take advantage of them.
Author does ask the reader to consider contractual issues that may arise when there is a conflict of interest between franchisors and franchisees, but this is not the primary purpose of the passage. Option E ascribes potential sinister motives to franchisors, which the author never does.
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2. The passage implies which of the following about the franchise arrangement?A. It creates an illusion of success.
Quote:
Thus, before deciding to purchase a franchise, entrepreneurs should add this to their list of questions: Are franchise owners ever truly in command of their businesses or are they forever relegated, for all practical purposes, to the status of employees? The decision to franchise requires an entrepreneur to consider the degree of autonomy he or she desires in a business as well as the amount of preparation it would take to launch one.
Author makes no reference to an illusion of success. Author asks entrepreneurs to consider the degree of autonomy they desire, but does not in any way imply that the success would be illusory.
B. It puts the owners of established franchises at a disadvantage.
The author's intended audience is entrepreneurs who are thinking of becoming franchisees, not the owners of the franchises (franchisors).
Author alludes to the fact the following -
Quote:
Fees charged by the franchisor may become a source of conflict as the franchisee becomes more successful.
But this in no way implies that the owners of established franchises are at a disadvantage
C. It may be a viable strategy for those with entrepreneurial shortcomings.
CORRECT : From paragraph 1,
Quote:
How much financing is required to start my business? Do I know how to find a creative niche in the marketplace? If so, am I capable of maintaining a unique market identity while also managing day-to-day business operations? Do I know how to create a business plan that will ensure financial success? Many prospective business owners who have shortcomings in these areas have turned to franchising as a way to reduce their risk of failure.
The above quote clearly states that for those with entrepreneurial shortcomings, franchising is a viable strategy. Hence C is correct.
D. It impedes entrepreneurial goals.
Author implies that in some cases, franchise arrangements may in fact achieve the opposite-
Quote:
Many prospective business owners who have shortcomings in these areas have turned to franchising as a way to reduce their risk of failure.
Hence, for some people, rather than impede entrepreneurial goals, franchise arrangements could facilitate the same.
E. It should be viewed by franchisees as a partnership.
Author makes no such suggestion to franchisees.
From paragraph 2,
Quote:
Fees charged by the franchisor may become a source of conflict as the franchisee becomes more successful
Author only asks entrepreneurs to evaluate the pros and cons of becoming a franchisee, and makes no recommendation as to how they should view their relationship with franchisors.
Franchisor : an individual or company that sells or grants a franchise for the sale of goods or the operation of a service.
Franchisee :a small-business owner who operates a franchise
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3. The author most likely refers to a franchisor's fees in order toA. intimate they may increase in direct proportion to revenues.
Here is what the author has to say about franchisor's fees-
Quote:
Fees charged by the franchisor may become a source of conflict as the franchisee becomes more successful.
Author states that a conflict over fees may arise as the franchisee becomes more successful, but this does need not mean that the fees are directly proportional to revenue. The author is driving at something else.
B. cite them as a potential eventual cause of antipathy.
CORRECT : This is directly stated in the passage. From paragraph 2,
Quote:
the advantages of buying a franchise must be weighed against contractual issues that can become complicated when the interests of franchisees and franchisors conflict. Fees charged by the franchisor may become a source of conflict as the franchisee becomes more successful.
First the author states that contractual issues can become complicated when there is a conflict of interest.
The author then states an example of such a conflict- Fees charged by the franchisor
Thus the author is citing franchisor's fees as a potential cause of antipathy.
C. imply they may seem lopsided with respect to the franchisee's profits.
This option attempts to draw a connection between franchisor fees and franchisee's profits.
Author never gives an indication that franchisor fees are lopsided with respect to franchisee's profits.
D. caution that they may be unjustified in certain scenarios.
The passage only cautions entrepreneurs that franchisor fees could be a source of conflict.
Author never makes any value judgements about whether the fees are justified or unjustified.
E. buttress the insinuation that there exists no autonomy in franchising.
From paragraph 2,
Quote:
The decision to franchise requires an entrepreneur to consider the degree of autonomy he or she desires in a business as well as the amount of preparation it would take to launch one.
Entrepreneurs should "consider the degree of autonomy" This does not imply that there is no autonomy in franchising as E states.