avigutman wrote:
jabhatta2 wrote:
I thought (C) and (D) both opened the door for weakening the argument because both answers tells us that profit incentive (not higher sales) could be a reason for grocery stores to encourage the introduction of new products.
Now i agree that we cant assume "new products" will always be profitable/unit but we can certainly assume "new products" CAN BE MORE profitable/unit.
Don't both answers give the impression that increased profit gives grocers an incentive to introduce "new products".
jabhatta2 You're going to have to walk me through how (C) and (D) give the impression that
increased profit gives grocers an incentive to introduce "new products". I don't see it.
hadimadi wrote:
Hello Mr Stewart,
I agree with most of what you say: Nowhere that tells us new products CAN have better profit margins than existing ones.
By the same token, (E) doesn’t indicate that any customer would ever buy this product, thus if it would have any positive effect on revenue and profit.
Also, if (D) happens, it might be that new products like in (E) are developed. So (D) could include (E) …
Therefore (D) is better
Hi
hadimadi. I think you're conflating "new product" and "new brand" (
jabhatta2, you were probably doing this too). The argument made the same mistake, and (E) attacks that mistake.
I'm going to boldface below the most important phrases to note:
Quote:
New grocery products benefit the manufacturer but not the grocer. If a company introduces a new brand of detergent, it might attract more consumers to its brand. The grocery store, however, will not sell any more detergent overall than it would have without the new brand. Thus there is little reason for grocers to encourage the introduction of new products.
Which of the following, if true, argues against the conclusion above?
A. Often manufacturers introduce a new grocery product in order to take business away from a competitor who already produces a similar product.
B. Some manufacturers prefer to put new grocery products in stores as early as possible, rather than spending time and money on controlled market research.
C. Most grocery stores have such narrow profit margins that they cannot afford to carry marginally successful products.
D. Grocers have the option not to take on products that they do not think will sell well, or that they expect will not increase the grocer's profits.
E. Some manufacturers introduce new types of groceries, such as precooked meals that people can prepare quickly instead of going to a restaurant.
The argument tells us (as a premise) that a product category (e.g. detergent) has a fixed amount of sales, so all brands in that category are playing a zero-sum game.
If the argument claimed there's little reason for grocers to encourage the introduction of new
brands into
existing product categories, well, that would be one thing. But to claim there's little reason for grocers to encourage the introduction of new
products is a whole other ballgame.
Hello Avi,
first off, a new brand of detergent is a new grocery product, in my opinion. However, if something is a new grocery product it could be a new brand or a completely new product.
Thus, If the question tries to point to a completely new array of products with a unique USP, then it should be mentioned more clearly.
Now, let's assume that as you say, new grocery product and new brand of products are different things. All that (E) tells us is that there are some grocers that have new types of groceries. The argument is asking for an incentive to make grocers encourage manfuacturers to produce new product types.
How does the existence of a new type or product in some grocers give such an incentive? The mere existence, without any sales or profit numbers, or other benefits? Who knows if this will ever sell?
Now here is why (D) INCLUDES (E):
If grocers can reject or accept
any kind of product (any kind includes new types or products AND new brands), then they have a reason to encourage manufacturers to come up with new product types and new brands. IF a product is nice of revenue increase or profit, they accept it. For example, if the pasta mentioned in (E) is nice, they will accept it.
Thanks
close
16 Aug 2022, 07:49
