At Funston Stores, a salesperson's salary is comprised solely of commi

Question

At Funston Stores, a salesperson's salary is comprised solely of commissions from sales. A particular salesperson's annual salary was lower in 2009 than in 2008. In both years, all of this salesperson's sales were of only one item, product X, and he made the same number of product X sales in both years. The commission percentage for all Funston salespeople has remained unchanged over the past ten years.

The information above most strongly supports which of the following?

(A) Through all of Funston Stores, the overall number of sales of product X declined from 2008 to 2009

(B) This salesperson would have earned a higher salary if her sales were in more than one product.

(C) The commission percentage that Funston store salespeople earn is lower compared to the percentage of salespeople at similar stores.

(D) The price of product X dropped from 2008 to 2009.

(E) The overall profits of Funston stores were lower in 2009 than it was in 2008.

Aseem1997 · Answer

The correct option is D. It says when price of a product declines and sales value declines and then sales commission too.
That's why he got less salary in 2009 as compared to 2008.

Bunuel · Answer

Official Explanation

The credited answer is (D). The question, quite specifically, is about one salesperson --- call that person Q. We know that Q sold only product X last year and this year, and sold the same number in both years. We know that Q's salary is solely based on commission from sales, and the commission scheme did not change. The only way Q's salary could be lower is if the price of product X were lower.

It may be that total sales of Product X declined, but Q sold the same number both years. Choice (A) is irrelevant, so it is incorrect.

We don't know anything about the price of other products, or about the sales of other products. It may be that Q would have made more money selling other products instead of Product X, or it may be that selling Product X was the most lucrative route for Q. We don't know. Choice (B) is incorrect.

What the commission percentage is at other stores has nothing to do what happened to Q's salary. Choice (C) is irrelevant, so it is incorrect.

The overall profits of the store may be lower, but Q made the same number of sales in both years, so what happened at the store level does not explain what happened specifically to Q's salary. Choice (E) is incorrect.

IanStewart · Answer

In 2008 and 2009 the person sold the same number of units, and earned the same percentage from each unit, but earned less money in total. The only way that can be true is if the percentage was taken from a smaller total in 2009, so the price must have been lower and D is the answer.

But I found the question confusing because it is misusing words. It makes no sense to say "a salary is comprised solely of commissions from sales". That's not a salary. A "salary" is a fixed, regular payment made to an employee, so while you can earn commissions or bonuses in addition to a salary, you can't have a salary based only (or even partly) on commissions.

VerbalBot · Answer

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At Funston Stores, a salesperson's salary is comprised solely of commi

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