GWD-5-29

WONDERLAND2004

感觉这道题目选D说服力更强些，请NN指点。多谢。

Q29:

Over the past five years, the price gap between name-brand cereals and less expensive store-brand cereals has become so wide that consumers have been switching increasingly to store brands despite the name brands’ reputation for better quality.  To attract these consumers back, several manufacturers of name-brand cereals plan to narrow the price gap between their cereals and store brands to less than what it was five years ago.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously calls into question the likelihood that the manufacturers’ plan will succeed in attracting back a large percentage of consumers who have switched to store brands?

1. There is no significant difference among manufacturers of name-brand cereals in the prices they charge for their products.


2. Consumers who have switched to store-brand cereals have generally been satisfied with the quality of those cereals.


3. Many consumers would never think of switching to store-brand cereals because they believe the name brand cereals to be of better quality.


4. Because of lower advertising costs, stores are able to offer their own brands of cereals at significantly lower prices than those charged for name-brand cereals.


5. Total annual sales of cereals—including both name-brand and store-brand cereals—have not increased significantly over the past five years.

mindfree

In choosing D, are you assuming that stores will follow suit by cutting further into the margin to match the manufacturers' reduced price?

WONDERLAND2004

The given answer is B.

However, "Consumers who have switched to store-brand cereals have generally been satisfied with the quality of those cereals" does not mean those customers will not switch back to the name-brand cereals, because, as per the passage, name brands have a reputation for better quality. If the price gap is not that big, it is likely for the customers to buy name brands.

According to the passage, price, rather than quality, plays the most critial part in determining the customers' decision.

Thereforem if there is further room for stores to lower down the price for their products in the competition, name brands' plan is bound to collapse. That is why I prefer D.

Open to discussion. Thanks.

Koror

B seems better. It tackles the question itself rather than introducing some other solutions.

lawyer_1

原文的推理是：name-brand cereals 生产商计划用将差价缩小的方法将丢失的顾客吸引回来（价格仍然比STORE高，说明主要仍要靠质量吸引顾客，降价只是消除STORE的优势，消除顾客买STORE谷物的原因----理解这点很重要）（方法目的型）

D。STORE有能力提供低价对name-brand cereals 要缩小差价的方法起不了什麽作用，因为STORE价格本来就低，你说STORE有能力提供低价不等于白说吗。

B。name-brand cereals 生产商想要象原来一样靠质量吸引他们，现在这个因素不存在了（顾客现在对STORE的质量满意，不考虑NAME优势）。吸引他们的因素没了。顾客有何理由回去。价格吗?(质量已经不重要)，name-brand cereals 生产商价格降价后还是比STORE高。

[此贴子已经被作者于2004-7-17 4:36:36编辑过]

zcy8888

同意B.               D的“at significantly lower prices than…”无法削弱” to narrow the price gap”

linson

选b

nanalin

B选项,真正的使brand name厂商的计画质疑(seriously calls into question),is the best answer!
消费者已经满意store-brand的质量了

D. brand name厂商再降价也"不一定"有用
---> 想拉回顧客,就只用降價的策略而已(To attract these consumers back, several manufacturers of name-brand cereals plan to narrow the price gap between their cereals and store brands...)

消费者满不满意brand name厂商的质量..那还不知道呢(题目并没有说)

凭什麽有牌子的cereals降价,我们消费者就会买呢,你要降价是你家的事

嘻

yayajiaojeff

I chose D at the first glance. However, when you read the paragraph in detail, you will find the key issue is the "quality", not the "price".  Thus, B is a better choice than D.  

bryan0806

B is my choice.

I don't think D calls into question the likelihood, it just details the reason why stores are able to offer their own brands of cereals at significantly lower prices.