Magazine publishers can boost newsstand sales of a single issue of a magazine by packaging a free gift with it....

GMAT Critical Reasoning : (CR) Questions

Source: Mock

Critical Reasoning

Weaken

HARD

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Notes

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Magazine publishers can boost newsstand sales of a single issue of a magazine by packaging a free gift with it. Doing so might cost the publisher one dollar per copy distributed to newsstands. By way of comparison, a one-dollar discount on the retail price (which is set by the publisher) can also boost sales, but the boost tends to be somewhat smaller. Clearly therefore, including a gift is the more cost-effective form of promotion.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the argument?

A free gift has to be selected to appeal to the intended audience of the magazine, whereas a discount has universal appeal.

When two competing magazines each simultaneously have issues on newsstands with a free gift, the effect of promotion on sales is diluted for both.

In very competitive sectors of the market, promotional boosts in sales of a magazine do not translate into increased sales for the issues that succeed the promotion.

Even when there is promotion, newsstands return a quarter or more of the copies they have bought to sell, and the publisher refunds the price the retailer paid for these copies.

Some magazine publishers believe that offering occasional price discounts makes regular readers of the magazine more resistant to paying the full retail price.

Solution

Passage Analysis:

Text from Passage	Analysis
Magazine publishers can boost newsstand sales of a single issue of a magazine by packaging a free gift with it.	What it says: Publishers can increase magazine sales by including free gifts What it does: Sets up the first promotional strategy we're going to examine What it is: Author's claim about marketing strategy Visualization: Magazine + Free Gift → Higher Sales
Doing so might cost the publisher one dollar per copy distributed to newsstands.	What it says: The gift strategy costs publishers $1 per magazine copy What it does: Adds the cost factor to the first promotional method What it is: Author's cost estimate Visualization: Gift Strategy: Cost = $1 per copy
By way of comparison, a one-dollar discount on the retail price (which is set by the publisher) can also boost sales, but the boost tends to be somewhat smaller.	What it says: Price discounts of $1 also increase sales but less effectively than gifts What it does: Introduces a second promotional strategy and compares its effectiveness to the first What it is: Author's comparative claim Visualization: Gift Strategy: Higher sales boost vs. Discount Strategy: $1 off price, Lower sales boost
Clearly therefore, including a gift is the more cost-effective form of promotion.	What it says: Gifts are more cost-effective than discounts for promotion What it does: Draws the main conclusion based on the comparison of the two strategies What it is: Author's conclusion Visualization: $\mathrm{Gift\ Strategy\ (\$1\ cost,\ higher\ boost)} > \mathrm{Discount\ Strategy\ (\$1\ cost,\ lower\ boost)}$ = Gifts more cost-effective

Argument Flow:

The argument starts by presenting two promotional strategies - gifts and discounts. It then provides cost information for gifts ($1 per copy) and effectiveness comparison showing gifts produce bigger sales boosts than discounts. Finally, it concludes that since both cost the same but gifts are more effective, gifts must be more cost-effective.

Main Conclusion:

Including a free gift is more cost-effective than offering a price discount for boosting magazine sales.

Logical Structure:

The argument assumes that since gifts and discounts both cost $1 but gifts generate higher sales, gifts are automatically more cost-effective. However, this logic assumes the costs are truly equivalent and doesn't account for potential hidden costs or different revenue impacts between the two strategies.

Prethinking:

Question type:

Weaken - We need to find information that would reduce our belief in the conclusion that gifts are more cost-effective than discounts

Precision of Claims

The argument makes specific claims about costs ($1 per copy for gifts, $1 discount for price reduction) and relative effectiveness (gifts provide higher sales boost than discounts). The conclusion is about cost-effectiveness comparison between two promotional strategies.

Strategy

To weaken this argument, we need to find scenarios that show the gift strategy might not actually be more cost-effective than the discount strategy. We can attack this by showing hidden costs of gifts, different impacts on profit margins, or situations where the comparison isn't fair. We must respect the given facts: both strategies cost $1, gifts do boost sales more than discounts.

Answer Choices Explained

A free gift has to be selected to appeal to the intended audience of the magazine, whereas a discount has universal appeal.

This choice discusses appeal differences between gifts and discounts. While it's true that gifts need to appeal to specific audiences while discounts have universal appeal, this doesn't actually challenge the cost-effectiveness comparison. The argument already acknowledges that both strategies work to boost sales, with gifts being more effective. The fact that one has broader appeal doesn't necessarily make it more cost-effective if the targeted appeal of gifts produces better results. This doesn't weaken the argument.

When two competing magazines each simultaneously have issues on newsstands with a free gift, the effect of promotion on sales is diluted for both.

This choice describes what happens when competing magazines both use gift promotions simultaneously. However, this scenario doesn't address the core comparison between gifts versus discounts. Even if gift effectiveness is diluted when multiple magazines use gifts, the same dilution would likely occur if multiple magazines used discounts simultaneously. This doesn't help us determine which strategy is more cost-effective, so it doesn't weaken the argument.

In very competitive sectors of the market, promotional boosts in sales of a magazine do not translate into increased sales for the issues that succeed the promotion.

This choice discusses how promotional boosts don't always translate to increased sales in subsequent issues. While this might be relevant for long-term marketing strategy, it doesn't impact the cost-effectiveness comparison between gifts and discounts for a single promotional campaign. Both strategies would face the same limitation regarding future sales, so this doesn't help determine which is more cost-effective for the immediate promotion being discussed.

Even when there is promotion, newsstands return a quarter or more of the copies they have bought to sell, and the publisher refunds the price the retailer paid for these copies.

This choice reveals a crucial hidden cost that completely undermines the argument's cost calculation. When newsstands return unsold copies (25% or more), publishers must refund the retailer's payment for those copies. For the gift strategy, publishers lose both the $1 gift cost per copy AND must refund money for returned copies. For the discount strategy, publishers only lose the discount amount on returned copies (money they never collected anyway). This creates a significant cost difference that makes gifts potentially much more expensive than the argument assumes, directly weakening the conclusion about cost-effectiveness.

Some magazine publishers believe that offering occasional price discounts makes regular readers of the magazine more resistant to paying the full retail price.

This choice discusses publisher beliefs about how discounts might affect customer price sensitivity over time. However, this is about long-term customer behavior and pricing psychology, not about the immediate cost-effectiveness comparison between gifts and discounts for a single promotional campaign. The argument is focused on the economics of one promotional effort, not ongoing pricing strategy, so this doesn't weaken the specific conclusion being made.

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