Small businesses often struggle to compete with large corporations that have extensive marketing budgets and established customer bases. This challeng...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
Small businesses often struggle to compete with large corporations that have extensive marketing budgets and established customer bases. This challenge has become particularly acute in the digital marketplace. To address this competitive disadvantage, business consultants have developed specialized strategies. One such approach is called 'niche market penetration.' This strategy involves identifying highly specific customer segments that larger companies overlook or serve inadequately, then developing targeted products and marketing campaigns for these underserved groups. Business advisor James Chen implemented this approach with a struggling local bookstore. By focusing exclusively on rare book collectors and academic researchers, the bookstore transformed from near-bankruptcy to profitable operations within eighteen months.
Which choice best describes the function of the underlined portion in the text as a whole?
It explains the competitive challenges facing small businesses.
It describes the results of James Chen's consulting work.
It introduces a strategic solution to the problem previously described.
It contrasts different approaches to business development.
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| 'Small businesses often struggle to compete with large corporations that have extensive marketing budgets and established customer bases.' |
|
| 'This challenge has become particularly acute in the digital marketplace.' |
|
| 'To address this competitive disadvantage, business consultants have developed specialized strategies.' |
|
| 'One such approach is called 'niche market penetration.'' |
|
Part B: Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Small businesses can overcome competitive disadvantages against large corporations by using targeted strategies like niche market penetration to serve overlooked customer segments.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
This is a fill-in-the-blank question asking us to choose the best logical connector. The answer must create the right relationship between what comes before and after the blank.
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The underlined sentence comes right after we learn that business consultants have developed specialized strategies
- The underlined portion then names one specific strategy
- So this sentence introduces a particular solution after we've been told solutions exist
It explains the competitive challenges facing small businesses.
✗ Incorrect - This choice focuses on explaining competitive challenges, but the underlined portion names a solution strategy
It describes the results of James Chen's consulting work.
✗ Incorrect - This suggests the sentence describes results, but the underlined portion just names the strategy
It introduces a strategic solution to the problem previously described.
✓ Correct - The underlined portion introduces a specific strategic solution after the passage tells us consultants have developed specialized strategies
It contrasts different approaches to business development.
✗ Incorrect - This would require showing different approaches side by side, but the underlined portion only names one approach