As Technology Continues to Progress, New Avenues Open for the Implementation GMAT Reading Comprehension

Reading Passage Questions

As technology continues to progress, new avenues open for the implementation of traditional business strategies. One such area that presents myriad opportunities, and pitfalls, for a modern business is that of Internet marketing. The effective exploitation of Internet marketing strategies, including necessary conversions of existing paper-based marketing initiatives to electronic versions, allows a business to build a larger client base and then leverage that base into increased revenue opportunities. For example, a business may charge non-competitive companies a fee to allow them to “piggyback” onto an existing marketing campaign. Or a business may create an auxiliary website which, under the auspices of providing information or advice, offers links to a sales site.

While the opportunities for increased revenue are abundant, so too are the potentially damaging risks. Inappropriate or misguided marketing strategies can result in the creation of a negative brand image and the loss of potential clients. Common transgressions in the field of Internet marketing include such obvious negatives as the use of “spam” emails—mass, unfocused solicitations—and lesser annoyances such as the inclusion of large attachments that can slow down modem connections, or the sending of multiple messages to the same client list. Businesses engaging in these practices as a result of a misguided or incomplete marketing strategy will see a potential loss of client base and generate negative word-of-mouth.

Another common shortcoming in the field of high technology marketing concerns the lack of necessary research into the type of website design that will optimize product or service exposure. Many businesses fail to recognize the importance of linking a site to relevant search engine key phrases. One study found that use of “intuitive key phrases,” that is, use of the top five words most often associated with a particular product or service, resulted in a successful “hit,” or link to a specific site, less than 30% of the time. This finding can be explained by the relative paucity of users who actually use such phrases in their query search as well as by the presence of multitudes of companies who have also linked their marketing campaign to the use of such phrases.

“As technology continues to progress, new avenues open for the implementation” is a sample text for the exam GMAT.This GMAT Reading Comprehension consists of 3 comprehension questions. The GMAT Reading Comprehension questions are designed for the purpose of testing candidates’ abilities in understanding, analyzing, and applying information or concepts. Candidates can actively prepare with the help of GMAT Reading Comprehension Practice Questions.

Solution and Explanations

1. Which of the following strategies, if employed by a company, would most likely result in the increased revenue mentioned by the author in the first paragraph?

1. obtaining a list of potential clients from a third party and then employing the repeated dissemination of electronic marketing pieces in an attempt to convert such prospects
2. developing a web portal devoted to providing clients with up-to-date reports on the latest innovations and developments within the industry
3. creating partnerships that allow the company to piggyback onto the existing marketing campaign of a related company
4. researching the use of the most commonly used query words in the industry and using those words as the basis of a search engine marketing strategy
5. investing in paper-based marketing initiatives to complement the implementation of electronic marketing strategies

2. Which of the following best describes the function of the first paragraph in relation to the passage as a whole?

1. The author’s main thesis is introduced in the first paragraph and then defended against charges that the thesis is incorrect in the following paragraphs.
2. The first paragraph presents an exception to a general rule that is later detailed in the remaining paragraphs.
3. The author recommends a course of action in the first paragraph then warns of potential problems related to that course of action in the following paragraphs.
4. The author uses the first paragraph to detail a possible outcome that is then contrasted with alternate outcomes in later paragraphs.
5. The first paragraph presents a viewpoint that is later dismissed as unrealistic in succeeding paragraphs.

3. Which of the following can be inferred about the use of “intuitive key phrases”?

1. The use of such a phrase will result in the failure to generate a “hit” in over 70% of cases.
2. A business that generates “hits” from such queries more than 30% of the time most likely has few competitors in its field.
3. Such phrases are so designated because of the frequency with which prospective clients employ them when using search engines.
4. Using intuitive key phrases in a search query will connect the user with one of the top five companies in a particular industry in approximately 30% of the instances.
5. Avoiding the use of such phrases will result in optimal revenue for a particular product or service.

4. The primary purpose of the passage is to

1. Advocate a specific course of action despite potential objections to that course of action.
2. Detail the advantages of a particular business strategy while minimizing the potential risks.
3. Suggest caution when undertaking a specific course of action.
4. Illustrate various ways in which a business initiative may fail to succeed.
5. Temper a discussion of the positive aspects of a strategy by introducing more common negative results.

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