The following appeared in a memo from the marketing director of Top Dog Pet Stores.
“Five years ago Fish Emporium started advertising in the magazine Exotic Pets Monthly. Their stores saw sales increase by 15 percent after their ads began appearing in the magazine. The three Fish Emporium stores in Gulf City saw an even greater increase than that. Because Top Dog Pet Stores is based in Gulf City, it seems clear that we should start placing our own ads in Exotic Pets Monthly. If we do so, we will be sure to reverse the recent trend of declining sales and start making a profit again.”
Write a response in which you examine the stated and/or unstated assumptions of the argument. Be sure to explain how the argument depends on these assumptions and what the implications are for the argument if the assumptions prove unwarranted.
Fish Emporium is a chain of pet stores in Texas. After a period of decline, the company began placing ads in Exotic Pets Monthly, hoping to reverse the downward trend. The company’s marketing director assumes that placing the ads will increase sales. She assumes that sales will increase because her company’s stores are located in Gulf City and that Gulf City residents are more likely to purchase exotic pets. However, the assumptions are flawed, and placing ads in the magazine may not translate into increased sales. Fish Emporium has stores in Gulf City, but most of those stores are in smaller towns. The marketing manager should not assume that buyers from Gulf City are more likely than those from other areas to buy exotic pets. The marketing manager may not consider the possibility of customers from other towns, cities, or even states visiting Fish Emporium in Gulf City and purchasing exotic pets there. The assumption also ignores the tendency of people to buy pet supplies online. People in Gulf City may purchase pets online, just as they buy other supplies, and they may purchase exotic pets from Fish Emporium, but they might not buy exotic pets in Gulf City.
The marketing manager’s assumption that Exotic Pets Monthly is a magazine read by residents of Gulf City and by Exotic Pet enthusiasts is plausible. The magazine is popular among pet enthusiasts, and many people in Gulf City read it. However, even if the marketing manager is correct in her assumption that the magazine would be read by people in Gulf City, she may be mistaken in her assumption about readers’ motives. People in Gulf City might purchase exotic pets from Fish Emporium because they are knowledgeable enough about exotic pets to know that a pet store in Gulf City can provide them with what they need. Exotic Pets Monthly advertises exotic pets, but it also features articles about caring for and showing exotic pets. These articles, written by pet lovers, may encourage people in Gulf City to consider exotic pets. In addition to educating readers about exotic pets, the magazine features articles about exotic pet adoption. These articles could encourage people in Gulf City to consider exotic pets as pets, not just as decorations. The marketing manager should keep in mind that Exotic Pets Monthly has a national audience. Placing ads in Exotic Pets Monthly could appeal to people in Gulf City, but the magazine’s readers and advertisers may be from other parts of the country. The marketing manager should investigate the magazine’s readership to make sure that her company’s ads will reach the right people.
In summary, Fish Emporium’s marketing director assumes that placing ads in Exotic Pets Monthly will increase sales. However, the company’s marketing manager may have a faulty assumption. The marketing manager’s assumption that Exotic Pets Monthly is a magazine read by residents of Gulf City and by Exotic Pet enthusiasts may be reasonable. The marketing manager assumes that Exotic Pets Monthly’s readers are Exotic Pet enthusiasts. However, the marketing manager may not realize that Exotic Pets Monthly has a national audience, and readers in Gulf City may be from other parts of the country. The marketing manager also assumes that placing ads in Exotic Pets Monthly will convince people to buy exotic pets in Gulf City. However, the marketing manager may not realize that people buy exotic pets from pet shops online, and an ad in Exotic Pets Monthly may not convince people who do not buy exotic pets in Gulf City. The marketing manager should keep in mind that Exotic Pets Monthly has a national audience as well as a local audience.