The following appeared in a memo from the vice president of marketing at Dura-Sock, Inc.
"A recent study of our customers suggests that our company is wasting the money it spends on its patented Endure manufacturing process, which ensures that our socks are strong enough to last for two years. We have always advertised our use of the Endure process, but the new study shows that despite our socks' durability, our average customer actually purchases new Dura-Socks every three months. Furthermore, our customers surveyed in our largest market, northeastern United States cities, say that they most value Dura-Socks' stylish appearance and availability in many colors. These findings suggest that we can increase our profits by discontinuing use of the Endure manufacturing process."
Write a response in which you discuss what specific evidence is needed to evaluate the argument and explain how the evidence would weaken or strengthen the argument.
The author here claims that discontinuing the use of Endure manufacturing process will increase Dura-Sock profits. To bolster his claims author has put forward some of the evidences. First one of them is, despite advertising the endure process a lot the Dura sock customers are buying new socks every three months. Second one is customers like Dura-Sock stylish appearance and color which are not the charecterstics of endure process. However, in the evidences put forward by author there are several flaws, assumptions he put forward to support the argument. To support the argument the author has to go through the discussion below.
First, the author claims that despite advertising the endure process the customers are buying new socks every three months. However, it is quite possible that the company is currently operating in the locations where people can afford to change socks every three months. For instance, if they advertise in the different location where people give more importance to the durability of the socks they profits may skyrocket as they will enter the new market.
Secondly, there is no mention about the advertising channel that the company is currently using. It is possible that the company is not adverstising in the proper channels because of which the endure manufacturing process didn't reach people. If they start to advertise in proper channels they may start to gain even more customers because of the socks endurance.
Third, the author didn't mention anything about the number of people involved in survey. It is possible that even though they surveyed in their largest market they have surveyed only few people. For instance, if the survey had included only fifty people it is quite possible that the company get a biased opinion. It is quite possible that these fifty people often like replacing socks every three monts. But it may not be true for all other customers. Hence, the author needs to provide some more evidences to support the survery details.
In conclusion, the argument is weak and unconvincing. The assumptions here need to supported with strong evidences to support the claim that discontinuing endure manufacturing process will increase company profits. Since, the author didn't provide proper evidence the outcome of the suggestion is dubious and as of now the authenticity of the whole argument falls flat.
Comments
e-rater score report
Attribute Value Ideal
Final score: 3.5 out of 6
Category: Satisfactory Excellent
No. of Grammatical Errors: 8 2
No. of Spelling Errors: 8 2
No. of Sentences: 21 15
No. of Words: 386 350
No. of Characters: 1946 1500
No. of Different Words: 166 200
Fourth Root of Number of Words: 4.432 4.7
Average Word Length: 5.041 4.6
Word Length SD: 2.604 2.4
No. of Words greater than 5 chars: 150 100
No. of Words greater than 6 chars: 107 80
No. of Words greater than 7 chars: 65 40
No. of Words greater than 8 chars: 42 20
Use of Passive Voice (%): 0 0
Avg. Sentence Length: 18.381 21.0
Sentence Length SD: 5.585 7.5
Use of Discourse Markers (%): 0.619 0.12
Sentence-Text Coherence: 0.33 0.35
Sentence-Para Coherence: 0.539 0.50
Sentence-Sentence Coherence: 0.115 0.07
Number of Paragraphs: 5 5
Grammar and spelling errors:
Line 1, column 161, Rule ID: SOME_OF_THE[1]
Message: Simply use 'some'.
Suggestion: some
...lster his claims author has put forward some of the evidences. First one of them is, despit...
^^^^^^^^^^^
Line 1, column 226, Rule ID: A_INFINITVE[1]
Message: Probably a wrong construction: a/the + infinitive
...rst one of them is, despite advertising the endure process a lot the Dura sock customers a...
^^^^^^^^^^
Line 3, column 51, Rule ID: A_INFINITVE[1]
Message: Probably a wrong construction: a/the + infinitive
... author claims that despite advertising the endure process the customers are buying new so...
^^^^^^^^^^
Line 3, column 400, Rule ID: NON3PRS_VERB[2]
Message: The pronoun 'they' must be used with a non-third-person form of a verb: 'profit'
Suggestion: profit
...nce to the durability of the socks they profits may skyrocket as they will enter the ne...
^^^^^^^
Line 5, column 190, Rule ID: A_INFINITVE[1]
Message: Probably a wrong construction: a/the + infinitive
...in the proper channels because of which the endure manufacturing process didnt reach peopl...
^^^^^^^^^^
Line 5, column 223, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: didn't
... which the endure manufacturing process didnt reach people. If they start to advertis...
^^^^^
Line 5, column 347, Rule ID: POSSESIVE_APOSTROPHE[2]
Message: Possible typo: apostrophe is missing. Did you mean 'socks'' or 'sock's'?
Suggestion: socks'; sock's
...gain even more customers because of the socks endurance. Third, the author didn...
^^^^^
Line 8, column 19, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: didn't
...ocks endurance. Third, the author didnt mention anything about the number of pe...
^^^^^
Line 10, column 234, Rule ID: EN_CONTRACTION_SPELLING
Message: Possible spelling mistake found
Suggestion: didn't
...ease company profits. Since, the author didnt provide proper evidence the outcome of ...
^^^^^
Transition Words or Phrases used:
but, first, hence, however, if, may, second, secondly, so, then, third, as to, for instance, in conclusion
Attributes: Values AverageValues Percentages(Values/AverageValues)% => Comments
Performance on Part of Speech:
To be verbs : 18.0 19.6327345309 92% => OK
Auxiliary verbs: 8.0 12.9520958084 62% => OK
Conjunction : 4.0 11.1786427146 36% => More conjunction wanted.
Relative clauses : 13.0 13.6137724551 95% => OK
Pronoun: 27.0 28.8173652695 94% => OK
Preposition: 41.0 55.5748502994 74% => OK
Nominalization: 14.0 16.3942115768 85% => OK
Performance on vocabulary words:
No of characters: 1997.0 2260.96107784 88% => OK
No of words: 383.0 441.139720559 87% => More content wanted.
Chars per words: 5.21409921671 5.12650576532 102% => OK
Fourth root words length: 4.42384287591 4.56307096286 97% => OK
Word Length SD: 2.65280062022 2.78398813304 95% => OK
Unique words: 168.0 204.123752495 82% => More unique words wanted.
Unique words percentage: 0.43864229765 0.468620217663 94% => More unique words wanted or less content wanted.
syllable_count: 618.3 705.55239521 88% => OK
avg_syllables_per_word: 1.6 1.59920159681 100% => OK
A sentence (or a clause, phrase) starts by:
Pronoun: 4.0 4.96107784431 81% => OK
Article: 7.0 8.76447105788 80% => OK
Subordination: 3.0 2.70958083832 111% => OK
Conjunction: 1.0 1.67365269461 60% => OK
Preposition: 5.0 4.22255489022 118% => OK
Performance on sentences:
How many sentences: 21.0 19.7664670659 106% => OK
Sentence length: 18.0 22.8473053892 79% => The Avg. Sentence Length is relatively short.
Sentence length SD: 34.7694708009 57.8364921388 60% => OK
Chars per sentence: 95.0952380952 119.503703932 80% => OK
Words per sentence: 18.2380952381 23.324526521 78% => OK
Discourse Markers: 5.04761904762 5.70786347227 88% => OK
Paragraphs: 5.0 5.15768463074 97% => OK
Language errors: 9.0 5.25449101796 171% => OK
Sentences with positive sentiment : 10.0 8.20758483034 122% => OK
Sentences with negative sentiment : 6.0 6.88822355289 87% => OK
Sentences with neutral sentiment: 5.0 4.67664670659 107% => OK
What are sentences with positive/Negative/neutral sentiment?
Coherence and Cohesion:
Essay topic to essay body coherence: 0.173981349724 0.218282227539 80% => OK
Sentence topic coherence: 0.0578711386892 0.0743258471296 78% => OK
Sentence topic coherence SD: 0.0660450281178 0.0701772020484 94% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence: 0.102180498223 0.128457276422 80% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence SD: 0.0508161389525 0.0628817314937 81% => OK
Essay readability:
automated_readability_index: 12.2 14.3799401198 85% => Automated_readability_index is low.
flesch_reading_ease: 53.21 48.3550499002 110% => OK
smog_index: 3.1 7.1628742515 43% => Smog_index is low.
flesch_kincaid_grade: 10.3 12.197005988 84% => OK
coleman_liau_index: 12.94 12.5979740519 103% => OK
dale_chall_readability_score: 7.33 8.32208582834 88% => OK
difficult_words: 68.0 98.500998004 69% => More difficult words wanted.
linsear_write_formula: 8.5 12.3882235529 69% => OK
gunning_fog: 9.2 11.1389221557 83% => OK
text_standard: 13.0 11.9071856287 109% => OK
What are above readability scores?
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Rates: 50.0 out of 100
Scores by essay e-grader: 3.0 Out of 6
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Note: the e-grader does NOT examine the meaning of words and ideas. VIP users will receive further evaluations by advanced module of e-grader and human graders.