GRE Argument Topic 18

Sample 1:

The station manager of KICK recommends increasing the number of call-in advice programs that are being broadcasted in order to gain a larger audience, given that a similar strategy has worked for a radio station in another town, and a national survey indicates that people are interested in such programs. Like all changes to a business’ approach, the recommendation made by KICK’s manager carries with it a risk of failure, and as such needs to be thoroughly analyzed before any decisions of implementing the suggested strategy are made.

In outlining his reasoning for the recommendation, the station manager of KICK rests his case on the assumption that WCQP’s increase in listeners is due to the additional call-in advice programs. The first question that comes into mind, in this case, is if there were any other internal and external factors that could have contributed to the increase in listeners, such as a shutdown of one of WCQP’s major competitors, the start of a WCQP promotional campaign or the station acquiring a popular radio host. Having a great number of other plausible explanations for WCQP’s success would significantly weaken the premise that more call-in advice programs would have the desired effect on KICK’s listener basis. However, should the answer to the question prove that the increase in call-in advice programs is the sole or major reason responsible for the listener audience boost then it becomes plausible that WCQP’s success can be replicated by KICK, given additional compatibility points like market analysis data.

The next inquiry point related to WCQP’s success would investigate during which time slot the WCQP listener ratings increased and how significant was this increase. This data can serve to research whether the listener increase is statistically relevant. A rise in listener ratings of 1%, while technically still considered an increase, would mean that adding more call-in advice programs is a costly method with no substantial benefits and the station managers should consider alternate means of bolstering listener ratings. From the other perspective, should it turn out that the increase in audience market shares is a dramatic one, then KICK’s managers should give the WCQP’s strategy due consideration.

When making his case for increasing the amount of call-in advice programs the station manager cites the results of a national survey as compelling evidence that there is a great desire for programs of this type. When handling surveys and statistic data it is always important to look not only at the results but also at the theoretical framework and methodology of the study being conducted, in order to be able to ascertain whether the reasoning is sound, or if the scientists have missed some crucial aspect or mitigating factor. As such, the station manager should inquire as to how accurate are the study findings. Should the methodology be faulty, like having a small sample size with a big standard deviation, or constructing the survey questions in a leading manner, then the results would no longer be indicative of the people’s desire for listening to call-in programs, and the station manager would have to find alternative means of estimating the potential market size, lest his argument becomes significantly weakened. A properly conducted survey can serve to strengthen the station manager’s recommendation – most market analyses are based on such type of direct information gathering.

If the survey findings are accurate, then the next step would be to determine whether these results are applicable to the population of Medway. The station manager should ask himself if the survey and Medway’s demographics are compatible. If this assumption holds true, then the manager has accurately pinpointed a current need of the Medway population and the recommendation to satisfy said need by changing their programs would be more warranted. But national studies deal with averages; therefore, it is possible that what might be true for the general population is not necessarily true for a particular subgroup. For instance, a national study that identified the preferred musical genres as rock and oldies might not be so applicable to specific cases, like towns from the bible belt. Should the demographics not be comparable, then the national survey that is at the center of the station manager’s argument would not accurately reflect the preferences of the local population of Medway. In order to strengthen his argument, the station manager would have to look at radio preference indicators that are specific to Medway.

The station manager’s assumption that the strategy applied in Rockville is applicable in Medway begets the question of how similar the Medway and Rockville markets and target audiences are to each other. If the target audience demographics and the market conditions like the number of competitors, market size or degree of popularity are relatively similar, then implementing the suggested strategy would be a very good course of action, given the high likelihood of replicating WCQP’s success. Not only that, but the similarity can make the strategy very cost effective and provide KICK with a readymade implementation roadmap that has a high probability of increasing the company’s profits. However, if the market and target audiences of the two cities are different, then the assumption that the strategy applied in Rockville is applicable in Medway is significantly weakened, because there is a high likelihood that WCQP’s success strategy might not be suitable for the population of Medway. In order to deal with this possibility, the station manager would have to adapt the finer points of WCQP’s strategy to the needs of the Medway population, in which case his recommendation might still be valid. Current trendsetting strategies also rely heavily on the reuse of successful strategies with adaptations made to suit each company’s specific situation.

All in all, before arguing for the implementation of a strategy used by a different radio station, KICK’s station manager should consider whether the market conditions in the two towns are similar enough to warrant making the suggested change. The manager should also consider how to adapt the strategies if the markets prove to be too different, or completely reorient himself to other strategies, based on market demands.