Argument117[Aero_10]

houyanchunUID: 2432949

TOPIC: ARGUMENT117 - The following is a memo from the business manager of Valu-Mart stores.

"Over 70 percent of the respondents to a recent survey reported that they are required to take more work home with them from the workplace than they were in the past. Since Valu-Mart has not seen impressive sales in its office-supply departments in the past, we should take advantage of this work-at-home trend by increasing at all Valu-Mart stores the stock of home office machines such as printers, small copy machines, paper shredders, and fax machines. We will also increase stock of office supplies such as paper, pens, and staplers. With these changes, our office-supply departments will become the most profitable component of our stores."

In this argument, the author has claimed that the store should take advantage of work-at-home trend by increasing at all Valu-Mart stores the stock of home office machines and increase stock of office supplies in order to increase the profit. To support his claim, the author cites the evidence that over 70 percent of the respondents in a survey reported that they are required to take more work home with them from the workplace than they were in the past. The evidence seems reasonable at first sight, however, there are some vital fallacies in them.

First of all, the sample for the survey should be statistically credible, however, from the survey we find little sign of such procedures for sampling. It is possible that the participants in the survey are not sufficient to represent the overall situation. Furthermore, the author does not provide evidence to explain what kind of the work is which is required to take home finishing. If the work just is reading some relative material or books, the home office machines are unnecessary obviously.

Even if the home office machines are useful, it is incredible to assume the company could get profit from supplying above machines or paper and so on. It is well known that whether a store could be profitable or not is resulting from many elements, such as the supply and demand, the developed situation of economic in the time. The author fails to offer necessary evidence to explain what the amount of demand is; and other alternative elements. It is possible for us to believe that the whole economic is depressed during this period so that the author’s recommendation could take action in bad background. For that matter, the recommendation is unpersuasive.

In addition, the assumption that Valu-Mart has not seen impressive sales in its office-supply departments in the past is incredible for the author could not point out relative evidence to validate this point. And it is possible for us to view the decreased sale only happened in few stores, or just appeared in certain regions so that the assumption is not stand at all. The author does not offer relative survey to support his assumption.
In sum, the argument is unpersuasive as it stands. In order to improve the argument, the author should provide credible evidence to validate more and more customers are demanding home office machines to meet their need when they work at home indeed. Further, the evidence which guarantee the store would gain profit if adapting the recommendation should be offered.