Post-Thanksgiving Consumers Are Already Separated into Distinct Groups: Those Who

question 1

Multiple Choice

Post-Thanksgiving consumers are already separated into distinct groups: those who shop on Black Friday and those who do not shop on Black Friday:
A carnival of capitalism,Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving,when retailers across the country dangle deep discounts to lure customers out of bed.Black Friday is also the official beginning of the holiday-buying frenzy.As retailers battled to draw customers into their stores on Black Friday,online merchants were plotting a cunning ambush-offering an arsenal of mobile-only deals intended to pick off shoppers as they wait in line.In 2011,with a record-breaking Black Friday-shoppers spent $816 million online,26 percent more than in 2010.Cyber Monday,the Monday after Thanksgiving,might have started as a made-up occasion to give underdog e-commerce sites a day of their own,but it has become an undeniably real thing-surprising even to the people who invented it.
The excerpt indicates that Cyber Monday and online sales

• A) discourage the violent Black Friday behavior that has become more prevalent in recent years.
• B) encourage shopper loyalty to brand leaders who can offer lower prices than their in-store rivals.
• C) split shoppers into two groups: those who like to shop on Fridays and those who like to shop on Mondays.
• D) further separate Black Friday shoppers into two distinct groups: those who like to find deals in person and those willing to get better deals online.
• E) sort shoppers into groups who like to shop during work hours and those who like to shop during the holiday atmosphere provided by Black Friday.

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Definitions:

Least-Squares Regression Method

A statistical method used to estimate the relationship between variables by minimizing the differences between the observed values and the values predicted by a linear function.

Cost Behavior

The way in which costs change in relation to changes in a firm’s level of activity or volume of production.

Break-Even Point

The level of sales at which total revenues equal total costs, resulting in no profit or loss for the business.

Variable Costs

Costs that vary directly with the level of production or service activity, such as materials and labor.