Question

Sparrow is a fast-food chain with 200 restaurants. Some years ago, the group to which Sparrow belonged was taken over by another company. Although Sparrow showed no sign of declining, the chain was generally in an unhealthy state. With more and more fast-food concepts reaching the market, the Sparrow menu had to struggle for attention. And to make matters worse, its new owner had no plans to give it the funds it required.

Sparrow failed to grow for another two years. Until a new CEO, Carl Pearson, decided to build up its market share. He did a survey, which showed that consumers who already used Sparrow restaurants were extremely positive about the chain, while customers of other fast-food chains were unwilling to turn away from them. Sparrow had to develop a new promotional campaign.

Pearson faced a battle over the future of the Sparrow brand. The chain’s owner now favored rebranding Sparrow as Marcy’s restaurants. Pearson resisted, arguing for an advertising campaign designed to convince customers that visits to Sparrow restaurants were fun. Such an attempt to establish a positive relationship between a company and the general public was unusual for that time. Pearson strongly believed that numbers were the key to success, rather than customers’ speeding power. Finally, the owner accepted his idea.

The campaign itself changed the traditional advertising style of the fast-food industry. The TV ads of Sparrow focused on entertainment and featured original sons performed by a variety of stars. Instead of showing the superiority of a specific product, the intension was to put Sparrow in the hearts of potential customers.

Pearson also made other decisions which he believed would contribute to the new Sparrow image. For example, he offered to lower the rent of any restaurants which achieved a certain increase in their turnover. (营业额)

These efforts paid off, and Sparrow soon became one of the most successful fast-food chains in the regions where it operated.

1.Which was one of the problems Sparrow faced before Pearson became CEO?

A. The number of its customers was declining

B. It was in need of financial support

C. Its customers found the food unhealthy

D. Most of its restaurants were closed

2.What does the underlined word “them” in Paragraph 2 refer to?

A. Customers of Sparrow restaurants

B. Sparrow restaurants

C. other fast-food chains

D. Customers of other fast-food chains

3.For what purpose did Pearson start the advertising campaign?

A. To stress the unusual tradition of Sparrow

B. To lean about customers; spending power.

C. To meet the challenge from Marcy’s restaurants.

D. To build a good relationship with the public

4.What was Pearson’s achievement as a CEO?

A. He made Sparrow much more competitive

B. He managed to pay off Sparrow’s debts.

C. He helped Sparrow take over a company

D. He improved the welfare of Sparrow employees

 

Answer 1

【答案】

 

1.B

2.C

3.D

4.A

【解析】

试题解析：故事类短文阅读，本文讲述的是一个快餐店从经营出现危机到新的CEO通过积极努力最终走向成功。

1.B把握关键句第一段中“Although Sparrow showed no sign of declining”排除A选项；“the chain was generally in an unhealthy state. ”中一个unhealthy成为选项C的干扰点。D选项无涉及，”And to make matters worse ,its new owner had no plans to give it the funds it required.” 由此可得答案C

2.C 把握关键句第二段中第二句He did a survey, which showed that consumers who already used Sparrow restaurants were extremely positive about the chain, while customers of other fast-food chains were unwilling to turn away from them.. 此处，turn away from 表示“从....处走开”，所以from之后应该表示主语的原始位置，所以应该是other fast-food chains所以C正确。

3.D 把握第三段中关键句:Pearson resisted, arguing for an advertising campaign designed to convince customers that visits to Sparrow restaurants were fun. Such an attempt to establish a positive relationship between a company and the general public was unusual for that time.”such an attempt to（表目的） establish a positive relationship between a company and the general public”直接定位到正确答案A

4.A把握最后一段These efforts paid off, and Sparrow soon became one of the most successful fast-food chains in the regions where it operated.“their efforts paid off”意为“他们的努力得到了回报”，而非偿清债务，所以排除选项A；C选项和D选项未涉及，因为“Sparrow soon became one of the most successful fast-food chains in the regions where it operated”所以正确答案是B；。

考点：考查故事类短文阅读。