Question

" Vi-Lasata!I can't believe it--a Vi-Lasata!” —You see some attractive young ladies looking at a sweater in a department store and you listen to their conversation:

“ Vi-Lasata is almost impossible to find. Isn't it beautiful? And it's a lot cheaper than the one Terry bought in Rome."

When they leave, you go over to see this unbelievable sweater. It's nice and the price is right.You've never heard of Vi-Lasata, but those girls looked really stylish. They must know. So, you buy it. You never realize that those young women are employees of an advertising agency. They are actually paid to go from store to store, talking loudly about Vi-Lasata clothes.

Every day we notice what people are wearing, driving and eating. If the person looks cool, the product seems cool, too. This is the secret of undercover （暗中影響的）marketing. Companies from Ford to Nike are starting to use it.

Undercover marketing is important because it reaches people that don't pay attention to traditional advertising. This is particularly true of the “thumb generation” -- consumers between the age of 18 and 34. It is a golden group. They have a lot of money to spend, but they don't trust ads.

So advertising agencies hire young actors to "perform" in bars and other places where young adults go. Some people might call this practice cheating, but marketing director Jonathan Ressler calls it creativity. "Look at traditional advertising. Its effectiveness is falling."

However, one might ask what exactly is "real" about of young women pretending to be enthusiastic about a sweater? Advertising agent would say it's no less real than an ad. The difference is that you know an ad is trying to persuade you to buy something. You don't know when a conversation you overhear is just a performance.

1.Vi-Lasata is __________.

A. a very popular department store

B. the brand name of a sweater

C. a clothing company in Rome

D. an advertising agency

2.The attractive young women were talking so that they could ________.

A. get the sweater at a lower price

B. be heard by people around

C. be admired by other shoppers

D. decide on buying the sweater

3.Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?

A. Traditional advertising is becoming less effective as it's too direct.

B. The “ thumb generation” tends to be more easily influenced by ads.

C. The two girls are in fact clerks in the Vi-Lasata Company.

D. Undercover marketing is surely against the law in that country.

4.Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

A. Performance in Shops B. Vi-Lasata Sweaters

C. Ways of Advertising D. Undercover Marketing

Answer 1

1.B

2.B

3.A

4.D

【解析】

本文通過一個案例向讀者證明過去的廣告已經過時，一種新的營銷方式出現，它不同于欺騙，正在不知不覺中影響著我們的選擇。它就是 undercover marketing.

1. see some attractive young ladies looking at a sweater in a department store 你看到一些時髦的年輕女士盯著商店的一件毛衣�？芍猇i-Lasata是毛衣故選B

2. never realize that those young women are employees of an advertising agency. They are actually paid to go from store to store, talking loudly about Vi-Lasata clothes.你不會意識到這些年輕的女生是廣告機構的雇員，他們實際上付費雇傭走到各家商店門前，大聲談論Vi-Lasata衣服。故選B

3. They have a lot of money to spend, but they don't trust ads.他們有很多可以花的錢，但是他們不相信廣告。可得知傳統的廣告方式不被信任。故選A

4.

考點：考察說明文閱讀