IPA FE Subject A 2025 Question 18
A question IPA Japan published in 令和７年度 基本情報技術者試験 科目A 公開問題 問18, translated into English. ITPEC is based on the same exams.
In a merchandise sales business, which of the following is a measure necessary for making the long tail successful as a business?
Explanation
A rich assortment, with a large distribution center that keeps inventory and delivery costs down — the long tail earns from very many products that each sell little.
In the long tail, the many niche products with small sales each add up to a share of total sales that cannot be ignored. Profiting from them needs two things: an assortment far larger than a physical store's shelves can hold, usually sold online, and a way to stock and ship thousands of slow sellers cheaply, such as a large, efficient distribution center. If each slow seller costs more to store and deliver than it earns, the tail is a loss.
Answer (d)
Why not others:
- •(a) — a mall of famous brand stores relies on popular brands, the head of the sales curve, not the niche tail
- •(b) — a broad but shallow range of daily necessities in convenient locations sells best-selling staples; a shallow range is the opposite of the deep range of niche items the long tail needs
- •(c) — free local delivery from a store is a service to nearby shoppers; it neither widens the range nor lowers the cost of stocking niche items
Key rule: The long tail is many low-selling items adding up; it pays only with a huge assortment and low inventory and distribution costs, which is why it suits online retail.
Business Industry · AI-written, may contain errors
This question comes from the past questions IPA Japan publishes, translated into English by ITPEC Practice. ITPEC Practice is an independent study tool and is not affiliated with IPA or ITPEC. See the original paper (PDF) or Report an issue.