Large businesses have big budgets for marketing and promotion. As a result, people gravitate towards buying their products. What problems does this cause? What could be done to encourage people to buy local products?
Sample Response
The dominance of large corporations in marketing and product promotion has significantly influenced consumer purchasing habits, often drawing them away from local businesses. While this trend enhances brand recognition and global reach, it poses several economic and cultural challenges. This essay will discuss the problems arising from consumers prioritizing big-brand products over local alternatives and suggest measures to encourage the purchase of locally made goods.
One major issue stemming from the overwhelming presence of large businesses is the economic struggle faced by small and local enterprises. These businesses often lack the financial capacity to compete with the massive advertising campaigns of multinational corporations. For example, in many countries, local grocery stores have been forced to shut down due to the expansion of multinational supermarket chains that attract customers with lower prices and extensive product variety.
Another consequence of this trend is the loss of cultural diversity. Many large corporations offer standardized products that cater to global markets, which can overshadow traditional industries and unique cultural goods. For instance, handmade textile businesses in India and Southeast Asia have seen a decline in demand due to the availability of cheaper, factory-made clothing from international brands.
To promote local businesses, governments can introduce policies that provide financial and logistical support to small enterprises. Tax incentives, subsidies, and grants can help local businesses lower their production costs, making their products more competitive. Additionally, governments can regulate advertising spaces to ensure that smaller businesses receive adequate exposure. For example, some European cities have implemented “Buy Local” campaigns, offering incentives to residents who shop at local stores instead of large retail chains. Another effective measure is raising public awareness about the benefits of purchasing local goods. Community-based events, cultural festivals, and educational programs can highlight the economic and social value of supporting local businesses. For instance, farmers’ markets and craft fairs have gained popularity in many Western countries, allowing consumers to engage directly with local producers and appreciate the quality of their products.
In conclusion, while the strong marketing influence of large businesses poses economic and cultural challenges for local enterprises, several strategies can help counterbalance this trend. Government policies, public awareness campaigns, and incentives can encourage consumers to support local businesses, preserving cultural heritage and fostering economic growth within communities.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Clarify source of dominance Original: in Suggested revision: through Why it matters: “Through” makes marketing the means of achieving dominance rather than the field in which it exists.
- 2. Use natural brand term Original: big Suggested revision: major Why it matters: The replacement is a more conventional way to describe products from large brands.
- 3. Use concise pressure phrase Original: economic struggle faced by Suggested revision: economic pressure on Why it matters: The replacement expresses the burden on small enterprises directly.
- 4. Use resources phrase Original: capacity Suggested revision: resources Why it matters: “Financial resources” is the more precise term for the funds available to compete.
- 5. Use neutral scale term Original: massive advertising campaigns Suggested revision: large-scale advertising campaigns Why it matters: The replacement describes scale more objectively.
- 6. Use natural range phrase Original: extensive product variety Suggested revision: a wide product range Why it matters: “A wide product range” is the standard collocation.
- 7. Specify cultural distinction Original: unique cultural goods Suggested revision: culturally distinctive goods Why it matters: The adjective phrase states more precisely how the goods differ.
- 8. Use singular space concept Original: spaces Suggested revision: space Why it matters: “Advertising space” is generally uncountable when referring to available promotional capacity.
- 9. Use visibility phrase Original: receive adequate exposure Suggested revision: gain adequate visibility Why it matters: The replacement describes market visibility more naturally.
- 10. Use parallel infinitive Original: Another effective measure is raising Suggested revision: Another effective measure is to raise Why it matters: The infinitive aligns with the earlier policy recommendations.
- 11. Use direct response verb Original: counterbalance Suggested revision: counteract Why it matters: “Counteract” more directly expresses reducing the trend’s effects.
Suggested Rewrites
- in through
- big major
- economic struggle faced by economic pressure on
- capacity resources
- massive advertising campaigns large-scale advertising campaigns
- extensive product variety a wide product range
Why this response received Band 8.5
The essay fully addresses both questions with well-developed economic and cultural problems and a substantial range of practical policy and awareness measures, all supported by relevant examples. Organisation and language are consistently strong; the main refinement is that the long solutions paragraph could distinguish government support from consumer-awareness measures more sharply and explain how advertising regulation would work without unfairly restricting competition.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
Both the problems and solutions are fully explored through relevant economic, cultural, regulatory, financial, and awareness-based ideas with specific support.
As a refinement, explain the mechanism and feasibility of regulating advertising space so the proposal is as convincing as the subsidy and awareness measures.
Coherence and Cohesion
The essay progresses logically from two distinct problems to a comprehensive solution section and conclusion, with effective cohesion throughout.
Split the lengthy solution paragraph into government support and public-awareness paragraphs to give each set of measures equal structural emphasis.
Lexical Resource
A wide, precise, and natural range covers consumer behaviour, multinational competition, cultural goods, incentives, logistics, and community development.
Maintain this precision while avoiding minor repetition of "local businesses" by using contextually clear alternatives such as "small producers" or "local enterprises."
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Complex structures are varied, accurate, and consistently well controlled, with only negligible lapses in an otherwise polished response.
For maximum concision, shorten a few heavily modified sentences in the solution section without reducing their analytical detail.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Large businesses have big budgets for marketing and promotion. As a result, people gravitate towards buying their products. What problems does this cause? What could be done to encourage people to buy local products?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.