A location answer needs three parts for each factor: the feature of the place, the evidence for it, and what it does for the activity. A bare list earns little.
This lesson is part of primary, secondary and tertiary activities. The same skill across the whole chapter is in explaining location factors.
What does a linked factor look like?
Write it as: factor, evidence, effect. “The site has a highway (factor), 2 km from the gate (evidence), so lorries reach the port quickly and delivery cost falls (effect).”
The effect is the part most students skip. Without it, the marker cannot tell whether you understand why the factor matters.
Worked example: where to build a furniture factory
This is an original scenario. A furniture factory is planned at Site M, and the question gives five facts.
| Stated fact | Factor type | Effect on the factory |
|---|---|---|
| Timber estate 15 km away | Raw material | Short haul keeps log cost low |
| Large town 8 km away | Labour | Workers can travel daily |
| Sealed road to a port 60 km away | Transport | Finished goods can be exported |
| Flat land, RM30 per square metre | Land | Cheap space for large sheds |
| Power line at the site boundary | Energy | Machines can run without a generator |
Now write a linked answer for two marks: “The timber estate is 15 km away, so logs travel a short distance and raw material cost is low. The sealed road to a port 60 km away lets the factory export furniture without long delays on rough roads.”
The mistake that loses marks
The weak version is “The site has timber, workers and roads”. Each word is correct, but nothing is explained or evidenced.
| Weak | Strong |
|---|---|
| Near timber. | The timber estate is 15 km away, so log transport is cheap. |
| Has workers. | A large town is 8 km away, which gives a nearby labour supply. |
To check an answer, read each sentence and ask “so what?”. If the sentence does not answer that, add the effect.
How do I rank the factors?
When a question asks for the most important factor, pick the one the activity cannot do without. For a furniture factory, heavy and bulky timber makes the raw material factor the strongest.
Then justify it: “Timber is bulky and costly to haul, so the factory needs to be near the estate more than near customers.” This answer uses only the stated facts. The map and graph reading practice gives you more facts to work from.
Check yourself
A fish-processing plant is offered a site with these facts: a jetty 1 km away, a refrigerated road to the city 90 km away, no nearby housing, and an electricity supply. Write two linked factors.
Answer
Raw material access: the jetty is 1 km away, so fish are landed and moved quickly, which keeps them fresh. Transport: the refrigerated road to the city lets chilled products reach the market in good condition.
The lack of nearby housing is a limit, since workers may need transport, which the facts do not cover.
What to study next
Compare sectors fairly in comparing two sectors using compatible measures. For a teacher to mark your location answers line by line, see online one-to-one Geography tuition.