Research Note--The Value of Third-Party Assurance Seals in Online Retailing: An Empirical Investigation

Author List: Özpolat, Koray; Gao, Guodong (Gordon); Jank, Wolfgang; Viswanathan, Siva;
Information Systems Research, 2013, Volume 24, Issue 4, Page 1100-1111.
Third-party quality assurance seals have emerged as a prominent mechanism to reduce uncertainty and increase purchase conversion in online markets. However, systematic studies of the effectiveness of these seals are scarce. In this study, we exploit a unique data set of 9,098 shopping sessions at an online retailer's website to empirically measure the value and effectiveness of assurance seals on the likelihood of purchase by shoppers. The data set is collected from a randomized field experiment conducted by a large seal provider, which enables us to infer the causal impacts of the presence of an assurance seal. We find strong evidence that the presence of the assurance seal increases the likelihood of purchase conversion. We discuss the implications of our findings for online retailers, third-party certifiers, policymakers, and researchers.
Keywords: electronic commerce;online certification;online assurance seals;trust seals;information asymmetry;field experiments
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#247 0.335 online evidence offline presence empirical large assurance likely effect seal place synchronous population sites friends increases isomorphism rewards drop intermediaries
#262 0.194 impact data effect set propensity potential unique increase matching use selection score results self-selection heterogeneity evidence measure associated estimate leads
#118 0.141 online consumers consumer product purchase shopping e-commerce products commerce website electronic results study behavior experience b2c impact internet purchases websites
#51 0.129 results study research experiment experiments influence implications conducted laboratory field different indicate impact effectiveness future participants evidence test controlled involving
#202 0.092 online uncertainty reputation sellers buyers seller marketplaces markets marketplace buyer price signaling auctions market premiums ebay transaction reverse literature comments