MARKETING RESEARCH 

Showing ‘production enjoyment’ lets online sellers charge more

By our African Marketing Confederation News Team | 2024

Customers using peer-to-peer online marketplaces will pay higher prices if it’s clear that the seller enjoys what they’re creating. 

Researchers from three academic institutions have identified a cue that consumers interpret as a signal of quality in peer-to-peer online marketplaces such as Etsy, the global e-commerce website selling handmade or vintage craft items. 

Photo: Pixabay 

They have called it ‘production enjoyment’, which is a signal of how much a seller enjoys making a product or providing a service. 

 

The research team from Tilburg University in the Netherlands, and Lehigh and Northwestern universities in the US, found that online buyers interpret obvious production enjoyment as a signal of a high-quality product or service and are willing to pay up to 10% more for this. 

 

Their study has been published in the American Marketing Association’s peer-reviewed Journal of Marketing. 

 

“Buyers interpret production enjoyment as a signal of a high-quality product or service. After all, someone who enjoys making jewellery or loves painting probably spends more time and focus on it than someone who does not,” explains Danny Zane, Associate Professor of Marketing at Lehigh. 

 

“[Customers] are therefore willing to pay more for it, even compared to other signals of quality, such as efficiency and effort.” 

 

Valuable in peer-to-peer marketplaces 

 

The researchers say production enjoyment is a particularly valuable cue in peer-to-peer marketplaces, where other cues such as brand power are less present and it’s clear that the same person is both making and selling the item or providing the service. 

 

This effect is enhanced in settings when the product or service also requires a high level of skill. 

 

Interestingly, the research team found that less than 1% of Etsy seller profiles signal production enjoyment. Further, they found that sellers often charge less for products and services they enjoy producing, in some cases up to 15% less. 

 

Zane’s advice to these sellers in online marketplaces: “While they might already feel like they are getting some inherent value from doing something they really enjoy … sellers shouldn’t allow this to lead them to demand less monetary compensation. In fact, they might be able to profit most.” 

 

You can find out more about the research here. 

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    Dr Kin Kariisa

    Group CEO - Next Media

    Dr. Kin Kariisa is an extraordinary force at the helm of Next Media Services, a conglomerate encompassing NBS TV, Nile Post, Sanyuka TV, Next Radio, Salam TV, Next Communication, Next Productions, and an array of other influential enterprises. His dynamic role as Chief Executive Officer exemplifies his unwavering commitment to shaping media, business, and community landscapes.
    With an esteemed academic journey, Dr. Kariisa’s accolades include an Honorary PhD in exemplary community service from the United Graduate College inTexas, an MBA from United States International University in Nairobi, Kenya, a Master’s degree in Computer Engineering from Huazong University in China, and a Bachelor’s degree in Statistics from Makerere University.
    Dr. Kariisa pursued PhD research in Computer Security and Identity Management at Security of Systems Group, Radboud University in Nijmegen, Netherlands. As a dynamic educator, he has shared his expertise as a lecturer of e-Government and Information Security at both Makerere University and Radboud University.

    Dr Kin did his PhD research in Computer Security and Identity Management at Security of Systems Group, Radbond University in Nigmegen, Netherlands. He previously served as a lecturer of e-Government and Information Security at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda and Radbond University in Netherlands.

    Dr Kin did his postgraduate courses in Strategic Business Management, Strategic Leadership Communication and Strategies for Leading Successful Change Initiatives at Harvard University, Boston USA.

    • Other current and previous roles played by Dr Kin Kariisa:
    • Lecturer of e-Government and Information Security to graduate students at Makerere University, Kampala and Radbond University in the Netherlands
    • Director of Eco Bank Uganda Limited, one of the largest banks in Africa
    • Chairman of the National Association of Broadcasters, an umbrella industry association for all Television, Radio and online broadcasters in Uganda.
    • Chairman of Board of Directors of Nile Hotel International, that owns the leading hotel in Uganda, Kampala Serena Hotel.
    • Chairman of Board of Directors of Soliton Telmec Uganda, the leading telecom company in Optic fibre business managing over 80% of optic fibre in Uganda.