P2: Assumption Testing

The key assumption I was testing was if people were willing to spend more for authenticity and/or ethically sourced goods. This is fundamental to the direction of our product as we are trying to make Amara more high-end with a streamlined product offering and luxury brand collaborations. We had the hypothesis that wealthy individuals spend more for authenticity and/or ethically sourced goods. 

I tested this with 2 tests:

•  A google survey where Stanford students were asked a series of questions about which product they would purchase looking at 2 product offerings with differences in description and price. The particular image for this survey compared two identical postings with one conveying authenticity and ethical sourcing for a higher price and one being a replica for a lower price.

  

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•  I posted on Reddit forums to get insights from actual sellers:
  • This was the post I used on r/AmazonSeller, r/EtsySeller/, and r/Ebay: 
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  • Here is a sampling of the responses from the reddit posts:

• • • r/Amazon Seller
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    • r/EtsySellers
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    • I did not get any significant responses on r/ebay

My key takeaway from these tests is that depending on the marketplace and its specific customer demographic, people are clearly willing to spend more for a more ethically sourced, authentic product. Sellers had insights that it made people feel better and were often huge selling points.