Respondents were asked “If a comparison-shopping site were to adopt
a 5-star rating system where 5-stars indicate the highest rating for an online
merchant, I would be comfortable buying from an Unfamiliar merchant
with an average rating of at least . . .” where answer choices ranged from
“2-stars” to “5-stars” with “1-star” increments. Additional answer options in- 2
cluded “Would not be comfortable regardless of the ratings” and “Other.”
Approximately 45% of the sample responded “4-stars” and another 17% indi-
cated “4 1 -stars.” Almost 12% chose “3 1 -stars” and 10% said “5-stars.” Almost 22
7% responded “Would not be comfortable regardless of the ratings.