Definition: What is Buyer Rating?

Buyer Rating is a system used by online marketplaces to rate, categorize, and review the purchasing behavior and reliability of buyers. In essence, it reveals the trustworthiness of the buyer mainly for the benefit of sellers. While majority of marketplaces tend to focus on 'Seller Ratings,' some platforms find it beneficial to also gauge the credibility of their buyers.

Function: How Does Buyer Rating Work?

Online marketplaces that have a buyer rating system employ it to monitor and evaluate purchasing behaviors of buyers in their community. This could involve assessing their promptness in making payments, their return, and cancellation history, their responsiveness during transaction discussions, and more, generating a score or rating in the process.

This rating enables the marketplace to identify responsible buyers which could be advantageous for high-demand products. In such cases, the sellers can provide a preference to buyers with a higher rating ensuring a smooth and safe transaction.

Example: Buyer Rating in Practice

Take, for example, an online marketplace that sells rare collector's items. These items are high-value and often have multiple interested buyers. The seller, in such a scenario, would prefer to sell to a buyer who has a history of prompt payments and lesser instances of return or cancellations.

In such a situation, if John has a buyer rating of 4.7 (out of 5), demonstrating his excellent purchasing behavior, while Lisa only has a rating of 2.5, the seller would be naturally inclined to prioritize John over Lisa for the transaction. Throughout this process, John's high buyer rating acted as a certification of his trustworthiness.

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