I just finished reading an article that spoke about a Carnegie Mellon University study that showed that people are willing to pay more to buy from an online retailer who makes their privacy policy clear.

The results stated that “people were more likely to buy from online merchants with good privacy policies, as identified by Privacy Finder and were also willing to pay about 60 cents extra on a $15 purchase when buying from a site with a privacy policy they liked” So if you are an E-Tailor, spend a little time on your privacy policy, make it easy to find and you can charge a little more for your product.

An interesting phenomenon showed that many although people have concerns about unscrupulous vendors who might misuse credit card information or spam them this privacy protection or zealousness goes out the door when are given the choice between privacy or lower prices or even the mere chance to win money.

I know that I have found some sites with amazing deals on electronics and I have chosen not to purchase from them because of their site design or privacy policy, and it was a heck of a lot more than 60 cents that I would have saved. I think people care about a site that feels legitimate and don’t honestly read the policies. Its good to have one but the differences in the actual policy will not make a person on the fence choose your site.

It comes down to good design, great pricing, value proposition, upfront shipping costs and your own secret sauce.

The original article can be read at Online shoppers will pay more for privacy.