Trust is an essential component of markets—it’s so essential that we often don’t even notice it, as a fish doesn’t notice water. In developed economies, enablers of trust are everywhere: brands, money-back guarantees, and of course repeat transactions with a seller who can be easily located. But the new sharing economy lacks those enablers. Why should we get into a stranger’s car—or buy a stranger’s laser pointer? In 1997, eBay introduced a feature that helped solve the problem: Seller Feedback.
