Critic-buyer effects on valuation of ambiguously appraised products

Valuation in markets of ambiguously appraised products is often performed by a group of recognized experts using centralized evaluation frameworks. Current business practices and technologies allow these participants to fluidly switch their role from evaluator to consumer. We name participants who occupy both roles as critic-buyer. We draw on the theories of the role transition and endowment effects to theorize the effects of critic-buyers on the final price of goods. We further posit that critics' participation tends to evolve into a network of critic-buyers, which also affects price. We build an affiliation network of critics and test whether centrality in this network relates to final price. Using data from a specialty coffee sales platform, our results show that the transition of critics to critic-buyers positively affects prices by reinforcing these participants' commitment to the product. Therefore, this transition should be encouraged.