Appendix A: Complete Search and Platform Model

In this appendix, we develop and estimate a more complete model than the version presented in the main text. This more complete version more explicitly models the sequential search process where the user specifies a search strategy as a function of her preferences, decides which listings to click on to acquire additional information, and decides which of the clicked items to purchase, if any. We conclude this appendix by discussing how the model and its estimates relate to the baseline model we use in the main text, and why this simplified approach should capture the most important aspects of the platform design in our empirical context.