Barriers to Market Access: Experimental Tests of Supply- and Demand-Side Strategies

Last registered on January 22, 2026

View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title

Barriers to Market Access: Experimental Tests of Supply- and Demand-Side Strategies

RCT ID

AEARCTR-0017470

Initial registration date

January 19, 2026

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published

January 22, 2026, 1:54 PM EST

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country

Georgia

Region

Primary Investigator

Name

Adam Osman

Affiliation

University of Illinois - Urbana Champaign

Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status

Completed

Start date

2018-01-01

End date

2025-03-01

Keywords

Firms & Productivity

Additional Keywords

JEL code(s)

Secondary IDs

Prior work

This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.

Abstract

This study investigates why small businesses in the country of Georgia are not using digital markets, despite having internet access. We test two different approaches: a supply-side approach: providing free training on how to use digital platforms versus a demand-side approach: offering a guaranteed purchase order that requires the business to process the transaction online.

External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation

Osman, Adam. 2026. "Barriers to Market Access: Experimental Tests of Supply- and Demand-Side Strategies." AEA RCT Registry. January 22. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.17470-1.0

Sponsors & Partners

Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)

Intervention (Hidden)

Intervention Start Date

2019-05-01

Intervention End Date

2022-06-01

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)

Whether the business is listing and selling their goods or services online.

Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)

Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

This study employs a two-part randomized controlled trial to isolate supply- and demand-side barriers to technology adoption. In the first phase (Supply-Side), firms are randomly assigned to either a control group or a treatment group that receives specialized, in-person training on using digital platforms (such as Google, Facebook, and e-commerce sites) to increase business visibility and sales. In the second phase (Demand-Side), firms are randomly assigned to receive a conditional purchase order—a guaranteed sale that requires them to list their products online within two weeks—or to a control group. To test sensitivity to financial incentives, the value of this guaranteed order is randomized between a low and high amount. These are two separate experiments that happened at different times. There is some overlap in sample across the two experiments.

Experimental Design Details

Randomization Method

Randomization don in office by a computer.

Randomization Unit

Randomization at the firm level

Was the treatment clustered?

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters

936

Sample size: planned number of observations

936 firms

Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms

638 firms in training treatment
220 firms in training control

76 firms in large demand shock
76 firms in small demand shock
131 firms as demand shock controls

Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)

Supporting Documents and Materials

IRB