[RP TownTalk] Recommended mechanics? & Dentist rec?

[Nicholas Laureys]

This is a comment on human behavior, not a recommendation for a business, so
if you're just looking for an awesome mechanic or dentist, skip this
message.

I'm not a psychologist, so maybe someone out there in list-serv land can
help me.  It boggles my mind that people trust third parties not involved in
economic transactions so much more than the seller, often without verifying
the trustworthiness or expertise of that third party at all!

I got so frustrated when I worked during my college days at Best Buy and
then Staples selling computers!  What happened so many times is that a
customer asked me a question about a product or computers in general, and
after/as I answered his/her question, another customer would begin to answer
the question.  What do you think happened?  The customer automatically
trusted the other customer's answers more than mine!  I've actually observed
this same phenomenon happening as a customer myself in different stores.

Think about it: many of us aren't mechanics or dentists, yet the OP's will
trust our recommendations more than any objective rating or report.  I just
don't get this preference for outsider rather than expert information.

Still looking for a great, trustworthy mechanic,


-- 
Nicholas Laureys
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