A toothpaste ad comes on. A man in a white coat smiles from a bright clinic. Recommended by dentists, says the screen.
A week later at the shop, one tube costs ₹60. The one from the ad costs ₹95.
The ₹95 tube goes in the basket.
You never learnt his name, or whether he’d ever treated a tooth. The coat did the talking.
What’s going on
This is authority bias: we give extra weight to what someone in authority says, and often follow it without checking.
Advertisers worked this out long ago. In 1946, Camel’s ads told Americans that more doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette. For six years, a smiling man in a white coat filled the back cover of Life. The same ads ran in medical journals.
The company said it had asked 113,597 doctors. It never explained how.
It didn’t need to. A doctor holding a cigarette said more than any slogan could.
Think of the ISI mark
Nobody tests a pressure cooker before buying it. You look for the ISI mark and trust it. Most marks are real, which is exactly why fake ones work.
A mark only means something if someone checked behind it. A title is a mark on a person.
Where you’ll spot it
- Celebrity ads. A cricketer recommends a paint, a phone or an insurance plan. He’s an expert at cricket, but the trust travels with the face.
- The red beacon. A lal batti on a car’s roof used to clear traffic. India banned VIP beacons in 2017. The people inside didn’t change. They just stopped looking important.
- “Forwarded by a doctor.” A WhatsApp health tip feels true once it mentions AIIMS. Nobody asks which doctor.
- “Digital arrest” calls. Fraudsters pose as CBI or police officers on video calls and demand money. In 2024, India’s cybercrime centre reminded people: police don’t arrest anyone on a video call.
The catch
Trusting experts is usually wise. The trouble starts when the costume stands in for the credentials, or when an expert speaks outside their field.
How to use it, and how to resist it
If you’re selling, show the proof, not the costume: a real name, a licence number, a result anyone can check.
If you’re buying, slow down and ask two questions:
- Is this person an expert in this exact thing?
- Would I believe it if a stranger in a T-shirt said it?
A white coat is a reason to listen. It’s never a reason to stop checking.
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