Third-party endorsement is more credible!

In the Chinese context, it is said "卖花赞花香" - literally translated, it means "The florist would sing praises of her flowers". In the same way, most people would find that salesmen always say all the good things about the products they carry or sell, even though their products might not be the best in the market.

Traditionally, they are perceived to be biased in their presentation and recommendations. This happens because salesmen are known to represent and speak for the company they work for and are paid by the company for the sole purpose of marketing and selling the company's products. They are not impartial and independent in the way they evaluate and recommend the products for the customers.

Most people tend not to believe what the salesmen say, but might be sold by a third-party endorsement or recommendation or even friends. Hence, we see many company engage celebrities and some well-known public figure to advertisse or say a few nice words for them.

Some companies are smart enough to use word-of-mouth marketing or what is commonly called network marketing to market their products. This seems to be a more natural and convincing way to get the products across to the consumers because it is the friends who recommend the products to them. Friends usually trust what their friends say or recommend, but not the agents or salesmen. This is the fact of life.