G’day everyone,

I’m currently in Egypt, cruising down the Nile river, while I write this. I should probably be enjoying my travels but I just couldn’t help documenting an interesting experience I believe to be worth sharing.

If you’ve ever been to Egypt, like many parts of the world, you’re guaranteed to find local markets in which vendors practically wrestle their wares into your hands and your wallet from your fanny pack.

Generally you’ll barter down their astronomical starting price of $50 USD to something more reasonable for a faux ivory carving of a little smiling old man holding a boot. Considering the probable cost to them, they’re typically happy for settling for the fist full of change you fish from a pocket.

If you don’t want something or think it’s still too much, they will always persist until you tell them firmly, and somewhat severely, that you are not now, nor will you ever be, interested in their baubles – or you take the path of least resistance and simply buy it to move on with your life (sucker!).

That being said, the lesson here is not about being persistent. Though as I look up at the little old man holding his boot, staring at me with a silly grin, I suppose it’s still worth noting.

The real lesson is about leveraging trust, which struck me as I returned to the boat.

Even though you can get some amazing deals with herculean bartering skills, it’s still pretty hard to trust the vendors of a market like this when they tout the quality and superiority of their wares. If they assure me the leather is 100% genuine and hand-made no less, how can I be sure when they’ll part with it for a fraction of their starting price?

Yet, I had no problem making similar purchases within the little store onboard the cruise ship earlier in my trip. Passing by when re-boarding I recognized a garment that looked just like something I saw in the local market, though with a much higher price tag. Upon closer inspection I was surprised to see it was the very same.

Come to find out this was the same merchant who had a stall in the local market.

The majority of travelers, myself included, didn’t bat an eye when making purchases from the onboard shop thus far. We didn’t bother trying to haggle. We didn’t second guess the origins, quality or claims made by the merchant.

Why not?

Well it came down to trust.

We all paid good money to spend our time on a fancy cruise ship with high-quality service. Why wouldn’t the merchandise on board be the same amazing quality?

We trusted the travel company we’d engaged. And that trust was leveraged quite effectively by the small merchant who saw an opportunity. An opportunity to capitalize on the trust afforded the larger company that had spent thousands of dollars to obtain it.

Egypt has accomplished amazing feats in its time yet in my opinion this single experience is as impressive to me as the pyramids. Probably more profitable too.

I had to tip my hat to this enterprising entrepreneur. Price gouging aside, which I’m definitely not recommending, he found the opportunity and he struck.

There are opportunities all around us.

For instance, the Mythical Media team’s consolidated credibility is greatly tied to the names of our historical endeavors.

• We’ve sat with Mastercard, Visa, Discover and American Express to craft global policy on eCommerce initiatives.
• Costco, Best Buy, Walmart, EA, Sony, Lego and LA Fitness are all entities we’ve worked with to help improve their online campaigns.
• Thousands of hours of software development management has been accumulated within the walls of Blizzard Entertainment, one of the worlds leading digital entertainment publishers.
• Thousands of hours have been poured into the creation of eCommerce and personal websites for hundreds of individuals, all willing to lend us their names, and in turn their credibility.

Do you trust us more or less now?

Start looking at organizations within your market, where you have experience and who you’ve worked with as a form of social credibility. Spend some time to consider the potential opportunities to leverage the trust they’ve built with their audience and yours and then make sure your audience knows about it.