Too Long; Didn't Read
When dealing with unfamiliar people, places, and companies, reputation can be powerful. Having a good reputation oneself will lead others to treat us more favorably, and we are more willing to deal with people and business which are themselves well-reputed. The role and importance of reputation in markets has been known by economists since at least the 1970’s, with George Akerlof famously defining the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Market_for_Lemons" target="_blank">“Market for Lemons”</a>, describing how a market can fail when participants cannot properly gauge the quality of the offerings.