Last year, I purchased Yes!: 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive. It just dawned on me that book put a name to the practice I have been following for several decades: social proof. When visiting a Chinese restaurant for the first time, what’s the most important factor you should consider? Not the menu. Not the region of the cuisine. The most important factor is the clientele. That, more than anything, tells me what type of Chinese food the restaurant serves and whether the food will be to my taste.