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Social Shopping and the Survival of the Fittest

What do you get when you combine an online craze like social networking with a more traditional pastime like shopping? Lots of good advice and some great products you may not have found otherwise. Thanks to the Internet’s ability to harness the knowledge of the masses, a number of new sites are cropping-up to provide consumers with better choice when it comes to buying goods online.

As Saul Hansell from the New York Times reports, little known retailers who are struggling to compete against the big guns like Macys, Target and Wal-Mart are now getting some much-welcome attention through the new ‘social shopping’ phenomenon, which entails gathering people in one place to swap ideas and provide suggestions on the best products to purchase.

But will these new methods of finding wares online truly enable the little guys to compete with the giants? Especially in light of the fact that what some call “the chaining of America” is in full throttle?

Sure, people want the ability to buy products that are unique – who wants to wear the same outfit or own the same couch as their neighbor – but are they willing to go to sometimes great lengths online to find that special deal?

A recent report in the UK suggests that they are, saying that the Internet is slowly moving to kill offline retailers. But, I’m still not convinced that people are motivated enough to spend the time needed on their computers to make physical stores a thing of the past. Not when they can get the benefits of social shopping offline in stores like Gap’s Forth and Towne. And besides, shopping online takes the fun out of the game – you can’t touch, feel, try on or really see what you’re buying.

No matter what happens to the world of shopping as we know it today, rest assured that both online and offline retailers are dreaming up new ways to entice us, and to make both experiences more enjoyable – or so we hope. All in time to capitalize on this year’s holiday buying frenzy. 

The New Everywhere TV Nation

I've been hearing a lot about Slingbox over the past few weeks. Sounds like something my four-year-old son would love and he might, but not for what you're thinking - there will be no rock slinging in my backyard. But because if we had one, he could bring his favorite TV shows with him next time we embark on a family vacation.

Until yesterday, Slingbox, which provides the ability to watch local channels or other programs recorded on your TiVo even if you're far, far away from home, required a laptop for viewing. But as David Pogue from The New York Times, among others reported, Slingbox has now gone mobile. That means anyone with a Windows Mobile cellphone or palmtop and high-speed Internet access can watch their home TV shows anywhere they can make a phone call.

Does this news mark another milestone in the great move towards personalization - the ability to have what we want anytime and anywhere we want it, including our TV shows? Or, does it solidify the fact that we're too preoccupied with the boob tube? Jennifer Anniston seems to agree with the latter. But, according to Nielsen Media Research, Americans don't concede her view. Recent studies show that an average U.S. home has the TV on for 7 hours, 40 minutes per day (doesn't anyone work?) and that more than 50% of U.S. households own three or more televisions. Wow. This notion is supported by the recent boom in flat-panel TV sales.

Whether or not it's true that we watch too much TV, you can bet consumer electronics companies and TV networks have just begun to scratch the surface in relation to what and where they'll hit us with new offerings. And, they'll be banking on the fact that it's all a matter of personal (even more and more personal) preference.