We probably aren't aware of how strong it is, but "word of mouth" has a pretty big influence over where and what we buy. In the world of online shopping, "word of mouth" is rapidly taking the shape of social shopping. The New York Times today writes about these sites that allow people to sign up, create profiles, recommend products, and discover new products that have been recommended by other users. These sites have taken the act of simply purchasing on an online shopping site and turned it into the real act of shopping the way we do in real life -- browsing, looking, stumbling upon new things, talking about products. But, you don't buy anything from these sites.

Though the sites offer the same basic functionalities, they differ in look-and-feel and some other features. Here are the sites that are out there now:

• ThisNext.com
• StyleHive.com
• StyleFeeder.com
• Crowdstorm.com
  
• kaboodle