Tech gift-guide combines advertising with reviews

If you're looking for another way to interact with consumers as the holiday shopping season opens, consider a new platform from NetShelter Technology Media. The platform is a technology gift guide, giving consumers information about brands and products but also gives these brands and businesses the ability to interact with the consumer base through a dedicated blog.

by Kristina Knight

The blog, "Top Tech Gifts: An Expert Guide to Holiday Shopping 2008" launches on November 3, several weeks before Black Friday, the traditional opening to holiday shopping in the US.

The blog gives brands the ability to talk to consumers by aggregating give bloggers - Eric Zeman from phonescoop.com, Vincent Nguyen from Slashgear.com, Steve Sun from TechEBlog, Luiki Lugmayre from i4U and Mark Goldstein from photographyblog.com. Consumers receive reviews by the bloggers from TopTechGifts.com; each of these runs a banner ad to promote the sponsor.

"Sponsors get a page to list products and demonstrate their personality," said Peyman Nilforoush, CEO of NetShelter. "We want to help marketers build a two-way conversation with consumers and be part of providing and highlighting information."

Consumers are invited to give their two cents, as well, basically making the blog an open forum for consumers to rank and rate products. With the current social climate online, this could spell the difference for marketers because consumers are known for listening to online recommendations rather than pure advertisements.