Demo: Get quick shopping feedback with Gumhoo

Gumhoo, which gathers opinions about shopping lists from social connections, launched today at VentureBeat’s Demo Fall 2011 conference.

The company runs a web application which adds a “Gumhoo” button to shopping sites. Users can “Gumhoo” a product and request feedback from social connections through sites like Facebook and get feedback on whether they should buy the product or not. If the users isn’t shopping online, they can take a photo of the product through the company’s iPhone or Android mobile application and request feedback through those same social channels.

Rather than ask all of your friends on Facebook, Gumhoo is designed to help you create a specific group of friends from your social circle that can help with the purchase. Think of it as something similar to Google’s own Circles feature in its latest social network, Google+.

“We believe that people only want input from people they trust, rather than shop assistants, generated comments on shopping sites and so on,” Gumhoo chief executive Tai Ku Chen told VentureBeat. “Our service is also fully customizable, meaning that if you are designing a wedding registry, you can invite only those friends who really know what they’re talking about, rather than your uncle, classmate or some guy you met on vacation once.”

Chen founded the company, which is based in Taipei, Taiwan, this year. It has four employees so far. Gumhoo is bootstrapped with funding from the founders’ families and friends, but Chen said he might soon raise a round of seed funding.

Gumhoo is one of 80 companies chosen by VentureBeat to launch at the DEMO Fall 2011 event taking place this week in Silicon Valley. After our selection, the companies pay a fee to present. Our coverage of them remains objective.

Photo: Demo Conference/Flickr