One of Mad Blog’s favourite reads, Contagious, has identified an interesting trend in the latest edition of its Small But Perfectly Formed survey. Faced with a wealth of information, it says, consumers are relying on “trusted filters” to provide them with the stuff they really need to know – whether it’s the greatest gigs, the best bargains or the essential news from social media.

SBPF is a regular round-up of start-ups or companies that “punch above their weight”. This time, Contagious identifies five filters that we should all be aware of. We’ve re-filtered them for your reading pleasure and divided them into three espresso-sized posts.

1. Songkick

Ever felt the urge to see some live music, but had no idea who’s playing? This UK and US service was founded by three friends who were fed up with trawling the web to find a gig worth seeing. They discovered that 40% of concert tickets went unsold, purely because music fans didn’t even know they were available.

Users of the service provide a list of their favourite artists. Songkick gathers data from more than 100 ticketing sites and alerts users when a gig matches their favourites. The alert comes with a link to the ticket vendor. Songkick takes a commission from the resulting sale. Obviously, it rocks.
www.songkick.com

2. Nuji

There are many ways of finding a bargain on the web, but few of them are as simple as Nuji.

When you’re out and about in the world, you see an object you might like to buy. Using an app on your phone, you take a picture of the product and add it to the wish list on your Nuji profile. Then wait to be alerted about special offers concerning your desired object. You can also browse other members’ selections and share your wish list on Facebook Connect. It’s an online shopping site with a mobile heart and a social soul.
www.nuji.com