Why are we no longer doing a weekly supermarket shop? How come none of us can resist a bargain? Why is posh packaging becoming so important for online retailers and how are our communities shaping the way we buy?

ASOS is adding a visual search tool to its iOS app in the UK so that shoppers can easily snap up items they see on friends and strangers – online or off. With around a third of people preferring to shop via smartphones, the move looks to make the mobile experience even more efficient.

Pinterest has announced a number of new features that will make shopping even easier on both its web and mobile versions. This new functionality might even bring it up to speed with e-tailers like Amazon and push it ahead of its key social competitors, Facebook and Twitter.

Millions of people already use Pinterest to discover things they like; from crafts to clothing. The social pinning site has now unveiled Buyable Pins, finally letting users take the next step to buy those things. With Pinterest becoming more of a shopping hub, can it pin this market down?