Every few weeks, it seems, I hear about a new study that reveals how online brand conversations are increasingly influencing consumer buying behavior.

FORBES: RIP Word of Mouth?

By a three-to-one margin, consumer reviews (77 percent) trump editorial reviews (23 percent) in influencing consumer electronics buying behavior.

FORBES: Five Rules For Building Engagement With Product Reviews

"An insurer could contend that a subscription to 'Hang Gliding Monthly' is predictive of highly dangerous behavior, but I'm not buying that theory: The consumer may be getting the magazine for the pictures, " says Thomas Considine, New Jersey's commissioner of banking and insurance.

WSJ: Insurers Test Data Profiles to Identify Risky Clients

And so we believe -- and I think this is what consumer behavior is showing -- that people are taking that into account in terms of their buying habits.

WHITEHOUSE: Press Briefing