Pikaba.com - Ask And You Shall Receive

Tis the the season for shopping, but the question remains: where do you start? If you’re looking for an alternative to your Woots and Kaboodles and kin, you might want to try Pikaba. Their tagline, ‘All you have to do is ask,’ says it all. At Pikaba you make requests and wait as merchants bid for your business. Think of it as a reverse auction. You pick the merchant with the best prices, offers, etc. It’s all up to you. Pikaba’s not just for gifts, either, if you need work done on your car, or need a new garden hose, post it on the site and wait for the bids to come rolling in. There’s also a built-in social network so you can receive recs from friends and see their requests. Each user is given profile space which means they’ll be able to get more tailored recommendations and even better deals from merchants. Membership is free.

“The concept behind Pikaba is simple: You post requests for auto parts, books, baby strollers, vacations—just about anything. Review your bids from merchants hoping to win your business. Then pick the best offer and close the deal.
Think of it as a reverse auction with your requests center stage in a merchant bidding war. And best of all, requests are always 100% free to make. (But naturally your transactions with merchants aren't.)”

Pikaba is joining the empowered consumer bandwagon. It does a good job of offering users an alternative way to shop. The interface is clean and easy to use. By using the site you’ll be able to get the best prices, save time, and get advice.

How are merchants rated? The layout doesn’t make it easy for users to check out merchant profiles and there’s much to be desired as far as the request displays go—the text is too small and there should be on-site messaging so users don’t have to give out any personal information.