You can find reviews and ratings for local services online, but that’s only part of the equation. Don’t you also want to know if you will get a good price?
I do… So I created billdb.com, a web app that shows costs for local products/services.
It’s searchable database of prices people have paid and where. What does each veterinarian charge to spay a cat? Who provides the cheapest oil change in your town? Which plumber has been charging the lowest rate? Which car dealership has been giving the best out-the-door price, inclusive of any surprise markups? Is your current dentist charging you a fair price?
On billdb.com, you can quickly and easily search by product/service and location. Just like with reviews, it’s community-driven, so it’s up to us to post what we’ve paid and where.
Thanks for the feedback!
I definitely agree regarding qualifiers. Currently, you can indicate whether the cost includes tax, tips, other fees, or insurance. You can also note whether it was a quote vs. something you actually paid. Those details show up if you expand a given cell.
Categories sound good. I’m trying to keep it as lean as possible at first, so I’ll likely take a direction like that once there’s more data in place.
Sounds like I can make the location part less ambiguous… It currently tries to center results around Google Maps’ idea of where you are (based on IP address, I think), but you can enter an explicit location or tap the pin to be prompted to use your more precise location per the browser.
Agreed about the history state… I’ll at least limit it to when the search box loses focus.
As I think you’ve alluded to, I think the biggest challenge is getting a ton of data, so I’ll probably need to provide more sign-in options and maybe target a niche at first.