Argos is working with Buyapowa to offer its customers the opportunity to request deals on products they want and then reduce the price by getting others to back their campaign.

Using the customised Buyapowa platform, shoppers can click and fill in a products details to request a co-buy from 29,000 in the Argos catalogue. But co-buys are limited to popular requests at present.

Once youve joined a co-buy you are guaranteed to get the product, but users are encouraged to share widely on Facebook and Twitter as the more people that join, the lower the price goes. In the FAQs, Argos says that if a certain person brings in enough referrals, they can get their purchase for free. The buying process isnt one-click but users can sign in with Facebook or Twitter to pre-populate certain fields and start sharing deals with others.

Each co-buy opportunity only lasts for a specified period and there are only a certain number of products on offer. Argos’ first live deal is for a radio alarm clock that should cost £29.99 but has dropped to £14.99 as more than 25 people have piled in to the deal. The cut-off point for this deal is 30. People can add their email address to upcoming co-buys so they are notified when it goes live.

The Buyapowa platform is already being used by Tesco and Clinique.