Amazon Launches Do-Good Site

On Oct. 30, Amazon.com launched AmazonSmile, a separate website that allows shoppers to direct 0.5 percent of their purchase totals toward a charitable organization of their choice.

Some products sold on Amazon.com, including Kindle e-books and other digital media products, won’t be eligible for the program. But otherwise, the pricing, selection and experience customers receive on AmazonSmile.com will be identical to the regular Amazon site.

"We’re offering customers a way to support charitable organizations around the country that’s simple and automatic," said Ian McAllister, general manager, AmazonSmile, in a statement. "We think customers will love the opportunity to support their favorite organizations without changing how they shop, and there’s no cap on how much Amazon will donate."

Customers can choose from nearly a million charitable organizations. Users select their favorite charitable organization on the first visit to AmazonSmile. They can select a new charitable organization at any time.

amazon smile cht

"Working with AmazonSmile gives us a new way to support our mission that’s simple for both us and our supporters," said Richard Shadyac Jr., CEO of ALSAC/St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Said Scott Harrison, founder and CEO of charity: water, "AmazonSmile will make charitable giving easier, which is a big win for our supporters, and, most importantly, the 800 million people on the planet who don’t have clean and safe drinking water."

The launch comes as a new survey commissioned from U.K. fundraising platform Give as you Live found that only 13 percent of consumers are noticing retailers supporting charities. The survey also found that 49 percent of Britons would spend more money with a retailer if it donated to a charity.

Similar to AmazonSmile, Give as you Live is a platform that ties charity funding to online shopping, although it provides the service to over 3,000 retailers. When consumers shop through Give as you Live, the affiliated retailer donates a percentage of what they spend to the charity of their choice. Retailers are said to benefit from increased customer loyalty, new customer acquisition, and shopper insights.

In the U.S., organizations such as igive.com provide a similar service for retailers, although online purchases tied to charities are far from common.

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Discussion Questions

How much do you think consumers are influenced to purchase by retailers’ charitable efforts? What is your take on AmazonSmile?

Poll

17 Comments
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Debbie Hauss
Debbie Hauss
10 years ago

I think if retailers make it a seamless process for consumers then most will be happy to participate. AmazonSmile and Give as you Live seem to address that issue.

Joan Treistman
Joan Treistman
10 years ago

Amazon is making it easy for consumers to do good and feel good. I think AmzonSmile will attract many shoppers, especially because it doesn’t inconvenience them. Cause marketing has always been challenging, but I think that Amazon has found a way to create greater awareness of Amazon and their good intentions while providing a link to consumers’ desires to be more charitable.

Jeff Hall
Jeff Hall
10 years ago

AmazonSmile has taken a simple concept and made it accessible to millions of consumers. This initiative is yet another way in which Amazon ups the ante in attracting shoppers during the crucial holiday season. Most people are generous and giving at heart, and this program appears to make it a win-win, allowing shoppers to give charitably at no out-of-pocket cost to them.

David Livingston
David Livingston
10 years ago

None. Most retailers have some kind of program like this. Target, its part of their REDcard. Sorry to say that charitable efforts don’t determine my purchases. I spend at Target to get my 5% rebate, not the 1% they give to my old high school.

John Boccuzzi, Jr.
John Boccuzzi, Jr.
10 years ago

Susan G. Komen for the Cure figured out an amazing model that drove charitable contributions to cure cancer while promoting brands (using the pink ribbon). I am an Amazon Prime user (lover) and will absolutely look at AmazonSmile if it means I can buy the same items at the same price and still give a .5% contribution to my favorite charity.

I am working with a start-up now that plans to use a similar model to drive usage. Deep down people want to give back. Especially if it is already backed into the cost of the product and is easy to do.

Paul Stanton
Paul Stanton
10 years ago

Good idea if the charitable organization doesn’t cost more than 20% to administer. Too many do not give enough, or spend too much on salaries leaving little for the charity.

I suggest Amazon to do the homework and set the ground rules to make this happen.

Peter J. Charness
Peter J. Charness
10 years ago

Amazon is covering all the bases here. I agree with Paul, would be nice if they used some of their technical capabilities to provide some further info as to what percentage of the donation makes it to the actual charitable cause. There’s a statistic that could be an eye opener for many donors.

Shep Hyken
Shep Hyken
10 years ago

Companies that are cause-focused can create an additional community of loyal customers that they might not normally get. Virgin Unite, part of Richard Branson’s empire, has a tremendous following. People support the retailers that give back to the community. It’s the law of reciprocity in action.

Lee Kent
Lee Kent
10 years ago

Let me put it this way. Is this program going to drive me to Amazon over another retailer? Maybe, but not so much if the other retailer has better points, deal, yada yada. What will happen is…when I go to purchase from Amazon and see the AmazonSmile option, I will take it!

Now don’t get me wrong. We do appreciate and love to see that our brands are reaching out and doing good. It goes with the whole personal connection thing that we, and especially Millennials, want with their brands. We want reasons to love our brands even more and this one will do just that!

Craig Sundstrom
Craig Sundstrom
10 years ago

I think whatever plaudits they may be due for setting up this program will have to be taken away for having it a separate site: every other website in the world – or so it seems – has some button or checkbox at the bottom line (literally) that allows a contribution within the body of the normal transaction…why would Amazon want something more complicated?

adam friedland
adam friedland
10 years ago

I think people love the idea of charity without having to pay for it. However this brings me to the question, if a company gives away 0.5 percent of say 3 billion dollars (they did 17 billion last quarter) that will cost them 150 million before their tax deduction on top of the 41 million they lost last quarter for a total loss of almost 200 million dollars. Maybe consumers will like it, but will stock holders eventually have had enough?

Martin Mehalchin
Martin Mehalchin
10 years ago

I think a charitable connection is meaningful for a significant portion of consumers, especially in a case like this where they can direct a % on purchases they probably would have made anyway with little to no perception of increased cost.

I’m a little puzzled by Amazon’s choice to set this program up on a “mirror” site with a different URL, I would have thought that they could have found a more seamless way to build it in to their overall shopping experience.

This is good news for non-profits as % for charity may become even more of a basis for competition among retailers. I would not be surprised if we see banners like Target, Staples or even Walmart implement similar programs in their .com channels.

Bryan Pearson
Bryan Pearson
10 years ago

Ninety-one percent of global consumers indicated a likelihood to switch brands associated with a good cause given comparable price and quality (Cone Communications/Echo Global CSR Study.) Fifty percent of consumers would be willing to reward such good companies by paying MORE for their goods and services according to Nielsen’s 2013 Customers Who Care Study.

Several years ago, we created AIR MILES for Social Change, one of the most innovative social change incentive providers in the world. Now the power of Canada’s most popular loyalty currency can be leveraged for the public good – by harnessing the incredible reach and popularity of the AIR MILES Reward Program, which has helped leading brands use cost-effective Reward Miles to drive large-scale shifts in consumer behavior.

Amazon is using its massive scope and reach to capitalize on consumer’s desires to reward companies who are aligned with the causes that they care about. And letting consumers choose the cause they want to support increases engagement and will ultimately increase loyalty. AmazonSmile is a game changer that may make it very difficult for smaller retailers to compete.

Sid Raisch
Sid Raisch
10 years ago

Amazon is amazing. They have this down pat. You have to wonder what would have happened if they had been hired to handle ACA. But seriously, the conversion from my Amazon Prime to AmazonSmile Prime took one click and a quick refresh. I chose a charity and they take it from there. SLICK. I used to say that retail in the world is about to get Amazonned! Now I will say that retail has been AmazonSmilePrimeLocalazzoned. It’s all but over except for the few who are already dealing with this new reality.

Brian Numainville
Brian Numainville
10 years ago

Our research has found that a third of supermarket shoppers think that community involvement is very important and another 50% believe it is somewhat important. If it’s easy to participate, effectively managed, and well-communicated, this is one more arrow for Amazon.

Alexander Rink
Alexander Rink
10 years ago

I don’t know that AmazonSmile on its own will be enough to convince users to purchase on Amazon vs. elsewhere, as I think other factors such as price, site security, etc. will play a larger role in their decision on where to purchase.

I do, however, think that the launch of the program generates positive PR for the company and improves customers’ perception of them leading up to the holiday season, and generally has a positive impact on their brand image. All else being equal, it could also very well tip the balance to a purchase on Amazon, which is their intent.

Diana McHenry
Diana McHenry
10 years ago

I love AmazonSmile. Many non-profits already worked with Amazon on donations and this elevates this goodness, makes it easy for the consumer, shows Amazon is in and great positive branding for Amazon.