Amazon Smile gets a frown | Seth's Blog

I've used Amazon Smile from time-to-time over the years.

To date, Amazon Smile has sent charities more than $500,000,000. That’s not a ‘donation’ of course, it’s simply an allocation of marketing spend. And yet, half a billion dollars makes them a very significant donor in aggregate, one of the biggest corporate donors in the world.

I had no idea that it raised $500M for charities. I’m also surprised that Amazon decided to discontinue the program. They cited low usage. Why not solve that problem instead of just shutting it off? I would have loved for Amazon Smile to be backed into the normal Amazon experience. Certainly that would have driven engagement and resulted in a positive message instead.