MrConsumer recently received an offer from Amazon via email inviting him to get the Amazon app and if he did so, he would get $10 just for signing into the app.
Clicking through to their website reveals that Amazon left out a key detail of their free $10 offer.
*MOUSE PRINT:
Rather than giving $10 to the recipient of the email offer if one takes their wording literally, Amazon is requiring a minimum $20 purchase be made in a very narrow window of time and not from any marketplace seller.
While most people might make at least a $20 purchase anyway, the point is that the offer should have been made clear in the email. It is not merely “get $10” when signing into the app for the first time, it is “get $10 off a $20 purchase.”
This should be reported to the appropriate consumer protection agency.
This is fine-print 101. Amazon should be ashamed.
While this does seem a little shady, it’s a ploy used so often by companies trying to get you in their “doors.” I know I’ve gotten e-mail with coupons for various amounts or goods, only to find out on the site that I also have to purchase two adult dinners, or coupons only good Monday through Thursday, or the ubiquitous “$10 off $20.” It’s a Buyers Beware world, and if it seems too good to be true, think about it.