This is a sponsored post with Amazon.
Art supplies, books, barrettes for her ribbon barrette fundraising venture, and even a new pair of boots are some of the recent items Emily has asked me to purchase using our family’s Amazon account. As often as we use Amazon, this process isn’t seamless because I often forget about her request until she leaves a reminder note. Then there’s the issue of payment. Sometimes there’s a gift card she’s received that is added to our account for payment. Other times there’s cash exchange at the kitchen table for items I purchase and are automatically charged to my credit card. I’ve always thought there could be a better way and now there is: Amazon has just introduced a convenient way for teens ages 13-17 to shop on Amazon.
At almost 14, Emily is good at managing her money. She’s a popular babysitter who never seems to be short of cash because she is savvy at saving her disposable income, often doing her research as part of the purchasing process. It’s clear she’s a consumer who is making smart purchasing decisions and I want to empower her to keep making good decisions with tools like her own Amazon login.
Amazon empowers teens to be independent in the decision-making process but doesn’t relinquish full purchasing power to your teens to rack up tons of charges on the credit card linked to your Amazon account.
Setting Up Your Teen with their own Amazon Login
This new offering is available for all Amazon users and takes just minutes to setup so your teen can have their own login. I got started by visiting amazon.com/forteens and in less than two minutes, Emily had her very own Amazon login. I just had to enter payment method for her orders, designate if I wanted to receive order notifications for items she wanted to buy by text or email, and add her name to a delivery address on our account.
After the quick set up process, Amazon sent Emily an invitation to download the Amazon App.
She received a push notification on her phone to download Amazon on her phone to share our account and get her own login.
Parents with more than one teen in their house can add up to four teens up to age 17 to their account for free. Amazon makes you enter in your teen’s birthday and limits the range of years to those 13-17 so there was no chance of me adding a login for Emily’s 11 year old brother, Thomas. He just has to wait a couple more years!
How Purchases Work Through Amazon App
Teens can browse for items and when they find an item they want, they place an “order” through the app and receive a text confirming that their order request was sent to their parent.
Parents receive a text or email (depending on your notification preference) showing the item, cost, shipping address, and payment information. Amazon App default settings require parents to approve each order.
Orders can be approved by text or by visiting your Amazon orders page to review it in more detail. Parents receive an itemized notification for every order and can cancel and return any item in accordance with Amazon’s policies.
Parents also have the option to skip the approval step and set pre-approved spending limits. This allows your teen to have the freedom to place orders up to a certain dollar amount on their own. If this is something you’re comfortable doing in your house, it’s also helpful to know that your teen can include a personalized note about the item they’re purchasing like, “This is the book I need for class” or “Birthday gift for BFF.”
While Amazon Prime isn’t required to use this program, families who have a Prime membership can share these benefits with their teen at no extra cost:
- Prime Shipping: Unlimited fast, Free Two-Day Shipping on more than 50 million items
- Prime Video: Unlimited access to tens of thousands of movies and TV shows
- Twitch Prime: In-game loot on Twitch and 20 percent off most pre-release boxed games
6 Reasons Amazon Works for Me and My Teen
I appreciate how Emily having her own Amazon login gives her the freedom to explore one of her favorite shopping sites from her own login to make smart purchasing decisions.
1. Get Started in 3 Easy Steps
Your teen’s Amazon login couldn’t be easier to set up! I started by going to amazon.com/forteens and clicking on the Get Started Now button. In three easy steps, I entered Emily’s contact information, selected the payment method for purchases I approve, added her name with our address for shipping, and specified my preferences for reviewing, approving, and declining purchases. Emily received an invitation to install the app on her phone via a text message. She clicked to download it, set up her login, and was browsing in a matter of minutes.
2. Empowers Young Consumers
As parents, we are trying to teach our kids so much and financial responsibility is an important life lesson. Since this Amazon feature has parents approve purchases by default, it allows us to have conversations about spending, saving, and personal finance with our kids.
3. Encourages Age Appropriate Independence
As hard as it can be to let go of the reins, there are life skills that come with our kids having purchasing power. I appreciate that Amazon recognizes the importance of this and allows us to grant independence to our teens by skipping the approval step and introducing spending limits so they can place orders up to a certain dollar amount without asking us for permission when we feel that they’re ready for such responsibility.
4. Promotes the Importance of Researching Purchases
How many times do we research a product before we buy it? Amazon encourages your teen to do the same thanks to features like ‘customer reviews’ and ‘comparison shopping’ tools. But if a purchasing mistake is made, teens can cancel and return any item in accordance with Amazon’s policies and purchases are backed by their A to Z guarantee.
5. Tailored Recommendations and Lists for Your Teen
Gone are the days where your Amazon search history and recommendations are a mish mash of various family members. Now that Emily has her own login, she receives product recommendations and lists tailored to her own shopping history and interests. She also has access to her order history (but not mine!).
6. Select Prime Benefits Apply if You Have Amazon Prime
While Amazon Prime is not required for teens getting their own login, parents with Prime can share select benefits with their teens. Benefits include Free Two-Day Shipping, Prime Video so they can stream thousands of popular TV shows and movies, and access exclusive content and video game offers via Twitch Prime at no additional cost.
With age comes growing independence and I love that this Amazon login gives teens like Emily a way to shop on their own but still keeps us parents in the know so we can provide the guidance they need. To set up your teen with his or her own Amazon login, visit amazon.com/forteens.
This post was sponsored by Amazon and The Motherhood. I was provided with a gift card to experience Amazon with my teen. All opinions are my own and based on personal experience.
You are so good and responsible with your kids. I think this would be a wonderful way for kids who’s parents are involved. I also think this would be a good way to encourage responsible behavior. It looks like a great way to teach responsibility.