So there you have it. I probably keep Amazon.com afloat. I no longer want to calculate my yearly spend (although I have my Quicken account set up to do just that, I can't make myself look any longer). Amazon is highly adept at personalization. They make it too easy for me to buy from them: 1-click ordering, premier shipping, and personalized recommendations are just a few of the tools that make it too easy to buy.
During my evening commute yesterday, I was pondering my Amazon fed book addiction. I concluded that willpower isn't going to solve my problem, but maybe technology can. Amazon, how about implementing spending limits, much like the credit card industry uses? No? Ok, how about allowing me to set a monthly Amazon.com spending budget? Hmmm...still determined to be my enabler? Or, alternatively, how about a subscription that allows me to prepay a set amount per month? That would encourage me to spend my monthly allotment with care! (This works for me on Audible.com. Oh, did I forget to mention that audio books and digital books are part of my weakness as well?)
Since I doubt that Amazon is interested in voluntarily limiting my expenditures at their site, what I need is a mashup...something that will allow me to use Quicken, or a similar personal finance tool, to impose a ceiling on my monthly Amazon spending. This new tool should allow me to impose preset override limitations as well, such as:
- forcing me to wait 48 hours before a budget increase could go into affect (the equivalent of freezing a credit card in a block of ice)
- preventing me from raising my spending limit without the approval of a self determined "enforcer" (the equivalent of a note from mom?)
Obviously, the tool should work on other online shopping sites as well, and ideally enable me to manage my budget for a number of sites. Would I subscribe to this service? Absolutely. Until then, maybe I'll find a book or two on willpower...
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