Typically when someone uses a vending machine, they receive something. According to Desert News, in Salt Lake City, Utah, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints installed four vending machines that allow consumers to give back. Each machine offers different items from different charities. One machine is sponsored by Care.org and has items such as school shoes ($30). A second machine, sponsored by Utah Food Bank and Eye Care 4 Kids offers things like small food items for $3 to glasses ($5) and eye exams ($20). A third machine is sponsored by nonprofit organizations WaterAid and Water for People and allows consumers to donate bottled water. The last machine has free items – cards with scriptural references and ideas for acts of service. These vending machines exemplify a change in the industry by becoming a contribution that allows users to give instead of receive. It changes the way they perceive the typical transaction, adding value to the exchange. It is because this charitable cause has meaning that the user is able to interact emotionally with the charity by way of the receptacle that is helping to transmit the charitable operation.
