Are you considering integrating Amazon EDI with Amazon Vendor Central? Or you have just received EDI payment from Amazon and wondering what type of EDI payment you have received?
Well, now you don’t need to worry about anything. We are here to answer all your queries regarding what is EDI payment from Amazon and how can you integrate Amazon EDI with Amazon Vendor Central.
EDI Payment From Amazon
EDI payment from Amazon is the small amount of money that is deposited in the Amazon vendor’s bank account. These deposits are separate from regular deposits and are sent for various reasons.
In this article, you will get to know about the different types of EDI payments from Amazon that you can receive, the benefits and limitations of EDI payments, and all the possible reasons you can receive EDI payments for. Moreover, you also step by step learn to integrate Amazon EDI. So, make sure to read till the end.
Let’s start with what EDI is.
What is EDI?
EDI stands for Electronic Data Interchange which refers to the dealings of business documents between business partners in the standard electronic data format.
Electronic Data Interchange system has significantly replaced traditional paper documents and switched to electronic format. It is based on a computer-to-computer network that involves no paper, and no people! Interesting?
Well, EDI uses a predefined standard format that computers can understand and communicate with each other.
What is EDI Payment?
EDI payment is the electronic format of payment data exchanged among businesses. EDI payment transaction does not involve the transfer of money. It is more about exchanging encrypted business documents, invoices, bills, purchase orders, and related information regarding payments.
Coming with huge benefits, Electronic Data Interchange payments require less operational costs and speed up the process as there is no need for getting paper documents. So, you can save money as well as time increasing your business’s productivity.
Also, with EDI payments, you can have effective communication with your business trading partners as it works in electronic format and does not require manual data entry. So there are fewer chances of mistakes and better relations.
Now that you have understood what is EDI, let’s get into what is Amazon EDI payment.
What is Amazon EDI Payment from Amazon?
Amazon usually pays a few bucks to its Amazon vendors that are separate from their regular deposits. That electronic payment is called Amazon EDI payment.
When an EDI payment is made, ACH, the Automated Clearing House Network is responsible for processing these electronic payments. To receive the amount, you are required to enter your bank account information on Amazon. Soon, your electronic payment data gets processed and gets into your bank account.
The biggest advantage of Amazon EDI payments over other traditional forms of payment is the quick process and automated system that lets you receive the payment electronically in no time.
Why Am I Receiving EDI Payment from Amazon?
If you are receiving EDI payments and you have no clue why you are seeing these small deposits in your bank account, let me list down all the possible reasons for it.
- With the help of the Amazon Affiliate Marketing Program, you might have generated some money from Amazon Associates.
- There might be any Amazon third-party ad network like Google AdSense that has paid you.
- If your Bank account is U.S.-based and you have enabled ACH, then you might be receiving a small deposit for the verification process of your account.
- It could be an unlabelled commission. This is the revenue generated by any closed accounts that are associated with the Amazon affiliate marketing program.
These are some of the probable reasons for your EDI payment. If you still need help identifying the reason, you can look for the details of the transaction on your bank account statement. Or the best way is to directly contact Amazon Customer Service to learn more about what was sold.
What Are the Types of EDI Payments from Amazon?
There are several types of EDI payments you can receive. Most commonly EDI payments involve transactions of
- Invoices
- Billing documentation
- ASN (Advance Shipping Notice)
- Purchase orders
- Purchase order acknowledgment
- Payment orders
- Warehouse shipping order
- Cost inventory update
- Functional acknowledgment
What is the EDI payment on my bank statement?
On a bank statement, EDI refers to the digital exchange of payments between your business and another. Whether your payments are processed through EDI or not, typically depends on the type of bank account you have.
If you are thinking to associate your business with EDI payments anytime soon, you must first contact your bank and learn about the options they have with EDI. Talk about it, and carefully choose what goes with your business.
What Are the Limitations of EDI?
Where the EDI system comes with numerous advantages, the limitations associated with the system cannot be left out.
While you can transmit purchase orders, invoices, shipping notices, and a lot more using EDI, you cannot share product details, features, designs, and descriptions. Also, you cannot negotiate with price changes and all the other things about product creation.
Moreover, the EDI system does not let you work and edit things on your product catalog. Adding to it, you are only allowed to update the status of your products in stock only once a day.
What Are the Benefits of Amazon EDI Payment?
EDI-integrated Amazon vendor account comes with numerous benefits you can look for. Let’s have a look at each of them.
● More Efficient and Time-Saving in Processing Orders
Unlike manual data entry, automation and digitalization of the Amazon EDI system have reduced the time for processing documents.
● No Paperwork Is Involved
Amazon EDI system uses an electronic format cutting out the need for paper documentation. So, it’s the best option if you want to get rid of the paperwork burden.
● More Accurate Data With Fewer Chances of Errors
With an EDI system, there is no manual data entry and the whole process is carried out automatically by the computer. So, except for any system error, there is no chance of mistakes.
● Improves Relations With Amazon Vendors and Suppliers
Amazon’s EDI system allows people to communicate effectively and keeps them updated with the prices, inventory levels, and the status of the marketplace.
● Cost-Effective
With no paperwork and people involved, there is no need of printing documents or hiring professionals for manual labor.
How Can I Integrate Amazon EDI With Amazon Vendor Central?
After learning about some great benefits of EDI integration, you must be thinking of integrating the EDI system with your Amazon Vendor Seller Central account. To make the process easier for you, we have discussed the step-by-step guide to it.
First, let’s start by learning about the features of Amazon vendor central and how is it different from Amazon seller central.
What Is Amazon Vendor Central?
Amazon Vendor Central is the platform where the market suppliers, distributors, or manufacturers can sell their products directly to Amazon. When you are a certified vendor, Amazon purchases your products. Then these products are sold and shipped by Amazon to the consumers.
However, note that you can only register for Amazon vendor central upon an invite sent by Amazon. If Amazon is interested in what you are selling, they send an invite for you to join.
What Are the EDI Requirements for Amazon Vendor Central?
Amazon Vendor Central is incomplete without EDI documentation. Now if you are invited to join Amazon vendor central, to get started with EDI integration, there are a few things to be considered.
Firstly, when you are logged in to your account, ask the Amazon administration for access to the self-service start-up. With further proceedings, you will be required to fill out a self-service survey form. For that, you have to keep the following things handy:
Product IDs:
Product IDs are the unique set of digits that are used to specify and distinguish the product you are selling in the marketplace. These codes are also used in your EDI documents when you have an exchange with Amazon.
There are several options for product IDs that you can choose from:
- Amazon ASIN (Amazon Standard Identification Number). This is Amazon’s product ID for every product on its retail website.
- UPC (Universal Product Code)
- EAN (European Article Number)
- GTIN (Global Trade Item Number)
- ISBN (International Standard Book Number)
- SKU (Stock Keeping Unit)
To receive any orders from Amazon, firstly you will need to specify item identifiers and the type of measurement unit you would like to use. Measurement units include Each (EA), Case (CA), Unit (UN), and Pounds Equivalent (PE).
Measurement Codes:
To have your products listed on Amazon’s website you need to provide these Measurement codes for every product you sell:
- Length (L)
- Width (W)
- Height (H)
- Cube (CUBE)
- Weight (WT)
With the help of these measurement codes, the dimensional weight of the product is analyzed. It is extremely useful for calculating the shipping fee.
Sender and Receiver IDs:
You can think of sender and receiver IDs like the “to” and “from” email addresses you need when sending an email. Sender/receiver IDs are essential IDs you are required to set up for verification purposes.
Sender/Reciever IDs are made up of an EDI qualifier and an ID number. When any EDI document is exchanged, the EDI trade partners including Amazon need to possess the Sender/Receiver ID to validate the EDI document. This also ensures that the EDI documents are transmitted smoothly.
Connection:
To establish a connection between your Amazon Central Vendor and the back-end systems you need to choose any one of these 3 connection options: VAN (value added network), AS2, and SFTP (Secure File Transfer Protocol) which is hosted by Amazon itself.
The importance of a fast, secure, and reliable connection for EDI exchange can never be denied. The smoother the transactions, the better the relationship with your trading partner.
Usually, for EDI payments, it is always preferred to use an AS2 connection as it is known for its reliable, secure transfer. AS2 protocol ensures end-to-end encryption of data with the help of its identity certificates.
Product Information:
At this moment you will be required to put on some product information to carry out testing. Before you start working on Amazon Vendor Central, Amazon would like you to run a test by processing sample EDI documents. This is done to ensure that you are having a proper connection and secure transfer.
You might have to specify the product information such as the type of item i.e. in-stock, backorder, discontinued, or invalid item. In addition to that, you have to set the cost of the item, case quantity, and list price.
Amazon Vendor Central EDI Documentation:
There is a variety of Amazon EDI documents. But you have to choose and provide Amazon with the ones that resonate with your business.
The most common Amazon EDI documents include:
- X12 EDI 810 Invoice: It contains things like the cost of the products, order payments from Amazon, payment terms, and all the related data.
- X12 EDI 846 Inventory Inquiry/Advice: This is used to inform about the inventory levels of the products in stock and the quantity that is to be sold to Amazon.
- X12 EDI 850 Purchase Order: This is used by Amazon for placing any order. It includes the type of order, details of the item, shipping details, etc.
- X12 EDI 855 Purchase Order Acknowledgement: This is to update the status of the order you have received. You can mention if the order is accepted, back ordered, or rejected. Also, if some items are unavailable, it is mentioned in it. Moreover, you have to provide a timeline for the delivery of goods.
- X12 EDI 856 Ship Notice/Manifest: It includes all the shipping details such as the quantity of the items being shipped, package IDs, tracking information, etc.
There are some additional EDI documents as well you can choose if you need them. You will have to specify each document you use.
FAQS
Can I Get the Amazon EDI Integration Done by Myself?
Not really. If you have the knowledge and understanding about managing EDI messages in your internal system, you can integrate the EDI system yourself.
However, the case is different if you are unfamiliar with the flow of data in an ERP system and face technical difficulties in handling EDI messages. Then you might need a software expert to carry out the task.
How Long Does it Take To Complete the Amazon EDI Integration Process?
It can take around 2 weeks to 9 weeks to complete the process depending on the complexity and the scale of the system you want to implement.
To make the process easier for you, you can work with an Amazon EDI expert who knows the system well. They can help you with the requirements and get you started soon.
How Much Does It Cost for EDI Integration With Amazon Vendor?
Well, for EDI integrations you can expect to spend a good amount of money. Mostly it depends on the complexity of your EDI system.
If you go for basic stuff, it will charge you 3-4 figures. However, if you are setting up EDI for a huge business or an organization, you must make up your mind to spend thousands of dollars.
If you want to try some cost-effective solutions, you can choose an EDI service provider like
TrueCommerce or EDI lobster. They will charge you a monthly fee and cover all the expenses for the software, maintenance, and upgradation.
Conclusion
Now that you have come so far to the end of the article, I highly hope that we have solved your query. You have learned all about Amazon EDI payment, its types, limitations, and its advantages.
With our simplified Amazon EDI integration process, I hope you are all set to scale up your business. If you still need any help or have any queries you may drop them in the comment box. We would love to help you out!
