Getting to grips with the nuances of Vendor Central is no easy feat. It’s a complex platform with hyper-specific data points and terminology. Failing to understand how Vendor Central functions will negatively impact your brand’s relationship with Amazon, the integrity of your catalog on the marketplace, as well as your channel profitability, market share and revenue.

As a leading Amazon agency (according to Business Insider), Bobsled has been smashing sales targets and maintaining operational excellence on VC for years. In this tutorial series, we’re going to walk you through all the different aspects of a Vendor Central account.

There’s a lot to cover, so we’ve broken our analysis into installments. Find our Orders breakdown below - in the coming weeks we’ll be releasing further installments discussing the following: 

• Part 2 - Items
• Part 3 - Advertising & Merchandising
• Part 4 - Analytics & Reports
• Part 5 - Payments & Settings

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Vendor Central Homepage

The Vendor Central Homepage contains links to:

• New dashboard FAQ
• News feed
• Manage your invoices
• Manage your case log

Orders > Purchase Orders (POs)

In this section you can find all of the purchase orders (POs) that Amazon has made for the products that you sell. In the ‘Action Items’ section you will most commonly use the ‘Confirm New POs’ section when new POs come in, this generally happens on Mondays. You can also see the details of the previous confirmed POs and order history where you can download reports as well.

💡 Check out Is Your Vendor Central Account "Asleep at the Wheel"?

Orders > Shipments

Manage your shipments here, see details, invoices, print the BOL (Bill of Lading), submit and edit the Advance Shipment Notification (ASN) and track the status of the delivery of your shipment. You are also able to export the data as a report.

Orders > Vendor Initiated Orders

Here you can find and enroll in two of Amazon’s programs - Born to Run (BTR) and Bulk Buy Offers. This is a relatively new feature - it allows Vendors to initiate and negotiate the purchase orders Amazon makes for the products they offer in their catalog, instead of waiting for the first initial POs to come in after a listing is created. Bobsled often recommends using BTR for new product launches as a way to get an initial kickstart in sales.

Orders > Returns

Here you will see any Amazon-initiated returns that can happen if products are damaged or overstocked. You can approve the amount of units to be returned. You can find important details here such as Warehouse - FC (Fulfillment Center) which is where the return is coming from, the condition of the items, your vendor code, the authorization ID for the specific return.

Part 1 - Orders

Part 2 - Items

Part 3 - Advertising & Merchandising

Part 4 - Analytics & Reports

Part 5 - Payments & Settings

Need Strategic Support?

Understanding your Vendor Central account is the first step towards success as a vendor on Amazon. For more insight, book a consultation with a Bobsled expert below.