Amazon adds tech resources for large business customers
The latest enhancements to the Amazon Business business-to-business procurement store are aimed at large companies.
In May 2024, Amazon kicked off its third annual Small Business Month with the launch of a new interactive online resource center called Small Business Success Studio and a small business grant program.
Now, the e-tail giant is unveiling a number of new technology features designed for large users of Amazon Business, including the Amazon Business App Center, system for cross-domain identity management, and integrated quoting.
Amazon Business has also made a number of updates to its budget management and guided buying solutions for business buyers in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, France, the United Kingdom and the United States.
These technologies are designed to help large business customers, including multinational enterprises, universities, government agencies, education organizations and healthcare networks, simplify and modernize the way they shop for business supplies.
Brief highlights follow:
- Amazon Business App Center is a new one-stop shop where business customers can discover, set up and connect their Amazon Business account with more than 25 third-party applications from around the world. Solutions in the App Center include integrated shopping, accounting management, expense management, inventory management, rewards and recognition and business analytics.
- System for cross-domain identity management is a new feature that automatically syncs users and group data from their organization’s identity provider with their Amazon Business account, helping administrators spend less time on maintaining and updating it.
- Budget management streamlines the process of setting and reviewing time-bound budgets across an organization. Now, business customers can set spend thresholds and make budget amounts visible to buyers to get ahead of overspending. Amazon Business also launched new ways to manage budgets including real-time tracking and usage reports, notifications when a budget is about to expire, pre-purchase approvals, and an option to create one purchase order instead of multiple, manual orders.
- Guided buying provides a new toolbar which enables account administrators to now instantly prefer products with sustainability certifications in the Climate Pledge Friendly program with a single click. Users also restrict, block and require an approval for certain product categories with an eligible Business Prime plan.
- Integrated quoting is a new feature that helps business customers generate custom quotes for Amazon Business bulk orders as well as other suppliers via third-party e-sourcing and e-procurement platforms. Integrated quoting is aimed at business customers purchasing more than 1,000 items or more than $10,000 in total value. After requesting a bid, the feature centralizes an organization’s request for quote activity.
"Amazon Business wants to change how companies shop for supplies through our unmatched selection, deep discounts, and smart capabilities,” said Shelley Salomon, worldwide VP of Amazon Business. “We don't just react to the biggest challenges our customers have shared with us; we get ahead of them with new technologies so our customers can use their resources to navigate the unexpected and continue expanding their business.”
Amazon Business has more than 6 million business customers, ranging from sole proprietors to multinational enterprises. Features and benefits include a curated site experience, Business Prime, business-only pricing and selection, single or multi-user business accounts, approvals workflow, purchasing system integrations, payment solutions, tax exemptions, and dedicated customer support. Amazon Business is available in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan and India.