Using Amazon Business
December 13, 2022
It is important to remember that Amazon should be used only if an item cannot be found through a Northwestern Preferred Vendor. The purpose of using Amazon is to complement the Preferred Vendor catalogs already in iBuyNU. The Preferred Vendor catalogs cover millions of SKUs with deeply discounted pricing and should be used whenever possible. Adding Amazon helps fill some of the gaps from a product availability perspective that still exist.
Amazon Business may be accessed by departments through two different avenues. The first option is to utilize the Amazon Business catalog in iBuyNU. The second option is available for Corporate Card holders.
- Amazon in iBuyNU (preferred method for most items)
- Shoppers and requestors may shop the punchout catalog in iBuyNU
- Orders placed through iBuyNU are processed as requisitions/purchase orders and payment is settled from the purchase order
- eBooks can now be ordered through the iBuyNU Amazon catalog, however; they must be separate requisitions (a cart cannot include regular items)
- More information, including an FAQ guide, can be found in our summer 2020 newsletter article
- This method of ordering from Amazon allows for workflow approvals prior to an actual Purchase Order being created, which is considered a best practice when buying goods and services at Northwestern.
- Amazon account for Corporate Card holders
- Those who have a Corporate Card may contact the Corporate Card office to request access to the Amazon Business account, in which they are able to make purchases from that account, using their Corporate Card as the form of payment
- You must make sure your Northwestern email address is used
- More information can be found on the Corporate Card webpage
Other important reminders
Because the University has purchased Amazon Prime to be used for business purposes through iBuyNU, or when using a Corporate Card associated with the Amazon Corporate Card Business Account, departments and schools should never purchase separate prime memberships.
Northwestern email addresses should never be associated with an Amazon personal account. If you shop Amazon via iBuyNU or your Corporate Card associated with the Corporate Card Amazon Business Account and your Northwestern email address is associated with your personal account, you may experience issues and purchases made through your Amazon Personal Account may be viewable to Northwestern Amazon Administrators. This also creates tax risk since the University is tax exempt but you as a person are not.
If you have any questions, please contact PPS Customer Service.