Amazon Services adds new desktop Order Notifier Tool (ASON) for Sellers

[mandy]

Amazon Services Order Notifier Launch Announcement

Amazon Services is pleased to announce the pending release of the Amazon Services Order Notifier application on January 15, 2007. The Amazon Services Order Notifier (ASON) is a Microsoft Windows desktop application designed to make managing your incoming orders quick and easy.

When ASON is launched, an icon is added to your Windows system tray in your task bar. Running in the background, it periodically polls Amazon.com to retrieve any new orders you have received. When new orders arrive, ASON displays a user-friendly “pop-up” notification to let you know that you have new orders:

http://g-images.amazon.com/images/G/01/r..._ssn01.png

You can also view up to 30 days of your past orders in the Order History window:

http://g-images.amazon.com/images/G/01/r..._ssn03.png

ASON also allows you to view the details of each order and even print shipping labels and packing slips. The detailed order descriptions include all the items in the order, the shipping information for the buyer, and a detailed breakdown of all the fees and charges on the order:

http://g-images.amazon.com/images/G/01/r..._ssn05.png


Benefits of the Amazon Services Order Notifier

Why would I want to use the Amazon Services Order Notifier in addition to the tools already offered by Amazon Services?

• It’s always running! - You can leave ASON running all the time, and you’ll always be up to date on your new orders.
• No logging in! – When you install ASON the first time, it authenticates itself with your account, so you don’t need to log in every time you launch it.
• More reliable! – Because ASON is based on Amazon Web Services technology, it retrieves orders directly from Amazon.com.

http://www.amazonsellercommunity.com/for...dID=128135&tstart=0

[mandy]

Amazon launched its tools yesterday:

Amazon Services is pleased to announce the first beta release of the Amazon Services Order Notifier and the public release of the Event Notification Web Service. These new technologies will allow you to retrieve your order notifications in new and more reliable ways.

The Amazon Services Order Notifier

The Amazon Services Order Notifier (ASON) is a Microsoft Windows desktop application designed to make managing your incoming orders quick and easy.

When ASON is launched, an icon is added to the Windows system tray in your task bar. Running in the background, it periodically polls Amazon.com to retrieve any new orders you have received. When new orders are retrieved, ASON displays a pop-up notification to let you know...

The Event Notification Web Service

The Amazon Event Notification Web Service (ENS) allows you to enable third-party software applications to retrieve event information from your account in a reliable and secure manner. Using the Event Notification Web Service, your software application can retrieve notifications about events in your account. Order notifications are now available through this service, and other types of account event notifications, such as for claims and payments, will be available in the future....

full announcement and screenshots: http://www.amazonsellercommunity.com/for...dID=129627&tstart=0

[mandy]

Auctionbytes has an article on ASON:

Amazon's Marketplace sellers range from individuals selling a few used books per year to regional bookstore chains with thousands of daily transactions. After several seller accounts were compromised by scammers using phishing techniques in 2006, Amazon began a security crackdown and warned sellers it would discontinue the order emails this month.

"When Amazon scraps the emails, they'll be forcing sellers into a more secure environment," said Kevin O'Brien, founder of SpaceWare.com, a provider of software tools for Amazon sellers. "They'll also be forcing sellers to maintain their customer information in a more secure manner. This is good for sellers and buyers alike."

Since Amazon invited third-party merchants onto its site in 1999, it has sent order notifications via "Sold, ship now" emails containing buyer names, shipping addresses, and email addresses. Most sellers have used the emails as their primary customer-service tool, cutting and pasting the transaction details onto shipping labels and packing slips. Many high-volume sellers also depend on the emails, which they parse and import into databases...

full article: http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y07/m02/i16/s02

[mandy]

Update: ASON is out of beta

Greetings.

We're pleased to announce the release of the Amazon Services Order Notifier application (ASON). ASON is a Microsoft Windows desktop application designed for reliable, quick and secure notification of your new orders. It also helps you process and ship your Amazon Marketplace orders.

Feature Highlights:

    * Notification of new Amazon Marketplace orders in real-time.
    * Order management features:
          o 30 days of your order history
          o Shipping, packing and transaction information
          o Print shipping labels and packing slips
    * Pop-up notifications.
    * Enable/disable automatic launch when your computer starts.
    * Export order data to a comma-separated file.
    * Copy-to-clipboard functionality, allowing you to copy order information into other applications.

full announcement: http://www.amazonsellercommunity.com/for...dID=131806&tstart=0

[amy]

I haven't tried it because I use Fillz for order management.