PayPal TAKE 234234.23 - Your opinions!

[Sincraft]

Ok - Keep in mind I haven't had OS running in a live environment yet running paypal, so I am a bit biased and not qualified to give advice on this subject, so I will give my views and hopefully you all will follow up with yours to finally get an idea as to how viable Paypal is as a payment option for OScart and other cart systems.

 

-First off: paypal is inexpensive. The rates paypal charges are much less expensive that the standard merchant account/gateway charges.

-2nd: paypal is now just as easy as putting in your normal credit card info.

-3rd: the fraud protection is excellent.

 

What are your views on PP? Pros - Cons - What headaches can one expect to experience selling multiple items with quantities in stock. I did notice one contrib that allows a product to be put out of stock temp while pending transactions occur through paypal. However we have a rolling stock situation so that isn't a problem for us.

 

Other than that...I am just wondering what you all feel about this.

 

S

[Guest]

#1. paypal is close, yet higher than most paypal merchant accounts.

#2. yes, but they also want every0one to join.

#3. have you read your agreement thouroughly? if someone comes back and says they didnt get their product (yet they signed for it or ups/fedex left it at the door) you get your funds frozen.

[ozcsys]

The costs make sense if you are not doing a lot of business as you do not have any monthly minimums.

 

I think the biggest drawback is while your customers do not have to signup for an account to pay paypal still takes a shot at getting them onboard.

 

As far as chargebacks go you can protect yourself by following their rules so I think they are as good or better in that respect as any other processor. To be protected you must deliver to the verified or billing address and you must get a signature. I have had a few chargeback attempts with them and while they do freeze the amount in question during the process I have never had it take more than a day for them to let it go once I sent them proof that the product was signed for at the proper address.

[Sincraft]

im seeing alot about issues with PP. What IPN do you guys suggest using? Many posted have issues or errors just in the downloads - which isn't a good thing hehe. Just wondering. I tried version 1.0 and get nothing but errors in the admin tool. The newest version states 'this is an updated file as the old one caused admin tool errors' but does not correct the issues.

 

S

[radders]

I am considering removing the Paypal option from my site because of their blatant advertising of Ebay on the Paypal confimation page. I don't know if this is occurring on my site but i paid one of my suppliers through Paypal and was shocked to see an Ebay advert with the clear implication that I could have bought it cheaper through them. I know you can't get away from their adverts any time you turn on the radio or open a newspaper but you have to draw the line somewhere!

 

I have tried to speak to one of theri representatives about it but I am getting the usual brush off which amounts to 'read the terms and conditions'.

[♥Vger]

For start-up business, and for longer-term businesses with low site volumes, it is still the best system to use, whatever its other drawbacks. I have searched high and low for a viable alternative for low volumes of sales and have not found one. Yes, there are others out there - but I did say 'Viable'

 

Once you get to about ?20,000 a year in sales then it is worthwhile going for a merchant processing account, such as the HSBC E-secure system - but only once you have that level of sales.

 

Vger

[Sincraft]

Thanks again. :)

I just tested everything, works pretty good. Just have to get used to the reporting systems etc.

My client should be happy. I saved him alot of money. He was originally looking at spending about 120/month for hosting/gateway/merchantaccount/shopping cart etc. Now he's down to 5.95/month. In return, he is cutting me in for 10% of all sales for the first two years. If anything, I should see some $$ for my efforts.

 

I really like OSC now that I have a hang of things. I can't wait to open MY store. My girlfriend and I are selling candles that we make. Hope it goes well too. :)

 

Anyway, thanks again Vger..

 

S

[wizardsandwars]

The numbwer one drawback to paypal is the same now as it has always been.

 

In order for your customers to use it, they have to be re-directed to paypal to make payment. Unless the customer already has an active paypal account, this WILL be a deterrant. That's not saying you won't get sales, but it IS saying that you will lose some. Maybe even alot. I don't know about you, but when I first started out, I needed every sale I could get.

 

Also, make sre you understand that until you get a pretty good volumne giong, paypal is actually more expensive than a regular merchant account. I think you have to start out at like 2.9 % + .35 per transaction.

 

Sure, there isnt a monthly fee, but that's still about .70 % + .10 higher per transaction than most merchant accounts. And most merchant accounts and payment gateways cost about $30 per month total. Not to mention the numerous places that offer free setup of gateways like authorize.net.

 

IMO, if you are serious about business, you'll probably want to offer your custoemrs both, a regular marchat account for customers to pay you while still on your site, and paypal, for those that prefer to use their services. That way you don't deter anyone.

[bglkk]

-3rd: the fraud protection is excellent.

 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

We are frustrated with their fraud protection, and find Paypal orders riskier than orders we can check with through the combination of Linkpoint with Maxmind. Sure, Paypal offers something called "Seller Protection Policy" but rarely does an order qualify as "Eligible" for that policy... We find the most basic fraud protection is provided by checking the IP address where the order was placed--can do with Linkpoint, cannot with Paypal (unless I'm missing something).