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PayPal as payment processor for web hosting company

Discussion in 'General Web Design Discussion' started by shovenose, Nov 13, 2011.

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    shovenose Account Closed

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    I've got the Business account, I just never tried to figure out how to use the whole Business side of things...

    But now I want to do just that. I've got 4 hosting plans, Which I want people to be able to pay monthly or yearly (max. 1 year). I want it to be recurring automatically until they manually cancel.

    How would I accomplish this?


    shovenose, Nov 13, 2011
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    TheGAME1264 The Displaced Web Redneck Moderator

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    TheGAME1264, Nov 13, 2011
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    shovenose Account Closed

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    But Authorize.net costs money... PayPal doesn't!
    I'm not going to have enough customers (at least at the beginning) for a paid solution.


    shovenose, Nov 13, 2011
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    TheGAME1264 The Displaced Web Redneck Moderator

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    Yeah, but you may not be able to pick up enough customers using PayPal exclusively. It's a bit of a catch 22.

    Remember, you're entering shark-infested waters. You're going to have a LOT of competition and LITTLE reward.


    TheGAME1264, Nov 13, 2011
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    shovenose Account Closed

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    Why would using PayPal affect how many customers I have?


    shovenose, Nov 13, 2011
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    TheGAME1264 The Displaced Web Redneck Moderator

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    Hosting customers are geeks. And geeks find things to criticize...stupid, small, petty things a lot of the time, but in this case, they'd have a pretty big thing. WebHostingTalk would likely chew you up and spit you out just because of this.

    It's really easy to set up a fly-by-night hosting company using PayPal as a payment processor. All you'd need is an account to funnel the money into. I know of a guy that lives about an hour from me that's been doing it in the adult industry for about 10 years. You set up a proper payment processor with an SSL on the other hand...that means you're investing in your business and it means you're probably going to stick it out for a while.

    There are a lot of hosting customers that are very aware of this, and it's something you're going to have to deal with.


    TheGAME1264, Nov 13, 2011
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    shovenose Account Closed

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    I just bought an SSL certificate for my entire website, like 20 minutes ago. I just have no idea how to set it up but I do have one :)
    And if ShoveHost.com isn't a total flop I will invest more into it and make it better... but that hsa to happen gradually. You know what I mean? I can't put $5000 into this at once. I can put $50 in, then $100 next month, if I get some customers... you know what I mean?


    shovenose, Nov 13, 2011
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    TheGAME1264 The Displaced Web Redneck Moderator

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    Yeah, I hear you. Just be prepared for some flak for this.


    TheGAME1264, Nov 13, 2011
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    shovenose Account Closed

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    Some what?

    It's a PITA to set up SSL. lol


    shovenose, Nov 13, 2011
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    Webzarus Well-Known Member

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    Most people ( including me ), see pay pal as the only payment option and immediately turn away. You may have great servers with great connectivity and provide the best customer support, but there is a stigma... Or should I say perceived stigma with a company that only offers pay pal as their only payment option.

    Most big business are just getting around to adding pay pal as an alternate, but only after receiving several request for it. I recommend to my clients to use their current merchant accounts because they are already paying for the service, if they receive request equal to 5% of their monthly request for pay pal, then we normally set it up, but not before.

    I've had clients in the past that only had pay pal, and they got so much feedback from customers that pretty much said, get a real payment processor and we'll do business with you.

    Again, it's a perceived stigma that just exist.. Can't explain it, but it does.


    Webzarus, Nov 13, 2011
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    shovenose Account Closed

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    How about I see how it goes and if I get feedback then I will possible spend more money to integrate a real payment gateway.


    shovenose, Nov 13, 2011
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    Webzarus Well-Known Member

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    It's entirely your call, was just telling you my and some of my clients experience when it comes to pay pal.

    Just to re-inerate what the game said, most people looking for hosting are geeks... Those that have had a bad experience with hosting in the past ( most ), will do their research before purchasing... I'm sure there is a market for what you're offering...

    Hope it works out for you.


    Webzarus, Nov 14, 2011
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    TheGAME1264 The Displaced Web Redneck Moderator

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    I do too.


    TheGAME1264, Nov 14, 2011
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    shovenose Account Closed

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    Didn't mean to sound like I was brushing off your advice. Sorry if it came across that way.
    No, I perfectly understand what you're saying about ONLY accepting PayPal. However, it's very convenient because they can pay with their credit card even if they don't have a PayPal account (I think?)
    I would spend money on getting a real payment gateway but right now I'm just getting over the ridiculous amount of time/money spent getting SSL set up (if you go to shovehost.com it will redirect you to https:// it's making me very happy lol) I need to have an income before I go spend more money on payment gateway :p
    Of course, if I had 2 additional customers paying for my most expensive hosting plan I would do it :p
    (are you going to take the hint TG and Webzaruz? :rofl: ) then I might consider it...


    shovenose, Nov 14, 2011
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    TheGAME1264 The Displaced Web Redneck Moderator

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    Dude, you won't come up with a hosting plan that could meet my needs. :p

    And it's not a matter of convenience. It's a matter of stigma and perception. Stigma and perception trump convenience. People see PayPal as the only processor, particularly geeks, and they're going to be worried.


    TheGAME1264, Nov 14, 2011
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    Webzarus Well-Known Member

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    My son has been driving a truck for several years, making a decent living even with fuel prices the way they are. We discussed buying a truck and going out as an independent operator.

    After 3-4 months of research we decided on a particular truck but we were still struggling on he type of trailer he needed to buy. Bought the truck ( used but low miles ), started researching the freight rates. Found that refrigerated freight commands consistently better rates on many of the lanes across the country.

    A dry van or flat bed trailer was much cheaper and would have been the convienent choice. We found and purchased a refrigerated trailer because it offers him more options in the freight he can haul and the rates are much better.

    Because of our research and business choices based on the industry, he now makes 4-5 times the money than if we had went with the " convenient " choice... Yea it cost more to do it this way but he will have paid me back on the truck and trailer in less than 1/2 the time.

    In business, convience should only be a consideration for the customer.


    Webzarus, Nov 14, 2011
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