Is PayPal Express Checkout by itself enough?

[optimalwebsite]

HI all

Is PayPal Express Checkout by itself enough to run a zen cart shop? Will I need any other merchant accounts? I need to know all this before I set it up. I know it's a newbie question. :-)

Warm Regards,


Joel - Optimal Website

[fairestcape]

The payment options you want are entirely up to you. Each payment module functions independently of all others, so you can install those you feel you need. The payment options you offer customers depend on your own business policies.

[optimalwebsite]

The point is, is this "enough" for an online shop? Will I need anything else, or is this a complete solution.

Warm Regards,


Joel

[fairestcape]

Who knows if it is "enough"? Your customers will tell you - either by purchasing from you or not.

As PayPal is effective for online C-Card payments as well as via PayPal membership, it should be sufficient.

A few years ago, to have PayPal as the only payment option suggested that the vendor was operating the business out of a garden shed - as PayPal was used mostly (almost exclusively) by one-man operations, flogging stuff on e-bay that had been stored in their garage for 10 years.

But PayPal has matured (or at least the perception has). Today, many big companies use paypal.

If you set up other merchant accounts, bear in mind that you will have to pay fees for these, so your operating costs for payment gateways could increase a lot.

I have a client who uses PayPal exclusively for C-Card gateway - they turn over more than £100k annually.

[stevesh]

To answer your question, yes, it's 'enough' to make your Zencart shop work. as long as your customers have some way to pay you, you're good to go.

Whether it's a good idea or not, I think, depends a lot on what you're selling, and, more importantly, to whom.

If you're selling video games mainly to younger people, for example, you might get away with PayPal only. If you're selling high-dollar stereo equipment, no chance.

I have a PayPal account, but only use it to buy one-off products or rare stuff i can only find on eBay (and then only if that's all the seller accepts). If you want to sell me stuff I can buy in a lot of places, you're going to need a proper credit card merchant account.

Our sites are mainly B2B and we don't even offer PayPal as an option - never had a request for it.

[optimalwebsite]

We're selling glass jewellery in the £10-£30 range, and a few high end pieces of glass scuplture for approx £1,500, although these are more "features" than for sale through the website.

[stevesh]

Here in the US, you can get a 'real' credit card merchant account for $30 or so a month, plus the usual percentage of the sale. That's $360 a year. Seems pretty cheap to me and will, in my opinion, make your site seem a lot more professional. When I see a 'PayPal only' site, I assume the owner isn't really serious about his/her business. It's mostly about perception, I guess.

[Flux1231]

I have found that Paypal alone is not a good idea. I have had this happen on many orders and the outcome was NO SALE.

Say the customer has a card with paypal but has not variifed and has it limited to just $1000 dollars, the customer will not be able to finish the transaction. The have tried to pay as if they did not have an account with them but the minute you enter the cc number they force you back to their page and you go in a endless circle.


Bottom line get a merchant account

I have found this to be a great deal = CDG commerce. com

hope this helps


Flux

www.just4electronics.com