posted on April 7, 2002 08:28:52 AM new
Good morning everyone!
Quick question for you.
I am thinking of opening a "verified personal account" with PayPal to hopefully get more buyers on eBay.
Here's the question. Has anyone here ever had a unauthorized withdrawal from their checking account by using PayPal? If so, was it quickly handled (straightened out) by PayPal?
posted on April 7, 2002 08:36:51 AM new
No, never had that problem with paypal. The only thing about a personal account is that you can not accept cc payments.
posted on April 7, 2002 09:12:18 AM new
The fee seems to be worth it. I have had many buyers send an email a week or two after the auction and say they forgot or "whatever" to mail the payment. I have yet to have a Paypal buyer pay later than 72 hours after auction close.
It seems that the buyer that uses paypal has the ability to pay quickly and does so.
I imagine the quick paying paypal buyers are the same ones I used to receive mailed payments from in 4 to 5 days.
Paypal also eliminates holding checks and bounced checks. Some banks charge for each check deposited. There is always the charge back problem though.
But if you ship only to confirmed addresses and have proof of receipt by the buyer, you're somewhat protected.
I can't really say if my sales have gone up since using paypal, but transactions are much quicker, getting paid and item shipped, in 24 hours rather than a week or 10 days or longer, and I suppose time is money.
posted on April 7, 2002 09:21:08 AM new
Don't know who Phil is, but reamond is not kidding. I second everything said there. Yes there are a couple of sites that list dozens of extremely unhappy users of paypal. But those sites NEVER indicate exactly what the situation was. Some sent to unverified addresses, some had charge-backs which may or may not have been justified, some sold electronically delivered items at high prices and then had the buyer's CC bounce. A couple of rules would forego virtually all the problems I hear about- DON'T LEAVE LARGE AMOUNTS OF YOUR MONEY IN YOUR PAYPAL ACCOUNT. DON'T HOOK PAYPAL TO YOUR MAJOR BANKING CHECKING ACCOUNT. Because, yes, if something goes wrong, it is often difficult to correct it.
posted on April 7, 2002 10:22:45 AM new
PayPal is great. Any merchant account bank will have as many or more complaints form retail customers using there credit cards to buy merchandise any where. And they all have rules to follow. If you don't follow them you get no recorse.
posted on April 7, 2002 10:34:44 AM new
I third what REAMOND said. I have no problems with PayPal. But, I do not have large ticket items. I refund if the buyer has a problem with their product. I don't leave a big balance in PayPal. In fact I have an extra checking accout just for paypal and I don't leave a lot in their also. It's not that I don't trust them because I do. But if there every happens to be a charge back on my account I don't want all my eggs in one basket.
Here is a great example using PayPa.
I had an auction end 4/5 11:15am, transaction paid by paypal 4/5 7:05pm Item sent 4/6 at 9am. The buyer states in his paypal note I usually pay sooner than this but I didn't get back to my hotel until 30 minutes ago. I didn't even get my WBN to him. Love those kind of buyers.
posted on April 7, 2002 10:44:34 AM new
I have paid with and received payments through Paypal before any notifications go out on ebay, and I am not talking when they have a slowdown or a 'buy it now' (which always takes longer on the notices...)
My only problem with them is that I can't have a storefront with them without having a SSN. I signed up with them to begin with because they didn't require a SSN. (they do now and seem quite adamant.)
I like paypal, move money fast, clear out my stockroom fast, less deadbeat bidders. (getting a money order is much more hassle.)
posted on April 7, 2002 11:13:28 AM new
Paypal is the preferred method of payment for most of my buyers and I don't think I would do the volume I do without it.
After reading dozens of threads about how Paypal suspended various accounts I have come to the conclusion that if you like to skirt the ethical edge, yes, Paypal could lock up your funds, and yes, they have been known to take back funds in a checking account when fraud is alleged.
However, I believe if you are a clean and above board seller who does not create unhappy buyers as a result of your transactions, you will do just fine. Most of the problems I have read about involved transactions gone bad, and sellers whose customer service consisted of not responding to complaints or trying to make things right.
These unsavory characters have raised most of the alarm and paranoia you read about Paypal. However, Paypal itself has a flawed customer service operation which tends to stonewall while the investigations have been conducted, and indeed has been stunk with substantial losses through fraud. As it tries to close the holes in its operations, it has made mistakes.
But overall, I would say Paypal functions just fine for the vast majority of sellers.
We all keep our balances modest, however, since they are not a bank.
posted on April 7, 2002 11:48:37 AM new
I'll agree also that PayPal is good for ebay bidders.
I don't know the exact figures, but approx. 75% or more pay via PayPal on my auctions.
It really does seem to be a 'preferred' method of payment for a lot of ebay buyers.
I have the business account, but never leave much in it at all. Though they say its a money market account, I still take it out, and never leave over $100 in it at any time.
posted on April 7, 2002 01:30:11 PM new
Got to jump in just one more time. (thanks for reminding who Phil is. LOL) When I see that paypal fee of 3 or 4$, I cringe a bit. But then I compare that to waiting for and worrying about checks, hauling checks and MOs to the bank, sometimes delaying shipment, etc. etc., I decide the 3 bucks was well spent. jmho.
posted on April 7, 2002 03:22:55 PM new
I've used PayPal since January 2000, and I'm more sold on the service than ever. Personal account is okay, but a Premier/Business account is much nicer.
PayPal has a lot of features, if you take the time to understand them and use them wisely it's a very powerful financial tool.
BTW, PayPal isn't just for eBay anymore. I use PayPal's BillPay feature to pay off all my credit card bills, my phone bills, etc., and it works great. Their debit card is real handy and I've used it everywhere.
posted on April 7, 2002 03:32:31 PM new
I just did some quick math, and had 100% of my customers insisted on using PayPal last month, it would have cost me $230.10.
Of course customers love PayPal. It doesn't cost them anything. That's pretty much a no-brainer, doncha think?
posted on April 7, 2002 04:53:42 PM new
Paypal is great until they aren't and then Paypal stinks. Only problem is that when they stink they also have your money. The only thing worse than some dirt bag beating you out of some money is an unethical company beating you out of some money.
posted on April 7, 2002 05:01:51 PM new
paypal is awesome concept however you may consider reading the other boards on here regarding various problems people have had with the service or lack of before making the final decision!.
posted on April 7, 2002 05:10:37 PM new
I have to say that I have never had a problem with Paypal. I found the charges high as most of my items sell for under $5, so I downgraded to a standard account, and I state in my listings that I can take Paypal, but only by direct transfer or electronic check, but NOT by credit card, I repeat it when I give postage details. Of course, I have had the odd person who had still paid by credit card, but I explain nicely that Paypal won't let me accept credit card payments with my standard account, and I am very sorry, and will deny the payment so that they are not charged, and so far, I have never had a problem. It was much easier when I could take cc payments, but much more expensive.
posted on April 7, 2002 05:23:13 PM new
Fluffythewondercat. Don't you build your PayPal charges into your handling fee or something so you wouldn't be out anything? So if you do than that is some money that you would never get if you wouldn't take paypal. It's the same with a B % M business. They pay 5% I think on everysale that they take a credit card for.
posted on April 7, 2002 06:01:22 PM new
There is no free lunch if you want to do business on the net or in a B&M store. Most of our customers that walk into our shop now pay with plastic. And each time they do, it costs us.
Selling on the internet is a lot less costly than a B&M store so I am surprised how many people whine about the charges whether it is a picture hosting service or a money transfer service. These services all need money to run.
Have some of you ever tried it out in the real world? The costs are all part of doing business, like it or not.
posted on April 7, 2002 06:16:47 PM new
kiara: I'm not whining. Whining would be paying for expensive card processing (Billpoint or PayPal), then complaining about it. I'm rather pleased I can pay myself the money I would otherwise be forking over to BP or PP for the privilege of getting chargebacks.
The first and foremost tenet of running a small business is to keep your expenses as low as possible, PARTICULARLY if you don't have the luxury of raising prices to cover your overhead. In the eBay marketplace, that is precisely the case.
intercraft: Pardon my French, but how could I do any frickin' business if my customers don't bid or pay on time? American adults seem to understand something that some AW posters have lost sight of: a great value is worth a little inconvenience.
Back in the days when the only "factory stores" were actual sheds next to a factory and not a bunch o' fancy storefronts crammed into an outlet mall, we drove many miles to shop at such places because the bargains were wonderful...a veritable treasure hunt. And none of the factory stores took plastic. Cash on the barrelhead, thank-yew-very-much. What you see is what you get, take it or leave it. Hunting for bargains was exciting, prices were low, overhead was low, everyone was happy.
I still love shopping the genuine factory stores when I can find 'em. And my business emulates them.
One of my favorite local restaurants, a charming English tea room, doesn't take credit cards. The place I buy my 20 lb bags of Science Diet doesn't take credit cards. The giant membership warehouse store where we stock up on food and household goods doesn't take credit cards. The gas station I use doesn't take credit cards. Get the drift?
I have no idea where the credit-cards-are-essential mantra came from (actually, I do...it's the same type of folks who "invented" the diamond engagement ring) but it couldn't be more wrong. You don't need to accept credit cards to be in business. Value trumps convenience, every time.
posted on April 7, 2002 06:42:25 PM new
fluffythewondercat, I wasn't meaning to single you out. It was just a statement I made after reading the boards for several years and hearing the same gripe over and over about the costs associated with doing business.
Depending on what you sell, not everyone has to take plastic and I'm not arguing that you can't be successful if you choose not to.
But in our real life store we have seen the trend towards plastic and we also see it on the internet. That's why PayPal and Billpoint, etc. have become so popular.
posted on April 7, 2002 10:42:38 PM newkiara: Last year in a fit of anger with my one of my processors, I stopped accepting credit cards in one of my boutiques. I would only accept debit payments from checking or savings. This only cost me 20 cents per transaction, no matter how large. I did not notice a drop in business. Most of my customers are college students and they all have debit and ATM cards hotwired to their parents' accounts.
In my other boutique this would not be feasible for me since most of the items are much more exspensive. My customers tend to want to charge higher priced items.
I do not plan to going back to credit cards in my first boutique. It has a reputation for good deals and people like that no matter how they have to pay.
Any merchant account bank will have as many or more complaints form retail customers using there credit cards to buy merchandise any where. And they all have rules to follow. If you don't follow them you get no recorse.