PayPal API
PayPal opened up some basic platform functionality to developers in 2004 with the release of the first version of the PayPal API. The API operates in a request/response format over a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) connection. The first version of the API was based on SOAP web services, required client-side SSL certificates for authentication, and did not provide much in the way of development tools. This approach quickly proved to be too difficult for the average web developer. Over the past few years, though, software development kits (SDKs) for major development platforms have been released, the client certificates have been made optional, and a second interface based solely on HTTP has been developed. These improvements have lowered the barrier to entry for developing with the API, which in turn has opened the doors to innovation and integration to a much wider audience. For more information
on the PayPal API, see my next article. Two payment solutions offered by the API are discussed in the sections that follow.
PayPal opened up some basic platform functionality to developers in 2004 with the release of the first version of the PayPal API. The API operates in a request/response format over a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) connection. The first version of the API was based on SOAP web services, required client-side SSL certificates for authentication, and did not provide much in the way of development tools. This approach quickly proved to be too difficult for the average web developer. Over the past few years, though, software development kits (SDKs) for major development platforms have been released, the client certificates have been made optional, and a second interface based solely on HTTP has been developed. These improvements have lowered the barrier to entry for developing with the API, which in turn has opened the doors to innovation and integration to a much wider audience. For more information
on the PayPal API, see my next article. Two payment solutions offered by the API are discussed in the sections that follow.
Express Checkout
Express Checkout is PayPal’s most powerful and flexible checkout option. It uses the PayPal API to offer the buyer a customized checkout experience that is an improvement over the Website Payments Standard process. Instead of checking out on the PayPal website, the buyer only visits the PayPal website to authenticate, confirm a shipping address, and choose a payment instrument. Then, the buyer is sent back to the seller’s website to complete the transaction. The buyer actually clicks the final pay button on the merchant’s website, not PayPal’s. This is useful for merchants who want to offer upsells such as rush shipping and gift wrapping. With Express Checkout, the buying experience becomes a simple three-click
process for the customer.
Website Payments Pro
Website Payments Pro is PayPal’s most complete payment solution. Also based on the PayPal API, Website Payments Pro takes the power of Express Checkout and adds a second feature: the ability to process credit cards directly on the merchant website. This feature, known as Direct Payment, is currently offered in the United States and the United Kingdom. The customer enters his or her credit card details, gets an instant response, and doesn’t even know that PayPal is involved in the transaction. Website Payments Pro opens up sellers to a higher level of risk, and it is up to sellers to secure their website to make sure they are not allowing customers’ credit card data to be compromised. PayPal’s Seller Protection Policy (SPP) doesn’t cover these credit card transactions; rather, it covers only transactions where buyers pay with their PayPal accounts. There’s also a monthly fee associated with Website Payments Pro, which is currently $20 (USD) per month.
Payflow Gateway
Similar to Website Payments Pro, the Payflow Gateway also processes credit cards directly on the seller’s website. However, with the Payflow Gateway, you do not actually have to use PayPal to process the credit card. You can establish an Internet Merchant Account (IMA) with a bank and configure the Payflow Gateway to work with that account. Alternatively, you can choose PayPal to process these transactions instead of establishing a relationship with an external bank. From a developer’s perspective, the integration is unique from other solutions, and different APIs and client toolkits are used. The gateway also comes with a separate suite of reports and fraud prevention tools that are not available with the other
PayPal solutions. For more information on the Payflow Gateway, see my next article.
Virtual Terminal
Virtual Terminal is a unique solution in that it doesn’t require any development at all. It’s essentially just a credit-card processing service you sign up for and then use to process credit cards via the Virtual Terminal web page.
Virtual Terminal is useful if you want to process credit card orders over the phone, by mail, or in person. The customer does not need a PayPal account; you just enter the credit card details into the web form and process it with the click of a button. The funds are deposited into your PayPal account, and the transaction is stored in your PayPal history for later use. I don’t discuss Virtual Terminal anywhere else in the article, since this article is primarily for developers and there is no development involved with this feature. You just turn it on and use it. There is a monthly fee to use Virtual Terminal, which is currently about $20 per month.
For more information on Virtual Terminal, go to www.paypal.com/
Similar to Website Payments Pro, the Payflow Gateway also processes credit cards directly on the seller’s website. However, with the Payflow Gateway, you do not actually have to use PayPal to process the credit card. You can establish an Internet Merchant Account (IMA) with a bank and configure the Payflow Gateway to work with that account. Alternatively, you can choose PayPal to process these transactions instead of establishing a relationship with an external bank. From a developer’s perspective, the integration is unique from other solutions, and different APIs and client toolkits are used. The gateway also comes with a separate suite of reports and fraud prevention tools that are not available with the other
PayPal solutions. For more information on the Payflow Gateway, see my next article.
Virtual Terminal
Virtual Terminal is a unique solution in that it doesn’t require any development at all. It’s essentially just a credit-card processing service you sign up for and then use to process credit cards via the Virtual Terminal web page.
Virtual Terminal is useful if you want to process credit card orders over the phone, by mail, or in person. The customer does not need a PayPal account; you just enter the credit card details into the web form and process it with the click of a button. The funds are deposited into your PayPal account, and the transaction is stored in your PayPal history for later use. I don’t discuss Virtual Terminal anywhere else in the article, since this article is primarily for developers and there is no development involved with this feature. You just turn it on and use it. There is a monthly fee to use Virtual Terminal, which is currently about $20 per month.
For more information on Virtual Terminal, go to www.paypal.com/
Pre-Integrated Solutions
The problem you’re trying to solve as a merchant or as a developer has likely already been addressed before. In some cases, there’s an out-of-the-box product or service that can get you up and running in a fraction of the time it would otherwise take to build a custom solution from scratch. The PayPal Solutions Directory, located at https://www.paypal.com/us/contactus, contains a lengthy directory of such services. I will highlight a few of the more popular and reliable solutions here.
The problem you’re trying to solve as a merchant or as a developer has likely already been addressed before. In some cases, there’s an out-of-the-box product or service that can get you up and running in a fraction of the time it would otherwise take to build a custom solution from scratch. The PayPal Solutions Directory, located at https://www.paypal.com/us/contactus, contains a lengthy directory of such services. I will highlight a few of the more popular and reliable solutions here.
Shopping Carts and Storefronts
Just want to sell some stuff? Don’t have the budget or expertise to build a custom e-commerce website? A shopping cart service that is already pre-integrated to accept PayPal payments may meet your needs. For a monthly fee, many will even host your website as well, so you don’t have to maintain a separate ISP relationship. The sections that follow describe some popular solutions you may want to consider.
eBay ProStores
eBay ProStores is a hosted service, meaning you don’t have to download any software to get it running. You just sign up for the service and begin entering the items that you have for sale. You can customize the look and feel of your storefront, and your entire inventory is made available on the eBay website, so you tap into the massive eBay customer base. With solutions starting as low as $29.95 per month, this is a budget-conscious solution for businesses without a full-time developer on staff.
Yahoo! Merchant Solutions
Yahoo! provides a similar storefront solution to ProStores. For a monthly fee, you can have a custom website hosted on the Yahoo! servers that allows you to sell your items and make them available for shoppers searching on Yahoo!. The Yahoo! Merchant Solutions service has a different set of administrative options and a buyer experience that is distinctly different from that of ProStores, so if a hosted storefront solution is something you’re interested in, I suggest taking a look at both ProStores and Yahoo! Merchant Solutions to see which one appeals to you more.
Mal’s E-Commerce
Mal’s e-commerce is a very popular and cost-effective shopping cart that is used by hundreds of websites across the globe. The basic service is free to use and is integrated with PayPal’s standard checkout. The premium service (currently $8 per month) is integrated with Website Payments Pro and offers advanced shipping calculations that are fully integrated with UPS and USPS. It also allows for advanced graphical customization of checkout pages. Among the masses of shopping cart services available today, Mal’s stands out as a leader. For more information,visit www.mals-e.com.
osCommerce
osCommerce is the most popular shopping cart software in the world. The fact that it’s open source and free probably has something to do with that. It requires some technical skill on the part of the person implementing the site to set up and integrate it, and there are many plug-ins that can be added to the basic package to enhance the basic functionality of the cart. Several PayPal plug-ins are floating around out there, but I recommend using the official Website Payments Pro PayPal plug-in available for download on PayPal’s Developer Central site at www.paypal.com/developer. For a simple way to customize the look of your osCommerce site, you can acquire a template from PixelMill (www.pixelmill.com) that can give a unique, professional look to your osCommerce-based website. For more information, visit www.oscommerce.org.
osCommerce is the most popular shopping cart software in the world. The fact that it’s open source and free probably has something to do with that. It requires some technical skill on the part of the person implementing the site to set up and integrate it, and there are many plug-ins that can be added to the basic package to enhance the basic functionality of the cart. Several PayPal plug-ins are floating around out there, but I recommend using the official Website Payments Pro PayPal plug-in available for download on PayPal’s Developer Central site at www.paypal.com/developer. For a simple way to customize the look of your osCommerce site, you can acquire a template from PixelMill (www.pixelmill.com) that can give a unique, professional look to your osCommerce-based website. For more information, visit www.oscommerce.org.
Digital Goods Delivery
Selling digital files such as e-books, software installers, or MP3s is a booming business, but there are many issues surrounding security and digital rights management that merchants must face in order to reduce their fraud losses. Services such as the two described in the sections that follow help merchants prevent their files from being stolen by malicious end users. They are both pre-integrated with PayPal and easy to set up and use. If you need to sell digital content on your website, consider one of these services.
E-Junkie
E-junkie is based on PayPal’s IPN technology, which is discussed in detail in my next article. You can either upload the files you are selling to E-junkie’s servers or have E-junkie manage a remote download from your servers. You can specify the number of allowable downloads and an expiration date for the files, and you can brand your product download page to look similar to your website. E-junkie is also free for nonprofit organizations. For more information, visit www.e-junkie.com.
E-junkie is based on PayPal’s IPN technology, which is discussed in detail in my next article. You can either upload the files you are selling to E-junkie’s servers or have E-junkie manage a remote download from your servers. You can specify the number of allowable downloads and an expiration date for the files, and you can brand your product download page to look similar to your website. E-junkie is also free for nonprofit organizations. For more information, visit www.e-junkie.com.
PayLoadz
PayLoadz is a well-established service that provides a simple method to sell downloads. Also based on IPN, it is a similar service to E-junkie with some key differences. PayLoadz offers bulk upload and FTP upload, as well as an API to access the service. Additionally, PayLoadz has a feature called AffiliateBuilder that will allow other sites to sell your digital content for a configurable commission rate. PayLoadz also has an entire storefront of digital files offered by its users where you can list your downloadable product for sale. For more information, visit www.payloadz.com.
Accounting and Invoicing
While some businesses use PayPal as their sole solution for both payment processing and order tracking, many use PayPal as just one piece of the bigger business management puzzle. Tools such as those described in the following sections may solve a particular need for you.
While some businesses use PayPal as their sole solution for both payment processing and order tracking, many use PayPal as just one piece of the bigger business management puzzle. Tools such as those described in the following sections may solve a particular need for you.
Blinksale
Blinksale offers a very user-friendly way to send invoices to customers that allow them to pay you via PayPal. Depending on the service level you subscribe to, you are limited to how many invoices you can send. Blinksale offers a slick way to customize the look of your invoice templates, and it can be automatically configured to send payment reminders and thank-you notes. For more information, visit www.blinksale.com.
Blinksale offers a very user-friendly way to send invoices to customers that allow them to pay you via PayPal. Depending on the service level you subscribe to, you are limited to how many invoices you can send. Blinksale offers a slick way to customize the look of your invoice templates, and it can be automatically configured to send payment reminders and thank-you notes. For more information, visit www.blinksale.com.
Microsoft Office Accounting
Microsoft Office Accounting is a financial management program designed for companies with a couple dozen employees or fewer. It includes features such as payroll, invoicing, job tracking, and banking, plus full integration with Microsoft Office programs. Two components of the package are integrated with PayPal. First, the invoices you send clients can include a link for them to submit payment directly to your PayPal account. Obviously, this allows your customers to pay you with a few clicks the instant they receive their invoice. Second, you can register to be able to process credit cards directly through the Microsoft Office Accounting application using PayPal’s Website Payments Pro solution, without having to go through the trouble of configuring your API access or doing any other type of
messy integration. In addition, you can download your completed payments data directly into
the Microsoft Office Accounting tools, for a seamless merger with the rest of your accounting
data.
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