Is Selling Crafts with Paypal that Scary?
Many people are scared to use PayPal for their craft website. It’s a shame, since PayPal is the easier way to sell online, not to mention one of the safest and less expensive. PayPal will allow you to take credit cards payments, so you can take advantage of those impulse purchases you would loose selling only with an order form and checks or money orders.
PayPal handles the bank account and credit card information, so you don’t need to. A seller will never see the credit card number of their customers, so that information stay safe at all time. The buyer can pay immediately, and you will receive the payment in your account in seconds, plus time to clear payment if they paid with a bank account.
If you only sell a few items, you can create payment buttons that you can paste on your website or blog. Just go in Merchant Tools, and choose “Buy Now Buttons” in the “PayPal Website Payments Standard” header. Instant credit card processing!
But what kind of account do you need? If you’re not a convert yet and only want to try your hand at buying or sell a few crafted pieces, a free personal account is enough. But if you plan to sell a lot, you will need a Premier account. It will allow you to receive unlimited payments in a year, and to use recurring monthly payments (handy if you want to create a zine or a club subscription) and provide access to the PayPal Website Payment tools to create your PayPal buttons. On the downside, you will have a small fee for every payment you receive if you use a Premier account, which is free for personal accounts. (More informationl)
Also, as with normal credit card payments, chargebacks are possible. If you’re selling expensive items, you may want to use tracking when you send your package so you have a proof. But people who will do a chargeback are a minority, not worth loosing sleep over. If you have a big wholesale order or are selling something really expensive, you may want to check out http://www.escrow.com for additional protection.
No payment method is ever perfect or without risks, but I feel that using PayPal is worth it. You get the credibility of using the biggest online payment processor online, which is fully worth it. And you get your money instantly, so you can buy more supplies right away and craft! Sign up for PayPal now.
Happy craft selling,
Cindy
Suggested Reading:
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